1 week Ago By Richard Ashmore
Britain could be braced for a "five-day wintry blast" in the coming days as a cold snap capable of dumping significant snowfall heads for the country, weather maps suggest. Forecast maps show a large band of snowy weather arriving over much of the UK and northwest Europe on November 21, with most of England as far north as Newcastle experiencing some kind of flurry. The white stuff looks also set to land in Northern Ireland and Scotland, with up to 50cm settling in parts of the Scottish Highlands and with large amounts also on higher ground in Wales and England.
Jim Dale, Founder and the Senior Meteorological Consultant at British Weather Services, told Express.co.uk the nation was looking at potentially a "five-day wintry blast" with some "significant" snowfall in England.
He said: "From November 18 to 24, with the middle part being the most prone. "Northern and Midland areas still the odds on favourite especially, the hills and mountains, but can’t rule out the south at this point. "It is heading towards some significant disruption but it will be an hour-by-hour watch as it all unfolds.
" Stephen Dixon from the Met Office said it wouldn't be unusual to see snow this early in the year. He said: "Wouldn’t be unusual to see some snow in the UK in November, especially over the tops of mountains in the north, though there is obviously still much detail to work out in the coming days. "A single map showing snow for over a week away isn’t a great indicator of a fully-formed forecast, and snow is quite tricky to predict accurately more than a few days ahead.
" According to the current Met Office outlook for the next few days a "marked change to more unsettled and also colder weather is expected". Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist Mark Sidaway said: “The high pressure that has been responsible for the mainly dry weather through much of this week will retrogress into the Atlantic as we get towards the weekend. "This will gradually introduce more unsettled weather, initially in the north from Friday but more widely from Sunday.
“In addition to this increased rainfall, which could be heavy at times on Sunday, temperatures will also drop, especially for those in Scotland, as a northerly airflow develops, bringing colder Arctic air to some northern areas. “This shift does introduce the possibility of snow, initially over high ground in the north from Sunday, with gusty winds also a potential hazard. There is a lot of uncertainty by Sunday, but there remain a number of scenarios which could bring some more widespread rain, along with some hill snow and stronger winds.
Warnings for winter hazards are possible later in the weekend, so it’s important to stay up to date with the latest forecast.” Met Office five-day forecast Fog and frost clearing through Wednesday morning, although perhaps slower to clear in the northwest and Northern Ireland. Elsewhere, dry and mostly sunny spells, but light rain and drizzle continuing to move southwards across western Scotland.
Good deal of low cloud across western and central areas, with drizzle on some upslopes. Clear spells and patchy fog in far north and south with local frost. A mostly cloudy day for all with clearer conditions for eastern Scotland a sunny spells in the southeast.
Light rain and drizzle in western Scotland, otherwise remaining dry. Gradually turning cloudier through the end of the week with outbreaks of rain at times, mainly in the north. Chilly overnight with fog and frost in places.
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