Big UK Temperature Contrast This Weekend, Snow Becomes Widespread Sat Night Into Sun

Written by Mark Vogan on February 19, 2016 in Rest of Europe, United Kingdom & Ireland, Winter 2015/16 with 0 Comments

We have a big north-south contrast in air mass this weekend with Greenland air blowing across Northern Ireland and Scotland while Azores air crosses southern Ireland, England and Wales.

There’s a sharp thermal gradient splitting the UK and depending upon whether your north or south will determine snow showers or rain showers as well as a temperature between 10-15C (South) or 3-6C (North). Along that boundary, heavy, persistent rain is likely to cause flooding across central Ireland, north Wales and northwest England.

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During today, the main front attached to low pressure near Iceland will clear SE and behind it, we see the milder surge push in from the SW across southern Britain and increasingly chilly air from the W initially then NW Sat into Sun.

The air flow to the north is very unstable with fast, frequent and heavy showers racing west-east with significant snow above 2/300 metres but I suspect a rain, sleet, snow and even hail mix to low levels with increase in changeover to snow later Saturday.

The west-east boundary looks to slide south Saturday evening with winds turning NW, expect rain to changeover to snow through Central Scotland including the M8 corridor. During Sunday, many could have a fresh snow cover with travel problems, especially higher road routes.

Later Sun, Sun night, the front sinks into France with even southern areas into the Greenland air. Rain may well change over to snow across a broad swathe of England and Wales, even London and SE by Mon AM.

The GFS surface/precip charts show how the weekend plays out.