Archived articles which have appeared on our homepage since May 7th 2014.
[Updated 08:15 22/02/2018]
The next few days bring rather quiet weather and temperatures gradually dip. By the start of next week it turns very cold and there is an increasing risk of disruptive snow but the forecast details remain uncertain.
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Thursday begins with a touch of frost in much of the country. The rest of the day brings a lot of dry weather and across the southern half of the UK sunny spells develop. Cloud amounts in the north increase and in the north west patchy rain pushes in during the second half of the day.
It will be quite chilly with temperatures ranging from 5C (41F) to 7C (45F) this afternoon. See the rainfall and precipitation type radar for the latest view.
Tonight it turns drier in the north west and clear periods lead to quite a widespread frost. In places cloudier skies again keep it less cold.
Little changes tomorrow and during Saturday but a strengthening easterly wind in southern and central areas will make it feel cold.
Sunday will be another dry and chilly day but bitterly cold air over continental Europe will be approaching the UK. That will be caused by a "Beast from the East" weather pattern. That describes the set-up where high pressure becomes centred over Scandinavia and the easterly flow on its southern flank pulls air from Siberia westwards across Europe. It typically is responsible for some of the UK's coldest spells of weather.
By Monday most computer model simulations show the UK under very cold air and some lock in the icy blast for a lengthy period. However it is possible that high pressure will transfer from Scandinavia to the Greenland area. That would lead to a slightly less cold northerly flow replacing the easterly one after two or three days. Another trend in the model output this morning is to show milder air pushing up from the southwest during the second half of the week.
The chart below is from this morning's GFS medium range computer model run and is for Monday 26th February. It shows the UK and much of mainland Europe under a bitterly cold easterly air stream. Confidence in this happening is now very high but uncertainty increases from the middle part of next week.
GFS 00z, 850hPA temperature and surface pressure, 15:00 GMT Mon 26th Feb
1) Very cold weather is expected during the first half of next week
2) There is a risk of snow but pinpointing where and how much will fall is impossible at this stage
3) During the second half of the week changes could take place. They may lead to an increasing risk of sleet and snow but also the chance of milder air and rain in returning to southern counties.
The increasing influence of high pressure and the possibility of cold blocks of air pushing across Europe during the rest of February and the first half of March could be a result of the Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) event that recently took place. That raises the risk of cold weather in the UK during the rest of February and the first half of March. However it is not assured because high pressure blocks could align in a way that leaves the UK under a mild south or southwesterly air mass.
Check the latest snow forecast charts:
Meteo France Arpege
DWD ICON
NCEP GFS
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Meteo France Arpege forecast charts
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A good deal of dry weather is shown in the short term. By early next week it turns very cold and the risk of snow increases. Through the first week of March uncertainty grows with mild and cold outcomes both possible. View latest GEFS.
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