Winter scenes on Tully Road, Ballymena captured on 18th January 2023. (Image: John Acheson)
A northerly airflow will bring cold arctic air to the UK from Sunday onwards with showers for some.
Yellow National Severe Weather Warnings for potentially disruptive snow and ice have been issued covering parts of northern Scotland for Sunday and Monday and Northern Ireland for Monday.
Whilst accumulation amounts will vary, parts of northern Scotland could see around 10 cms of snow over the two days. Strong winds could result in drifting of lying snow in places. Where showers become more organised, there is a chance some low-lying areas could see up to 10 cm in a few hours.
Brisk northerly winds will drive showers well inland across Northern Ireland on Monday, with these initially falling as snow over higher ground and sleet and rain elsewhere. However, as increasingly cold air spreads south, showers will fall as snow to all levels during the day. Up to 5 cm of snow is likely over higher routes with a few cms also expected at lower levels.
Through the middle of next week, with cold air firmly in place over the UK, the chance of snow increases across many areas for a time.
There’s still plenty of detail to work out but on Tuesday there is the potential for areas of snow to move inland over parts of Northern Ireland, southern Scotland and/or northern England. Whilst on Wednesday, there is a risk of snowfall across southern parts of the UK.
Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist Chris Bulmer explained:
“Snow showers from Sunday onwards are most likely to move inland from coasts exposed to northerly winds. The focus of snow showers will be over northern Scotland, but parts of the North Sea and Irish Sea coasts may also see some snow at times.
“There are a couple of weather systems for Tuesday and Wednesday which we are keeping an eye on that bring the potential for disruptive snow for some regions. With cold air firmly in place, any weather systems that move across the country next week will bringing mainly snowfall inland. Models are currently showing us a variety of options for both systems and we’ll be able to add more details to in the coming days.”