Met Office weather experts have forecasted the first snow of late 2024 with an Arctic blast set to send temperatures below 0C. Scotland has welcomed a balmy and wet start to Autumn, with the mercury sustaining itself at around 20C as showers leave moisture hanging in the air.
The combination of heat and rain provoked a massive storm front over the weekend, with systems depositing several inches worth of water over more than a dozen areas under a backdrop of lightning and thunder, reports the Mirror.
The Met Office has issued a warning that the week ahead will see a major withdrawal from conditions that the UK has seen for months, with temperatures expected to plummet.
As snow appears for the first time in this half of 2024, the agency has warned that the mercury could plummet to zero and below. Speaking to the Daily Mirror, a Met Office spokesperson said the encroaching cold will set the stage for snow to fall in Britain, specifically over Scotland.
They said: “A cold front sweeping south will introduce Arctic air to the UK, resulting in below average temperatures nationwide this week. It’s possible there could be some snow on the very tops of the highest peaks in Scotland. We’re talking above around 800 meters.”
The spokesperson added that temperatures are likely to dip to zero and below in the home nation later this week, first reaching 0C on Wednesday. Forecasters also predict the lowest temperatures in Wales will be 3C.
By Thursday, Scotland will become chillier, reaching -2C in the coldest areas while Wales, following a similar track, sees its temperatures plummet to 0C. Scotland is the only nation that sees a trace of snow, however.
The Met Office predicts temperatures will rebound in the near future, the long-range forecast expects rain, wind and stormy conditions to stretch into the next week.
The forecast for September 14 to 21 states: “It will likely be quite cloudy with outbreaks of rain and potentially strong winds across northwestern areas on Saturday, while somewhat drier and brighter in more southern and eastern parts.
“By Sunday this wetter zone of weather is likely to sink further south into more central parts, with showers following into the northwest.
“Confidence is low for early next week, but the chance of some rain or showers in places, more especially in the west and northwest, before a trend towards higher pressure building in the vicinity of the UK from midweek onwards, leading to a more blocked pattern thereafter.
“After a chilly start to the weekend, temperatures will return to near-normal for mid-September, possibly above-average in places from later next week.”
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