18/12/2016 Weather for the Week Ahead

It's a fairly quiet weekend of weather,

but, next week, it looks like

the jet stream comes back to life

and brings weather systems across the Atlantic,

with quite a change in our weather.

It means later next week,

fog is going to be on the back foot,

as our weather turns windier, more unsettled.

But that hasn't arrived yet

and certainly, for Sunday morning,

we are expecting some quite dense fog patches

to be affecting parts of England and Wales and,

just as it did on Saturday, there could be

some travel disruption around,

and some of this fog here

could be very reluctant to clear

and where it doesn't,

or it just stays misty and murky,

the temperature may only manage to be

in mid-single figures.

Northern England, Northern Ireland and Scotland,

I think, many have more cloud than Saturday,

still mainly dry,

still a few sunny spells around

and there will be a mild feel, I think

especially across parts of north-east Scotland,

Moray Firth, north Aberdeenshire.

Temperatures could be in the mid-teens.

As we look at the picture through Sunday night

and into Monday morning, again, we are expecting,

especially across parts of England and Wales,

some fog patches to come back.

A weather system just edging towards

north-west Scotland late in the night,

with a freshening breeze.

And there isn't much frost around -

a few spots getting into low single figures

anywhere clear for any period of time.

Now, this is the big picture for Monday.

We're trying to bring in some weak weather systems

from the north-west.

Not having much success

in bringing any significant rain with them

or moving very far south-eastwards,

so we're just being attacked a little bit

by this one on Monday in parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland.

We see a weaker weather system,

just may bring in some thicker cloud

and some outbreaks of patchy rain

towards parts of eastern and south-east England.

Either side, getting a bit of rain in between.

Could be a few brighter spells for you and,

for the most part, single-figure temperatures.

Fairly normal for the time of year.

Now, the weather system

tries to edge south-eastwards

on Monday night and into Tuesday morning,

then edges a bit further westwards again,

so there will be a zone of thicker cloud,

with maybe a few spots of rain

straddling somewhere the UK on Tuesday.

Looks like we could bring in some drier, clearer air

towards eastern and south-east England on Tuesday.

Chilly, mind you, but some brighter skies.

Then a more significant weather system

bearing down on Scotland and Northern Ireland

as Tuesday comes to an end.

A more significant spell of rain

spreading its way south-eastwards

Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning.

This may well weaken for a time,

as it pushes south-east.

Another one approaching north-western parts

of the UK on Wednesday

and in between, we get some brighter skies.

More wind arrows, so the breeze

is starting to pick up as well,

and we see a little wave on this weather front.

Look at the picture for England and Wales,

Wednesday night into Thursday,

some more substantial rain.

Look at the isobars close together

across the north and north-west of Britain -

stronger winds with gales in places, too.

However you look at it, Thursday,

some pretty active weather.

Potential of the northern flank of this system

reaching northwards into colder air,

could find a bit of sleet and snow on hills

before it pulls away,

then the picture for Friday

shows another deep area of low pressure.

Again, isobars, very strong winds,

gales in places towards the north-west

of Britain in particular.

That is as the jet stream

strengthens during next week,

driven by a stronger thermal contrast

across North America,

and it's on that jet stream we find

those more active weather systems

coming our way.

So that is the transition

from a quiet start to next week,

with some mist and fog around,

light winds, a lot of dry weather,

but it's from that late Tuesday onwards period

our weather turns much more unsettled

and we see these areas of low pressure coming in,

and they look like they'll be around

as well for Christmas weekend,

but we'll keep you updated on that.