The main weather story through the beginning of this weekend will be associated with a storm system and attached cold front forecast to complete its trek through the eastern U.S. by late Friday.
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On the cold side of this system, moderate to locally heavy snow is exiting the Midwest this afternoon and is anticipated to spread into more of the Great Lakes tonight.
By early Friday, this burst of snow will likely enter the northern half of Maine, where maximum snowfall totals could add up a foot.
Meanwhile, a stripe of sleet and freezing rain is also possible just to the south, extending from northern Indiana and southern Michigan to parts of the Lower Great Lakes and northern New England.
For much of the Southeast and areas ahead of the approaching cold front, it will feel more like April rather than February this evening, with the potential for severe thunderstorms and flash flooding into early Friday.
A strong cold front interacting with an anomalously warm and moist airmass in the East will continue to spark numerous showers and thunderstorms tonight.
SPC has issued an Enhanced Risk (level 3/5) of severe thunderstorms across Middle Tennessee and much of Alabama and Mississippi.
Damaging wind gusts, large hail, and tornadoes are all potential hazards associated with theses thunderstorms.
Also, the threat of heavy rain could lead to addition flash flood concerns as storms move relatively slowly this evening through the eastern Ohio/Tennessee Valley and nearby southern Appalachians.
A Slight Risk (level 2/4) of Excessive Rainfall remains in effect through Friday morning across this region.
The showers and thunderstorms should consolidate into a more linear segment along the cold front by Friday, while also picking up speed and exiting the East Coast by Friday afternoon.
This should limit the risk of any additional severe weather for flash flooding concerns to end the week.
This cold front will also usher in much colder temperatures compared to current readings, closer to the climatological averages for mid-February.
Elsewhere, high pressure building into much of the central U.S. and extending toward the Southeast by the weekend will allow for mostly tranquil conditions throughout the Nation.
In fact, the only other meaningful precipitation to speak of is forecast to be found across the northern Rockies and Pacific Northwest, where several inches of fresh snowfall are possible across the higher terrain. ■