442 

FXUS01 KWBC 200811

PMDSPD



Short Range Forecast Discussion

NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD

400 AM EDT Wed May 20 2026



Valid 12Z Wed May 20 2026 - 12Z Fri May 22 2026



...Severe weather and flash flooding threats across portions of

the Southern Plains into the Arklatex through the next couple of

days...



...One more day of record heat along the East Coast before cooler

air arrives...



...Below normal temperatures to overspread the Southern Plains,

Midwest and gradually the Northeast U.S. over the next couple of

days...



A deep low pressure system passing north of New England will

advance a cold front eastward into the East Coast through the next

couple of days.  Meanwhile, the trailing end of the front will

become nearly stationary across Texas.  The slow motion of the

front while interacting with moisture from the Gulf with

additional ejection of upper-level troughs from the southern

Rockies will bring a couple of days of unsettled weather for the

southern Plains.  Western Texas will likely see strong to severe

thunderstorms today into tonight before the strong thunderstorm

and heavy rain threats broaden and shift slightly toward the east

on Thursday from central Texas through the Arklatex region into

the mid-Mississippi Valley.  This is in response to the upper

trough exiting the southern Rockies and moving into the southern

Plains.  By Friday morning, the system will begin to lift

northeastward with showers and some strong thunderstorms arcing

across the east-central U.S. and south across the lower

Mississippi Valley and Arklatex.



Meanwhile, another upper trough from western Canada will dip into

the northern Rockies, bringing a broadening area of rain and

high-elevation snow across northern Rockies into the northern High

Plains beginning later today through Thursday.  From Thursday

night to Friday morning, this upper trough will interact with the

southern Plains upper trough to bring a period of rain from the

northern Plains down into the central High Plains with wet snow

along the Front Range of Colorado.



Along the East Coast, another day of record heat is expected from

the Mid-Atlantic to New England before the arrival of the cold

front.  The recent spell of heat will be replaced by wet and cool

weather on Thursday for the northern Mid-Atlantic but the

Southeast including Florida will remain hot and humid as the front

stalls across North Carolina.  A cool high pressure system will

keep temperatures below normal across the northern tier states to

the central Plains.  Rainfall overspreading the Ohio Valley,

Mid-Atlantic and areas of New England should largely be beneficial

as many of these areas are dealing with an ongoing drought.  The

West Coast will remain dry with highs reaching into the upper 90s

in the Central Valley of California by Thursday afternoon.





Kong





Graphics available at

https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php









$$