A strong arctic cold front is bringing bitterly cold air and brisk, northwest winds to the Upper Midwest, creating dangerous wind chill values through Thursday morning. Some locations could see wind chill temperatures as low as 35 degrees below zero. Out west, a Santa Ana Wind event is bringing strong winds to parts of southern California. With dry conditions, increased fire danger is expected.
The strong front extending from the Lower Great Lakes a long the Appalachians then westward to the Southern Plains will move off the East and Gulf Coast by Friday. The system will produce light snow over parts of the Lower Great Lakes that will move eastward to the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic by Thursday evening. The snow in general will end over the Northeast by Friday morning. Behind the front, cold high pressure over West-Central Canada will move southeastward to the Ohio and Lower Mississippi Valleys by Friday. Lake effect snow will develop downwind from the ice free areas of the Great Lakes Wednesday evening ending by Thursday evening. In addition, circulation around the high pressure will produce upslope flow over parts of the Southern Rockies/Southern High Plains. Snow will develop over parts of the Southern Rockies through Wednesday evening. Rain will develop over parts
of the Southern High Plains that will move into the Lower Rio Grande Valley by Thursday morning.
Meanwhile, another front over the Northern/Central High Plains will move eastward as a warm front to the Upper/Middle Mississippi Valley by Friday morning. The system will produce light snow over parts of the Northern Plains on Thursday morning that will move eastward to parts of the Upper Great Lakes by Friday. Elsewhere, upper-level energy and a plume of moisture will nick the the Northwest Coast producing light rain a long parts of the northwest coast of Washington State through Friday.