most of this here, not quite reaching the ground. when it does, it will start off as a little bit of light rain in the washington area. that's all snow richmond through charlottesville, roanoke, down here to far southwestern virginia. the main area of low pressure, still about ten hours from making it to the north carolina coastline. we have about ten hours left for any potential of snow in central and southeastern virginia. it will come to a quick end tomorrow. here's the way things will play out. that storm staying way to our south. we'll keep all of the snow forecasts really potential down south of us tonight. high pressure builds in with sunshine back for monday. and then it looks like another weather front coming our way, could bring clouds by the middle of the week. rain drops, not snowflakes. cloudy, colder, light rain from washington northbound, light snow, washington south. up to an inch. way south. fredericksburg, spots like that. that's only through midnight tonight. then it all comes to an end. overnight, some clearing after

midnight. cold by this season's standards. a little breezy. wakeup temperatures upper 20s and low 20s. tomorrow, becoming sunny. a little breezy at times. no complaints of that. 50s on tuesday. 58 on wednesday. flirting with 60 degrees again by the middle parts of the week. plenty of clouds around wednesday, thursday, friday time frame. but not much in the way of actual precipitation coming our way. follow us through our websites or following me on twitter. had a lot of great tweets reporting road conditions south of fredericksburg. >> i like that. just wet. >> yes. >> no snow piling up. a thriller in college park. plus linsanity continues in new york.

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are those great tasting little o's made from carefully selected oats that c help lower cholesterol. stickers? uh-uh. a superhero? ♪ kinda. [ male announcer ] and we think that's the best prize of all. ♪ dan's here now. what do you think of the jeremy lin hype? >> it's unbelievable. he's been cut by three teams. the knicks were getting ready to cut him until carmelo said let's give this guy a shot. they've won every game he started except one. it's been unbelievable. new york's latest phenom did it again. they bounced back nicely after their first loss with him in the lineup this afternoon. the knicks still playing without carmelo. knocked out the defending

champs. jeremy lin, they are reading their book, putting on their glasses, and then ready to go. first quarter, lin looking good. he buries the three from the corner. he had 12 points, 6 asistsz in the first half alone. knicks up by 3 at the break. third quarter, knicks down by 11. lin is leading the comeback, the basket and the foul. he was far from done. later in the quarter, lamar odom's pass. not too good. unless, of course, you're jeremy lin. he picks it off here. and he had 22 points after three quarters. look at the fans going crazy there. knicks, up by 6 in the fourth. dirk nowitzki gives lin a little too much room and he nails the three-pointer. lin finishes with 28 points and 14 assists. spike lee, loving it. look at that jersey right there. you like that? that is awesome. knicks win 104-97.

so, from lin to clinton. former president bill clinton. the magic and heat game. nelson throws it away. lebron back to d. wade for the dunk. heat led by 12 at the half. to the fourth. miami, up by 16. udonis missions the shot. look at all the white jerseys. dwayne wade makes them pay. he had 27. heat win their sixth straight, 90-78 is the final. maryland athletic director kevin anderson said he has had enough. according to our friends at the "washington post" anderson has tried to schedule regular seasons with georgetown, but georgetown unwilling to make it work. so anderson won't schedule any games in any sport with georgetown, no golf, no soccer, no nothing, until the basketball

beef is settled. anderson and maryland think it's a win-win for everyone. big east, best team in action this afternoon. second-ranked syracuse taking a trip to the rack to play rutgers, just over three minutes to go, scarlet knights down by 4. mike pool driving, and hitting the floater. rutgers down by just two now. how about the coach, mike rice is jacked, with the orange striking right back. scoop jardine hits the jumper. syracuse back up by 4. syracuse still clinging to that four-point lead. jardine. man, the senior had 17 and 7 assists. syracuse wins it 74-64. they are 27-1 on the season. the. in college park, the seventh ranked maryland women hosting number five duke. 20 seconds to go, tied at 61. alisa thomas, racing to the bucket. she misses. but hawkins is there, just

strapping to get the board. that puts maryland up by two. here we go. last chance for duke. in the corner, they swing it over to haley peters. but that is blocked by thomas. maryland wins a thriller 63-61. the terps' first win over a top five team since january of 2009. talking baseball now. mike cameron's nationals career over before it even started. the 39-year-old outfielder told the team that he's retiring. the nats signed the former all-star to a minor league contract in december hoping he would give the team some stability in center field. cameron's decision comes six days before position players report to spring training. pitchers and catchers report to the complex today. finally, jeff gordon involved in a crazy crash down in daytona. it was the budweiser shootout last night, the annual exhibition kicking off nascar portion of speed week. two laps to go, and there was trouble. jeff gordon in the 24, gets into kyle busch. busch is okay. gordon is not.

look at his car. goes on its side. it's getting shoved down the track. that's the driver's side. gord gordon's head literally inches from the pavement. amazingly jeff gordon would be just fine, as the 24 comes to rest on its roof. down the stretch, a tremendous finish. kyle busch and tony stewart neck-and-neck. busch, who escaped several crashes in the race, is the winner by a whisker. closest finish ever in the non-points event where there are this many crashes. hard to believe jeff gordon was okay. >> yeah. that is the news for now. "nightly news" is coming up next. hope to see you back here at news4 at 11:00. have a good night. ♪

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good evening. despite fresh signs, iran is expanding its nuclear program, the u.s. tonight is publicly calling on a jittery israel not to launch an attack. joint chiefs of staff chairman general martin dempsey along with britain's foreign minister

today said an attack on iran would have grave consequences for the entire region. israel fears iran is close to building a nuclear weapon. still, the u.s. wants israel to give economic sanctions more time to work. iran, meantime, was demonstrating its own resolve today. we have two reports beginning in tehran with nbc's ali aruzi. >> reporter: lester, iran remains defiant in the face of international pressure. the oil ministry announced that that it was cutting off oil supplies to britain and france after the european union imposed sanctions on iran's fuel exports. there are few signs that iran intends to back down from its nuclear path. western diplomats say iran is moving to expand its production of enriched uranium at an underground facility but lacks some of the key equipment. the international atomic agency has not commented but is due to start a three-day visit tomorrow in its latest attempt to assess the scope of iran's nuclear

program. meanwhile iran flexed its military muscle again today, starting a two-day military land exercise while its navy sent two warships to syria. they entered the mediterranean by the suez canal. this is only the second time this has happened since the islamic revolution in 1979. at the same time, iran's foreign minister announced today that iran was willing to move quickly to resume talks with world powers after those talks collapsed a year ago. lester. >> let's get washington's take on this now from nbc's chief foreign affairs correspondent, andrea mitchell. andrea, what do you make of the u.s. and britain bluntly calling on israel not to attack? >> reporter: well, lester, the obama administration and the brits believe that day rob is blustering. they believe the exports were about to be shut down by european sanctions. european officials believe those tough sanction are exactly why iran has agreed to come back to nuclear talks. u.s. officials hope that those negotiations could prompt iran to eventually agree not to

pursue a weapons program but israel is not on the same page. today joint chiefs chairman general martin dempsey who was in tel aviv last month called iran a rational actor but said israel does not accept that view and is not ready to trust diplomacy saying a strike would be destabilizing and not achieve israel's goal. tom don lynn is in israel and met with netanyahu, trying to persuade israel that iran does not yet have the technical capacity to build a bomb, hasn't decided to build a bomb and that sanctions can still work. >> andrea mitchell in our washington newsroom. thanks, and rea. there was more bloodshed in syria today. activists say dozens of people were killed during the continued crackdown by government forces. meanwhile syrian state tv is reporting on the assassinations of a state prosecutor and a judge killed during an ambush near the border with turkey. to presidential politics now

and the continued rise of the culture wars on the campaign trail. tonight the obama campaign is lashing out at rick santorum over comments about the president that santorum says were misinterpreted. nbc's ron mott has the details on the trail for us tonight in ohio. >> it's about some phony ideal, some phony theology. >> reporter: after saying the president's energy philosophy was based on a phony theology saturday -- >> i wasn't suggesting the president is not a christian. >> reporter: rick santorum had a real challenge, separating religion from theology, no less on a sunday. >> senator, what in the world were you talking about, sir? >> i was talking about the radical environmentalists. >> your use of the word "theology" do you wonder that might lead some people to suggest that you were questioning the president's faith? >> well, no, because i've repeatedly said i don't question the president's faith. i've repeatedly said that i

believe the president is christian. he says he's a christian. but i am talking about his world view. >> reporter: each of the republican candidates has voiced disapproval of the president's stance on energy and the environment. only santorum who serves in the polls after winning an election trifecta has linked him to theology. >> a different theology. >> reporter: the former pennsylvania senator not only explained his use of that word this morning, he also answered to critics questioning his theory that prenatal care leads to more abortions. >> the bottom line is that a lot of prenatal tests are done to identify deformities in utero and the customary procedure is to encourage abortions. >> reporter: meantime, mitt romney remained out of the spotlight sunday in utah, where he took part in tenth anniversary celebrations this weekend for the '02 winter olympics. back on the campaign trail -- >> thank you very much. >> reporter: ron paul played to large crowds in missouri saturday before heading to north dakota today, while newt gingrich focused on his home state of georgia, citing the importance of home field

advantage. >> if any of the three of us loses our home state, if santorum loses pennsylvania, romney loses michigan or i lose georgia, you have, i think, i very, very badly weakened candidacy for any one of the three of us. >> reporter: this could be a crucial week in the campaign. there is a debate scheduled for wednesday in arizona. it's the only debate between now and super tuesday, lester. >> all right, ron, thank you. there's late word tonight of a deadly avalanche at a washington state ski resort. local authorities say three people were killed, several more were missing in the snow, but they have since been found. it happened at the stevens pass ski area, which is located about 90 miles east of seattle. after soaking much of the southern u.s. tonight, a large winter storm has churned north into much colder territory, dumping snow across several states. weather channel meteorologist mike seidel joins us now from southern virginia. mike, how's it look out there? >> reporter: well, it's a snowy night here in southwest virginia, lester. they had more snow in an hour this morning than they have seen all season, 6 inches so far.

this following yesterday's temperatures in the very spring-like 60s. take a look at how hard it was snowing today on interstate 81 here. near zero visibility. cars and trucks slowed down to half the speed limit and tonight roads were slushy. they'll become icy later on tonight. take a look at the radar. you can see the snow moving from west to east towards the coast. a little burst of snow tonight around norfolk and virginia beach, maybe an inch around the raleigh area. here and over towards richmond, another 2 to 4 inches. lester, tomorrow the sun is back out. back to you. >> mike seidel, thanks. tonight whitney houston has been laid to rest next to her father, john houston, in new jersey. fans and onlookers paid their respects today by lining the route to the cemetery. houston's family gathered at her gravesite for a private burial a day after an emotional memorial at the church where she sang in the choir as a child. when "nightly news" continues, replacement parts. the explosion in new knees as

baby boomers fight the toll of time. and a man who defined the right stuff 50 years after an historic flight. imagine facing the day with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaids, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions

like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver disease and before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. ask your doctor about cymbalta. imagine you with less pain. cymbalta can help. go to cymbalta.com to learn about a free trial offer. if you sleep in your contact lenses. lucky for you, air optix brand has a lens approved for up to 30 days and nights of continuous wear. [ male announcer ] that's why they're recommended most for people who sleep in their lenses. visit airoptix.com for a free one-month trial offer. for people who sleep in their lenses. chase scene, netflix coming soon extra butter tickets, swoon penguin journey junior mints moviefone evil prince bollywood 3-d

shark attack ned the head 5% cashback right now, get 5% cashback on movies. it pays to discover. instead of blaming me, try advil congestion relief. often the real problem is swelling, not mucus. advil congestion relief reduces swelling due to nasal inflammation. so i can breathe. advil congestion relief. we're back now with some health news affecting more americans than ever before. there's been a surge in the last few years of baby boomers having knee replacement surgery, as their refusal to slow down takes a heavy toll on their aging bodies. our report tonight from our chief medical editor, dr. nancy snyderman. >> reporter: decades of running, biking and competitive sports took their toll on sara kate loman's body. >> the pain was grueling, grinding, constant. i could not get my knee in a position of comfort. >> reporter: now at age 54,

she's one of about four and a half million americans walking around with an artificial knee. >> people at work said to me, you know, gosh, you know, we enjoy working with you but we've never seen you smile so much. they didn't know me out of pain. >> reporter: loman is part of a growing trend, people opting for knee replacement surgery earlier in life. >> there were times that this procedure was only done for people who were older than 65 years of age. >> reporter: not anymore. the number of baby boomers getting total knee replacements tripled in a ten-year period. and even though there can be complications, nearly one in 20 americans over 50 is walking around with a new knee. what's behind the increased demand? well, experts point to a few factors. america's obesity epidemic, aging athletes not taking care of their aching joints, genetics, and the fact that we're living longer, more active lives. >> previous generations, they were taught to live in pain and make some compromises. a lot of their attitude was about self-sacrifice.

and today, people are less willing to do self-sacrifice. they're really very much in tune with their quality of life, want to maintain their quality of life. >> reporter: and that can be hard to do with advanced knee problems. >> i was basically sucking advil and really at the end it wasn't helping too much either. >> reporter: less than one year out of surgery, 61-year-old ernie miller is back to working, traveling and spending time with his teenage son. >> i have a new lease on that part of my life, that i can continue to grow this bond with him. maybe i can't beat him anymore at basketball, but at least i can play. >> reporter: though he feels great, he admits the surgery made some things a little harder. >> i can tell my wife i can't go shopping because my knee hurts. i still try to use that, but she doesn't buy it anymore. >> reporter: dr. nancy snyderman, nbc news, mountain view, california. and up next here tonight, marking john glenn's historic flight a half century later.

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tonight there are hundreds of satellites in orbit above the earth, but 50 years ago tomorrow, there wasn't much up there at all. when friendship seven blasted off from cape canavarel, the mercury capsule that carried the first american into orbit. one of a select group of american space pioneers who had the right stuff. they were test pilots turned into astronauts, or what some back then called spam in a can. the first two mercury flights just to the edge of space each lasted barely 15 minutes. it was on the third mission, a marine aviator named john glenn, became the first american to actually orbit the earth. >> god speed, john glenn. >> the mission lasted almost

five hours. >> oh, that view is tremendous! >> yesterday at cape canavarel, 50 years later, glenn and fellow astronaut scott carpenter gathered with the scientist who helped america even the score in the space race. >> there wasn't any closer brotherhood ever formed than that which came together to get things off, but you're the people that made it happen. >> everything about space we take for granted today was untested then. >> roger, zero g. >> glenn recalls scientists were worried his eyes would change shape in the weightlessness, so they taped up mini eye charts on top of the instrument panel. what glenn could not imagine then was that half a century later, the u.s. would be depending on the russians for rides into orbit. he talked about it with brian williams. >> sort of a little nostalgia, but in the bigger picture, i'm sorry that we're not maximizing the research return out of the space program. the international space station is the most unique laboratory

ever put together by human beings. it also means without the shuttle we have no way of getting into space ourselves. >> today exotic robots and landers go where 50 years ago we imagined man himself would some day travel. but none of it would have been possible if not for those mercury pioneers who first reached for the heavens. john glenn also has the distinction of being the first living astronaut to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his first space flight. that's nbc "nightly news" for this sunday. brian williams will be here tomorrow. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. for all of us here at nbc news, good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com