29 November 2012
Largely dry and fine for most with long sunny spells. Showers in the east easing, but becoming cloudier with occasional rain moving into the far west and across parts of Scotland. Winds easing but staying cold.
Tonight will become cloudy across many northern and western areas with outbreaks of mostly light rain, possibly wintry on hills. Elsewhere, dry and partly clear with some freezing fog. Frosty with icy patches.
Friday 30 November 2012:
Patchy rain across some western and northern areas, perhaps heavier and turning to snow over parts of Scotland, gradually pushing south. Mostly dry and bright elsewhere after fog clears. Cold.
Saturday 01 December 2012 - Monday 03 December 2012:
Remaining cold through the weekend with overnight frost and fog. Largely dry and bright but with the risk of wintry showers, chiefly towards the east. Wet and windy on Monday
Outlook for Monday 3 Dec 2012 to Wednesday 12 Dec 2012:
The weather looks likely to be rather unsettled and cold during the first half of December. A band of rain will move east across the UK on Monday, and this may be heavy in places. There is a chance of snow as this rain runs into cold air lying across the British Isles, with this most likely over high ground.
After this, the weather will probably stay unsettled with further showers or longer spells of rain, mainly in the west and northwest, but also affecting central and eastern parts at times. Some snow is possible, particularly over northern hills. It will be windy at times with a chance of gales. Temperatures will be rather cold, although some milder spells are possible in the south and west.
Thursday 13 Dec 2012 to Thursday 27 Dec 2012
As is usual, there are uncertainties in the forecast for this period. However, there are signs that north or north easterly winds may be quite frequent across the UK. So, on balance, colder than average conditions are likely to continue, with a risk of frost and fog, and an increased risk of some snow in places.
Information provided by Met Office
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Current alert level: Level 2 - Alert and Readiness in one or more regions of England
Issued at: Friday 30 November 2012 at 08:14
There is a 90% probability of severe cold weather and icy conditions between 0900 on Friday and 1200 on Sunday in parts of England. This weather could increase the health risks to vulnerable patients and disrupt the delivery of services. Please refer to the national Cold Weather Plan and your Trust's emergency plan for appropriate preventive action.
Cold weather is expected to continue through to Sunday with widespread overnight frosts expected this coming night and again on Saturday night. Many areas from East Anglia and the Midlands northwards are expected to see the temperatures threshold being met. A band of rain, sleet and hill snow moving southwards on Friday night across northern England brings an increased risk of ice. Overnight icy patches may also form elsewhere were seepage occurs after recent wet weather. The weather is expected to turn more unsettled from the west during Sunday. Rain may be preceded by hill snow over the Pennines before less cold conditions become established.
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/coldweatheralert/
If the membership want more information on forecasting then maybe we could have a discussion. I keep all the forecast data on my mobile as conditions here can change very quickly.
I tend to only look at the Met Office.
The Daily Mail style of forecasting isn't my thing;-0)
5 December 2012 - Met Office forecasters are predicting further snow and ice for parts of the UK over the next few days.
Temperatures are expected to fall well below freezing tonight with lows down to -8 °C across parts of Scotland, making it the coldest night of the winter so far. This will bring a hard frost and a risk of ice for much of the country. During the early hours of Thursday a band of rain and strong winds will spread from the west and as it meets the cold air, rain will turn to snow in places from the Midlands northwards.
Snow is likely to be persistent and at times heavy across western Scotland where over 10 cm are expected above 400 metres or so. Further south, accumulations of snow are also likely over the Pennines and the Lake District. Temporary snow cover is forecast to lower levels in England as far south as Lincolnshire.
Met Office Chief Forecaster, Martin Young, said: "We are expecting rain, sleet and snow to affect much of the UK tonight and through Thursday morning, with significant snowfall possible across higher parts of northern Britain. With temperatures falling below freezing, lying snow and the formation of ice will lead to some treacherous conditions and disruption to travel.
"Severe weather warnings have been issued help emergency services, local authorities and the public prepare, plan and protect the public from the impacts of the snow and icy conditions."
Scottish Transport Minister, Keith Brown, said: "We would like to remind motorists and the travelling public to be aware of the potential dangers of snow and icy conditions. An added risk is that fresh snow could fall on hard-packed ice and already treacherous surfaces, so keep up to date with live travel information and advice for preparing for and driving in testing conditions."
Sleet and snow will mostly turn back to rain during Thursday but some snow showers will remain in places with the risk of further snowfall in parts of the south east on Friday.
As we head into the weekend high pressure is expected to build across the UK bringing much drier weather but it will stay very cold and frosty.
The latest forecast and warnings can be found on the Met Office website, through TV and radio broadcasts and on our iPhone and Android app.
Source: Met Office
How many of you are wishing for snow to fall over Christmas?
I have to say I quite like snow and I do wish for some every year; especially at Christmas.
But for the garden industry a heavy and prolonged snowfall can mean a great deal of difficulty in terms of loss of vital cash flow and delayed or cancelled work. Combined with the harsh financial climate, many will be wishing it won't snow or at least that it's brief.
This Met Office infographic (below) log white Christmases over the last fifty years. It seems we've had more snow lying on the ground through Christmas day from 2000 to 2010 than any other period (funny how this global warming works, isn't it;-0)
Will it snow over Christmas this year?
There's always a strong possibility of snow somewhere in the British Isles over Christmas. The Met Office report that at least one snowflake has fallen on Christmas Day no fewer than 38 times in the last 52 years.
The Met Office say that they will only know for sure if it is going to snow just five days before Christmas.
However it's been reported recently that a huge high pressure over Scandinavia has increased the likelihood of some fluffy precipitation.
If it does snow you can record it on this interactive snow map: you can even add a photo.
metoffice.gov.uk
Current alert level: Level 3 - Cold Weather Action
Issued at: 0832 on Fri 7 Dec 2012
There is a 90% probability of severe cold weather/icy conditions/heavy snow between 0000 on Monday and 0800 on Tuesday in parts of England. This weather could increase the health risks to vulnerable patients and disrupt the delivery of services. Please refer to the national Cold Weather Plan and your Trust's emergency plan for appropriate preventive action.
Less cold over the next few days with higher daytime temperatures than of late so the mean temperature criteria is unlikely to be met this weekend, despite overnight frosts. There is now growing confidence that into the start of next week very cold air originating from the east or northeast will spread across the whole of England. An east or northeasterly flow at times will bring snow showers, particularly to the east of England, these sometimes heavy, and leading to locally significant accumulations. At present this spell of very cold weather looks set to last through much of next week and it is likely this alert will need to be extended.
An update will be issued when the alert level changes in any region. Alerts are issued once a day by 0900 if required and are not subject to amendment in between standard issue times. Note that the details of the forecast weather are valid at the time of issue but may change over the period that an alert remains in force. These details will not be updated here unless the alert level also changes, the latest forecast details can be obtained at the following link: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/forecast/#?tab=map
Met Office update 9 December 2012
After a brief respite from the cold weather this weekend, Met Office forecasters are predicting a return to cold conditions from the northeast for the coming week
Eddy Carroll, Met Office Chief Forecaster, said: "After a brief milder spell this weekend we are expecting a return to the cold conditions we saw last week. Although there will be some wintry showers in the east, most places will stay dry.
With temperatures falling well below freezing at night, the formation of ice could lead to some treacherous conditions and possible disruption to travel."
Met Office Cold Weather Alerts have been issued for the whole of England as the forecast weather could increase the health risks to vulnerable people.
Information and advice on how people can prepare for the cold weather can be found on the 'Get Ready for Winter' section of our website.
Public Health Minister Anna Soubry, said: "It's really important people look after themselves and be good neighbours to older friends in the cold weather. In the winter older people and those with long term conditions are more likely to suffer heart attacks and strokes, respiratory illnesses can get worse, and there is the risk of falls on slippery ground.
"We have given £20 million to local authorities to help vulnerable people stay well during cold weather and get the help they need within their communities. And we urge anyone with a long-term condition to get a free flu jab from their GP.
"The NHS is well prepared for an increase in winter related health problems which are typical at this time of year. Preparations are made across the NHS annually and these are now in place in every area of England."
We're seeing real possibilities of snow south of London on Saturday Night thru to Sunday.
Initially being forecast as rain but 50% chance of turning to snow.
We then have 80% chance of light snow on Tuesday.
Our Ice Alert forecast tends to firm up within 48hrs of event
Will please some of us who do gritting & snow work ;-)
Exactly Gary. We are on orange alert at the moment....waiting for red alert status and we will be on call.
I've always dreaded the snow to a certain extent but this year I'm actually looking forward to it!
Gary said: