A ‘SNOWBOMB’ will hit Britain next month – with a whopping 11ins set to fall as a new Atlantic storm moves in.
Winter will bite back in the weeks to come after what’s likely to be the warmest New Year’s Eve on record tomorrow.
Temperatures will plummet after what’s set to be the warmest New Year on record, forecasters say[/caption]
Temperatures are predicted to be “exceptionally mild” this week before hitting a balmy 15C on Friday – meaning the UK will be as warm as Madrid, Athens and Rhodes.
But the freak mini heatwave won’t last.
And as we near the middle of January, it’ll snow heavily again – with more than 10ins predicted in the north.
Newcastle and Northumberland are likely to face white-out by midnight on January 12, WX Charts predicts.
Parts of Scotland – particularly in the Highlands – will also face up to five inches as the mercury plunges below zero.
CHILLER THRILLER
Elsewhere, those living in Manchester, Wales and the Midlands will also see snow.
And on January 14, northern Scotland will be carpeted in a whopping 11ins by 6am, while 4cm is predicted in Manchester, Edinburgh and Cumbria.
London and the south-east currently look likely to miss out altogether.
The winter will make it’s bone-chilling return after one of the dreariest Decembers ever, with less than 27 hours of sunshine across the past 30 days.
That’s 38 per cent less than the national average for this time of year.
Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said Britain’s dullest December was in 1956, when just 19.5 hours of sunlight was the national average.
DREARY DECEMBER
“One of the reasons we’re getting the dull weather is the fact that it’s been so mild,” he said.
“We’re drawing in south-westerly wind from the Atlantic and it’s also drawing in a lot of moisture. It keeps us warm but it also produces a lot of cloud.”
The bizarre heat this week comes courtesy of a ‘tropical plume’ from North Africa – with one meteorologist joking: “It’s time for people to put on t-shirts and flip-flops”.
But Jim Dale of British Weather Services added: “This will last for about five days, after which we expect to pay for it with the cold to return.”
And Exacta Weather forecaster James Madden told The Mirror: “Further snow events are likely particularly during the first half of January.”
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Leon Brown, head of meteorological operations at The Weather Company’s Weather Channel arm, said there could be 25 more days of snow to come.
“Northern England and Scotland are forecast 20 to 25 more days with snow and ice disruption this winter, with 10 to 15 more days with impacts in the south,” he said.
“Later in January has potential for cold conditions, with a longer cold spell possible in February, and -12C is likely.”
It follows one of the dreariest Decembers ever, the Met Office say[/caption]
But cold weather fans will be reassured to know winter will bite again soon[/caption]