New weather maps have captured a bitter incoming freeze set to send temperatures across the UK towards -10C for the first time this autumn, and snow showers as far south as Plymouth, Devon
Freezing new weather maps have captured a bitter descent in temperatures for the UK this week – with lows nearing the double-digit minus range as blizzard-like conditions creep across the country.
Brits awoke to a deep chill as the week began, with the mercury bottoming out at 1C on Monday and -1C early this morning as what was a previously balmy November was turned on its head. The descent seems only likely to intensify in the days to come, with weather maps capturing snow showers looming on the horizon.
Outbreaks of snow could occur across the country, the maps suggest, pushing temperatures down to a desperate -9C before winter even officially arrives.
READ MORE: UK snow: Exact dates ‘Beast from the East’ weather phenomenon could returnREAD MORE: Brits to be battered with -12C cold snap and rare amber warning – what you need to know
WXCharts, a mapping service that uses MetDesk data to plot weather conditions across the UK, is currently tracking a snowy system set to form in Scotland from next Thursday, November 20. The vast majority of the snow will descend north of the border, with only Glasgow and some nearby communities to the city’s south escaping what appears to be around 5cm of snowfall per hour from 6pm.
Snowfall developing on the UK’s west coast will move south across the country, hitting communities in the Midlands like Lancaster and the Yorkshire Dales.
Snow also looks likely for parts of Wales, including the north around Snowdonia, and potentially dozens of communities around the Pembrokeshire coast – although maps suggest snowfall here will be limited to a few flakes and won’t settle. Eventually, some of that limited snow could make its way to Plymouth, more than 570 miles south of Scotland, where it looks likely to fall alongside rain.
Much like snow, temperatures will be their most extreme in Scotland, with the Highlands seeing temperatures plunge towards the -10C range.
Uninhabited high ground will bear the brunt of the extreme cold, with WXCharts suggesting temperatures the Cairngorms National Park will settle between -8C and -9C. That doesn’t mean the rest of the country will be warm, however, with temperatures ranging between -6C and -5C in the north and 0C to -1C in the south.
The weather will remain unpredictable and potentially freezing in the days following November 20, according to the Met Office, with the agency’s long range forecast highlighting the chances for further wintry showers from November 23. The forecast states: “Atlantic weather fronts will continue to spread east bringing spells of rain or showers, potentially quite widely.”
“Over subsequent days showery conditions will likely continue but there will be some brighter spells at times. There is also a chance of Atlantic frontal systems moving in from the west at times and temporary periods of northerly flow that may lead to some wintry showers.
“Temperatures will be a little below normal. A westerly dominated pattern will likely persist through to the end of November with outbreaks of rain or showers and temperatures near to or a little below normal. There could however still be some wintry showers at times in the north. Areas of low pressure may bring longer spells of rain and periods of strong winds at times.”
