Wednesday's Weather Outlook

Mother Nature delivers a typical spring pattern on Wednesday, bringing a wide range of impacts from chilly temperatures, soaking rain and mountain snow to dangerous storms and summer-like heat.

A low pressure system will slowly drift from the Great Lakes into the Northeast on Wednesday. This low pressure will also drag a cold front throughout the Eastern Seaboard. Rain and thunderstorms will be found in the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and western portions of the Northeast throughout the day. Rain and storms will also spread to the rest of the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast in the afternoon and evening. Across Appalachia, there will be the potential for strong to severe thunderstorms. The main concern would be strong winds, though some hail cannot be ruled out.

There has been a nearly stationary front that has been draped over the Florida Peninsula over the last few days. This front will slowly push south for the middle of the week, passing through southern Florida. All of Florida into southern Georgia will have rain and thunderstorms chances as a result. Though, the best chance will occur in southern Florida in the afternoon and evening.

On the opposite side of the country, an upper-level weather system will come barreling into the Western U.S. Precipitation will occur in the Northeast throughout Wednesday, which will also spread south and east into the Great Basin and Rockies during the afternoon and evening. Overall, temperatures will be too mild for wintry precipitation, so there will be widespread rain and thunderstorms. Temperatures will be cold enough across the northern Cascades for wet snow or a rain/snow mix.

If dodging raindrops wasn’t enough, strong to severe thunderstorms will also be a possibility in the northern Rockies. Thunderstorms will have the potential to produce damaging winds and large hail.

Chilly, below normal temperatures will be in the forecast across the Eastern U.S. as well as the Northwest. Otherwise, unseasonably warm temperatures will be in store for the Southwest, Rockies and Plains.

The coolest temperatures will occur in the Great Lakes, Northeast and the Northwest. Here, temperatures will generally peak in the 50s and 60s. However, the Cascades and areas closest to the U.S.-Canada border could only see highs in the upper 30s and 40s. Seventies and 80s will be most common throughout the U.S. on Wednesday, including in northern California, the Great Basin and northern half of the Plains into the Mississippi and Tennessee valleys, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. Nineties will be scattered throughout the Southwest and southern Plains and there could even be some spots that see triple digit heat!