Weekend Weather Outlook

Old Man Winter is ready to make a triumphant return this weekend across the eastern half of the U.S. Meanwhile, a cool and cloudy pattern will dominate the West Coast.
 
Saturday
 
The leading edge of an Arctic blast will make its way into the Northern Plains on Saturday. Snow showers and gusty winds are likely across the Dakotas and Minnesota, where near-blizzard conditions can be expected thanks to blowing snow.
 
Farther east, a cold front will make its way across the Ohio and Tennessee valleys toward the Eastern Seaboard. Mild air will spill ahead of the front, bringing rain showers from southern New England to the Carolinas. Spots in the Great Lakes will see rain changing over to snow, with a rain/snow mix possible into the Ohio Valley.
 
Outside of a few snow showers in the Rockies, the western half of the U.S. will be privy to quiet weather on Saturday.
 
Temperatures and wind chills will start to be the story starting Saturday. Highs will struggle to reach zero across the Dakotas and Minnesota, with wind chills of minus-20 to minus-30 degrees. From the northern Rockies to the Great Lakes, highs will reach the 20s and 30s, while a ribbon of 40s will stretch from the Pacific Northwest to the central Plains and New England.
 
Milder 50s and 60s will be found from the Mid-Atlantic to the Gulf Coast, while 70s and 80s will be found in south Texas and Florida. An onshore flow will dominate the West Coast, keeping clouds plentiful but temperatures and fire risk down. Highs will reach the 50s in northern California and the Great Basin, with 60s in southern California and the Desert Southwest.
 
Sunday
 
Saturday’s cold front will stall out along the Eastern Seaboard, allowing for a developing coastal storm to march from the Carolinas toward New England. With colder air seeping in from the Great Lakes and Plains, a plastering of 2 to 4 inches of fresh snow is anticipated from Washington, D.C., to Boston.
 
Meanwhile, the southern end of the front and low pressure system will produce rainfall from the Carolinas to Florida, with the threat for a few thunderstorms in the Sunshine State. Likewise, the back edge of the front-and-storm will produce snow across the Ohio Valley and start to fire up heavy lake-effect snow for the western Great Lakes.
 
The Arctic blast will be in full force across the northern tier, with highs below zero from eastern Montana to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. This doesn’t even include the wind, which will make the air feel more like minus-20 to minus-30 on Sunday. Even as far south as Nebraska, Iowa, and the Chicago area, temperatures will hold in the single digits, with wind chills well below zero. Highs will reach the teens and 20s from the central Rockies to the interior Northeast, with the coastal storm holding readings along I-95 in the lower 30s.
 
Milder 40s will be found from Texas to southern Virginia, with the 50s and 60s limited to the Carolinas, Georgia and the Gulf Coast. Across the East, the only spot to see 70s and 80s will be Florida. Meanwhile, cool and cloudy conditions will keep temperatures in the 40s across the Northwest, with 50s and lower 60s in the Southwest.