Today's Weather Outlook

A one-two punch of weather systems will impact the U.S. today, bringing a wide variety of spring weather to almost every part of the nation.

A slow-moving low pressure system will drift from the central Plains into the Great Lakes for the middle of the work. A warm front will lift across parts of the eastern U.S., while a cold front slices through the nation’s midsection. As a result, extensive precipitation will be found across the eastern two-thirds of the U.S.

The central and southern Plains, Midwest, Lower Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast will also see rain and thunderstorms today. The best chance will occur in the morning and afternoon for the Plains and Mississippi Valley and then the afternoon and evening elsewhere. Strong to severe weather will also be likely, especially from the southern Plains into the Midwest and Lower Great Lakes. Here, there will be a good chance of damaging winds and large hail. Strong tornadoes will also be possible.

Snow will be the predominant precipitation type across the northern Plains, Upper Mississippi Valley and Upper Great Lakes. Though, sleet and freezing rain could mix in at times in the morning, while snow could mix with and possibly change over to rain at times in the afternoon and evening. Expect mainly freezing rain or a mix of freezing rain, sleet and snow in the interior Northeast during the evening, with rain soaking the rest of the Northeast.

Meanwhile, a large upper-level weather system will be settled over the West today. This will also lead to widespread precipitation along and west of the Rockies. Occasional rain showers will occur along the coast and lower elevations, while snow piles up in the mountains and higher elevations. The best chance of rain and mountain snow showers will be from late morning into the early evening.

The coldest temperatures will be found in the tallest peaks of the Mountain West, with highs only in the 20s. Thirties and 40s will be common for the rest of the Mountain West into the northern Plains, Upper Great Lakes and interior Northeast. Milder 50s and 60s are expected for most of California and the Desert Southwest into the central Plains, Lower Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic. The southern Plains, Midwest, Deep South and Southeast will all see the mercury climb into the 70s and 80s, with a few spots approaching 90 degrees in Texas and Florida.