The UK is set for a return to subzero temperatures with an Arctic blast over the coming days and weather maps show snow will fall in many areas of the country
Brits are set for an Arctic blast with a 550-mile wide blizzard hitting within 48 hours.
Many people in the UK enjoyed a mild weekend where the mercury even rose to a balmy 20C in some areas. But it was only a brief respite from colder conditions with subzero temperatures again this week and maps for deeper into March also show further wintry weather ahead.
By Wednesday maps from WXCharts show a wall of snow from Inverness to Cardiff, roughly 550 miles, with several centimetres of snow falling in some parts.
The heaviest flurries at around 6am on Wednesday were expected to be in central Scotland, border regions and in the north west of England. But still by midday there could be heavy flurries in north eastern England, the West Midlands and Wales.
And temperatures on Wednesday are expected to be below zero or close to freezing in most areas of the country. Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill said: “There will be plenty of showers for many of us as we go through the rest of the week and with that it is also going to feel pretty cool, pretty chilly at times.
“That’s because if we look at the temperatures which are around 850 hPA, that’s around 1,500 metres up and you can see some cold air plunging its way across the whole of the country as we go through Tuesday and into Wednesday. And with that we do have a brisk north, northeasterly wind and that is going to add to the chilly feel.”
The Met Office forecast states for Tuesday: “Early cloud and rain clears the south. Sunny spells and showers follow, turning wintry over the hills in Scotland and northern England. Feeling colder than of late.” And for Wednesday to Friday it continues: “Rather cloudy, although brighter spells are likely at times. Scattered showers continuing to spread across the country with sleet and snow over northern hills. Cold with overnight frosts and ice.”
And looking further ahead it is also going to remain cold over the coming weekend. The national weather agency’s forecast for March 15-24 states: “The weekend will continue on a cool theme, but with the high pressure to the north becoming more dominant it should lead to a reduction in shower activity seen on previous days. So there should be a good deal of dry weather with plenty of sunshine by day, but still some noticeably chilly nights with frost fairly widespread.
“The odd fog patch is possible in the north, and a brisk breeze across the south will make it feel notably chilly here on Saturday. Next week is likely to see a gradual transition to less settled conditions as the high likely withdraws to the east. So rain or showers at times, mostly focussed across the south, the north perhaps staying largely dry and it is also likely to become much milder.”