As the next big Pacific storm system dives into the Rockies today, the last of the warmth which sent highs Saturday to 66, is now pushing east and will be replaced by air more suited to March.

While the next few days will be downright wintry over the Rockies, conditions will be opposite from Missouri all the way to the East Coast. Highs made it past 80 in both New York and Boston yesterday for the first time this year. Central Park topped 83. It even hit 80 up as far as central Vermont and this will recur today and tomorrow. As cold descends Out West, so heat lifts northbound further east.

Here were the highs across the nation yesterday.

Here are the temperatures across the nation this morning. Turning cold over the Rockies while it starts off very comfortable throughout the East.

Check out this very wintry view out of Laramie, WY along I-80 earlier this morning, stark contrast to the summery morning Easterners are waking up to.

TOP IMAGE SOURCE: Howard Bernstein @hbwx

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Like last week, we have another week of high amplification bringing extremes. Note the twin ridges on both coast while unseasonably cold air knifes down the Rockies and Plains. Expect 80s on both Los Angeles and New York tomorrow while it snows and doesn’t get out of the low to mid-30s in Denver!

ECMWF 500mb height anomalies at 18z Monday.

2 metre temperatures / anomalies (C) at 18z Monday

850mb or 5,000ft level temp difference at 18z Monday between Rockies and Mississippi Valley.

National 2 metre temps at 18z Monday.

Could see Washington DC hit 90 while it snows with temps in the low 30s in Denver and throughout the Front Range. It’s not just the EC but on the West Coast too. After a run of below normal days throughout California, things heat up big time through this week. LA could go from upper 60s last week to upper 90s by Tue-Wed of the upcoming week.

Here’s a close up of an area from the Rockies to Mississippi River. Note the 20s over the Colorado Rockies while AT THE SAME TIME it’s into the 80s over Missouri and Illinois.

Check out the NAM (North American Model) for Denver through the next 72 hours. It shows the high Monday of just 30 and low down to 20 Tuesday AM.

The GFS has 5.1 inches of snow for Denver.

ECMWF snow totals through 48 hrs.

Tue morning temperatures (below) could drop into the teens in Denver, a potential record for May and we could also see low into single digits to below zero over the deeply snow covered High Country.

Check out the meteogram for Washington DC.

Los Angeles

A strong upper high pressure system builds in from the Pacific while low pressure over Colorado works hand in hand to produce a strong OFFSHORE flow. This will help really warm things up throughout SOCAL including the beaches.

So, big contrasts coming up with heat on both coasts while snow and cold dominate in between. That major trough slides east through the week, reaching the East. Eventually the Western ridge builds east, replacing chill with warm again and so the cycle continues.

CFSv2 shows this nicely.

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