21/03/2017 Weather for the Week Ahead

Hello there.

There will be big improvements in the weather later this week,

in time for the weekend,

but it has not been a very promising start to the new week.

This is what we are moving into right now.

We are seeing some sunshine - all looks quite pleasant -

but then the showers come rattling in on a cold wind

coming in from the west and north-west.

We've got colder air coming down across the UK.

This cold air is what we call polar maritime air.

It brings with it a lot of showers,

those showers increasingly wintry.

So we are seeing some snow

in Scotland, Northern Ireland,

not just on the higher-level routes,

and some icy conditions too.

Some of the snow at lower levels may melt,

but we'll keep snow going over the hills.

Almost anywhere from mid to late morning onwards

could catch a shower.

Those showers should be wintry in the heavier ones,

particularly in the west.

There may well be some hail and thunder.

These are the maximum temperatures. Single figures.

It will feel colder in the wind

and temperatures will drop sharply

in those heavy showers.

We may get an organised spell of not just showers

but more rain coming into Wales and the south-west,

some slow over the hills.

But that wetter weather moves northwards

into the very cold air that's in Scotland,

so there's the threat of some significant snow.

Really cold. It could be down to -8

in the Glens of Scotland on Wednesday morning,

and the threat of snow across the southern parts

of the country, particularly over the hills.

Maybe some snow across the north-east of England,

but probably more turning to rain.

A ragged band of rain moving eastwards

across into eastern England,

with sunshine and showers following on behind.

Another cold day.

Temperatures struggling to get in to double figures -

5-7 degrees is going to be much nearer the mark.

It is a bit of a messy picture as we head into Wednesday

and beyond into Thursday.

We have got these weather fronts on the scene,

but they're weakening all the while,

so Thursday will be drier.

Closer to an area of low pressure,

we may threaten some rain to come in

across central southern England.

Not much of that wet weather left

across southern Scotland and northern England.

Many places will be dry,

but there will be a wind off the North Sea,

and it will feel cold once again.

But as we head into the end of the week,

I promised something better.

We've got pressure building up from the south-west.

That low is filling, so it is turning drier.

Weak weather front approaching

the far north-west of Scotland.

That's not going to do much damage at all.

The wind will gradually lessen through the day.

Most places will be dry.

There will be some sunshine around.

Temperatures should be a little bit higher,

just creeping up to 10 or 11 degrees.

That is because the high pressure is building in.

It means the winds are turning lighter,

and that our high pressure is firmly in charge

for the start of the weekend,

which is highly unusual -

for the weather to settle down in time for the weekend.

Indeed, there may just be a few spots of rain

for the Northwest of Scotland,

otherwise a dry day, some sunshine,

and temperatures by day

a little bit higher as well.

So with that high pressure moving in over the weekend,

we are seeing the back of those wintry showers,

the cold winds,

instead we are going to find more in the way of blues skies.

It will feel pleasantly warm in the sunshine by day,

clear skies at night.

Even at this time of the year,

you can still get some cold mornings.

Monday sees the high pressure right over the UK.

The position of the high will be crucial,

because we may start to draw in a colder easterly wind.

Then, beyond Monday,

it's all about what happens to the high - is it going to last?

Is it going to recede?

It looks like the high will gradually, very slowly,

retreat into Europe,

allowing more of an Atlantic feed to come into the Northwest,

threatening to bring more cloud and perhaps some rain,

but we'll lose those easterly winds,

so in the centre of the high,

it could be really warm.

Good and evil exists in this world.