The Nation's Weather 11.26.09

By WEATHER UNDERGROUND (AP)

Wet weather was expected to turn into snow over much of the Northern U.S. on Thanksgiving Day as a system hovered over the Great Lakes.

A strong low pressure system was forecast to slowly persist on its eastward track and pull cool Canadian air into the Northern Plains and down the Mississippi River Valley. A cold front was expected to extend south from the center of the system and extend over the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, and wrap back around westward into the Southern Plains.

The system was expected to continue kicking up scattered showers over the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley regions, while the southern end of the front was forecast to remain drier. Less than a quarter of an inch of rain was expected and could turn into light snow by evening.

In the Upper Midwest, the system was forecast to produce light and scattered snowfall throughout the day. Less than a half of an inch was expected. The front also could bring strong winds with gusts up to 30 mph.

A chilly Thanksgiving Day was expected in most of the Central U.S. with the North remaining in the 30s and the South reaching into the 60s. Frost and freeze advisories were expected to remain in effect over the Southern Plains and parts of the Southeast as overnight lows could dip into the 30s.

The Northeast could see increasingly cloudy skies throughout the day with precipitation later in the day. Most of the East Coast was expected to see high temperatures in the 50s and 60s.

Out West, the Pacific Northwest was forecast to remain wet as a cold front lingered over the region. Almost an inch of rain was expected in the region, while high elevations of the Cascades and Northern Rockies could see another few inches of snow.

Meanwhile, high pressure in the Southwest was expected to bring another dry and sunny day to the rest of the West Coast.

On Wednesday, temperatures in the lower 48 states ranged from a low of -2 degrees at Alamosa, Colo., to a high of 87 degrees at Lake Forrest, Calif.