This article focuses on what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term U.S. outlooks (up to four weeks) and a six-day World weather outlook which can be very useful for travelers.
First the NWS Short Range Forecast. The afternoon NWS text update can be found here after about 4 p.m. New York time but it is unlikely to have changed very much from the morning update. The images in this article automatically update.
Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
Sat Feb 01 2025
Valid 12Z Sat Feb 01 2025 – 12Z Mon Feb 03 2025…Unsettled weather to bring lower elevation rains and heavy mountain
snowfall across the Pacific Northwest and the northern Rockies going
through the weekend……Strong atmospheric river to bring heavy rains and flooding concerns to
areas of central and northern California……New storm system ejecting out across the northern Plains will bring
accumulating snowfall to portions of the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes and
Northeast…A switch to a very unsettled weather pattern is underway across the
Northwest and much of the West Coast as a more zonal flow pattern unfolds.
This will bring moist onshore Pacific flow with lower elevation rains and
increasingly heavy mountain snowfall for the Cascades and also the
northern Rockies. Going through Sunday, as much as 1 to 3 feet of new
snowfall is expected over the high terrain, and snow levels will actually
be falling with time as colder air also settles south from southwest
Canada. This allow temperatures to drop below normal with high
temperatures as much as 5 to 10+ degrees below average by the end of the
weekend.As unsettled weather impacts the Northwest, strong deep layer Pacific flow
along with a quasi-stationary front will become situated over central and
northern California and this will set the stage for a persistent and
strong atmospheric river to impact the region. Heavy to excessive rainfall
is expected for the coastal ranges, including areas around the Bay Area,
and especially areas farther inland into the foothills and higher terrain
of the northern Sierra Nevada. Multi-day rainfall totals through Sunday
for the coastal ranges may reach see as much as 3 to 6 inches. However,
for the upslope areas of the Sierra Nevada, as much as 6 to 12 inches of
rain is forecast, and with high snow levels, there will be strong concerns
for flooding. This will include a threat for burn scar flash
flooding/debris flow activity locally. Heavy rains will be impacting the
Sacramento Valley and some flooding will be possible here as well. The
Weather Prediction Center has depicted a Slight Risk of excessive rainfall
across the region (level 2 of 4) to address the multi-day flooding
concerns associated with this impending atmospheric river activity.Meanwhile, a new storm system related to the unsettled weather unfolding
across the West will begin to eject east out across the northern Plains
later Saturday through Saturday night this will bring a threat for several
inches of accumulating snow to the Upper Midwest. This system will then
begin to lift up into southeast Canada going through Sunday, but will
bring a threat for snowfall also across portions of the Great Lakes region
and the Northeast where there will be sufficient cold air in place. In the
wake of this system, much colder air will be settling southward across the
northern Plains which will allow temperatures to begin returning back to
below normal.Elsewhere, very mild temperatures with above average highs can be expected
across much of the rest of the Plains region and the South. In some cases
across the Plains and Midwest, the temperatures this weekend will be as
much as 15 to 20 degrees above normal. Many areas of the Southeast and the
Southwest will also be warmer than normal with highs as much as average 5
to 10+ degrees above average.
To get your local forecast plus active alerts and warnings click HERE and enter your city, state or zip code. If the Hazards Outlook is not updated click here but remember it does not update during the weekend.
Learn about wave patterns HERE.
Then, looking at the world and of course, the U.S. shows here also. Today we are looking at precipitation.
Please click on “Read More” below to access the full Daily Report issued today.
| Notices: What would you like to learn about? Please provide that to me via the comment section at the end of the article. |
Now more detail on the 48-Hour Forecast (It is a 48 to 72 Hour Forecast actually)
Daily weather maps. The Day 1 map updates twice a day and the Day 2 and 3 maps update only once a day. These maps update automatically. But if that does not happen, you can get updates by clicking HERE
TODAY (or late in the day the evening/overnight map will appear) (Key to surface fronts shown on maps and you will then also be able to insert a city name or zip code and get a local NWS forecast).
TOMORROW
NEXT DAY
We have a new animation of the forecast which shows how things may play out over the next 60 hours. To update click ANIMATION. Doing so will get you to the dashboard. You can then step through the animation or hit LOOP on the upper right of the display. You will have to hit the back arrow ← at the top left on your computer to get back into this article. It is a little more trouble than before but I think NOAA scrapped the animation routine I was using so we have to keep up with “progress”.
The NWS Climate Prediction Center’s: Watches, Warnings, and Advisories plus other information can be found HERE. That takes you to the NWC Severe Weather Site. From there you can select among many categories of information. Remember to hit the back arrow ← at the top left of your screen to return to this article.
ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS
This tells us what is approaching the West Coast. Click HERE to update If I have not gotten around to doing the update. Here is some useful information about Atmospheric Rivers.
Below is the current five-day cumulative forecast of precipitation (Updates can be found HERE)
Ski SnowReports
New Feature – Ski Reports. It is difficult to find reports that auto-update on-screen (and they are very long) but these links will get you to them – If you have additional suggestions make them in the comments section after every Econcurrents Article and we may add those links. We will try to not have too much overlap as that can add to the confusion.
Snow Forecasts. And remember this shows natural snow. Ski resorts also make their own snow.
Day 1
Day 2
Now we look at Intermediate-Term “Outlook” maps for three time periods. Days 6 – 10, Days 8 – 14, and Weeks 3 and 4. An outlook differs from a forecast based on how NOAA uses these terms in that an “outlook” presents information as deviation from normal and the likelihood of these deviations.
Below are the links to obtain updates and additional information. They are particularly useful if you happen to be reading this article significantly later than when it was published. I always try to provide readers with the source of the information in my articles. These links may also be useful for those viewing this article on a cell phone or other small screen.
| Days 6 – 10 (shown in Row 1) | Days 8 – 14 (Shown in Row 2) | Weeks 3 and 4 (Shown in Row 3 but updates only on Fridays) |
| https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa. gov/products/predictions/610day/ | https://www.cpc.ncep .noaa.gov/products/predictions/814day/ | https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/predictions/WK34/ |
Showing the actual maps. They should now update automatically. The Week 3 – 4 Outlook only updates on Fridays. So below is what I call the Intermediate-term outlook. On Fridays, it extends out 28 Days. That declines day by day so on Thursday it only looks out 22 days until the next day when the Week 3 – 4 Outlook is updated and this extends the outlook by one additional week.
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10
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HAZARDS OUTLOOKS
Click here for the latest complete Day 3 -7 Hazards forecast which updates only on weekdays. Once a week probably Monday or Tuesday I will update the images. I provided the link for readers to get daily updates on weekdays. Use your own judgment to decide if you need to update these images. I update almost all the images Friday Night for the weekend edition of this Weather Report. So normally readers do not need to update these images but if the weather is changing quickly you may want to.
Temperature month to date can be found at https://hprcc.unl.edu/products/maps/acis/MonthTDeptUS.png
Precipitation month to date can be found at https://hprcc.unl.edu/products/maps/acis /MonthPNormUS.png
World Forecast [that website is has been intermittent so be patient]
Below are the Day 1 -3 and 4-6 forecasts for temperature and precipitation. Updates and much additional information can be obtained HERE
World Temperature Anomalies
World Accumulated Precipitation
This information is provided by the University of Maine. They draw upon many different sources. There is a lot of information available at the link provided. I have just provided two useful forecasts. There are probably over a hundred different forecasts available from this source.
Worldwide Tropical Forecast (This is a NOAA Product)
This graphic updates on Tuesdays) If it has not been updated, you can get the update by clicking here Readers will only have to do that if they are reading this article much later than the date of it being published.
Information on Tropical Storms can be found HERE. Western Pacific information can be found HERE. Note that unless there is an out-of-season storm the below images will not update until the National Hurricane Center starts their seasonal update of these maps on June 1. I include them simply because there can be an out-of-season event in which case it should show up in these maps.
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| I hope you found this article interesting and useful. |
