Temperatures climb 8-10 degrees across UK following bitter cold snap

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

January 24,2016; 6:50PM,EST

 

 

The cold snap that had the United Kingdom recently shivering will be replaced by a turn to milder, unsettled weather the rest of the weekend and into next week.
Instead of high pressure directing cold air down from the north into the U.K., as was the case during the cold snap, a change in the weather pattern will open the door for the return of milder air from the south.
"An area of low pressure that is east of Greenland will be swinging toward the North Pole and bringing an active storm track to central and northern Europe," AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys said. "That will allow mild air to pour in."

The mild surge will send temperatures to their highest levels since late December across the U.K.
Sunday will be milder than on Saturday with highs generally in the lower teens C (lower to middle 50s F) outside of the higher terrain. Such highs are 8-10 C (15-20 F) higher than during the cold snap.
Temperatures will then average above normal for most of the coming week. The only exception may be far northern Scotland, where temperatures will be closer to normal. Average high temperatures in late January generally range from 5-8 C (lower to middle 40s F).
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The mild air will be accompanied by an active storm track, which will send unsettled spells to the U.K.
While light showers could linger across the southeast of England on Sunday, many locations from London to Norwich and Hull will see a largely dry day.
Isolated showers will persist across western England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland during much of Sunday.

Back-to-back storm systems will follow for Monday and Tuesday with the latter day's system expected to be the stronger and potentially the more impactful of the two.
Scattered showers on Monday will give way to a steadier rain on Tuesday. The rain could be heavy enough to trigger flash flooding, especially along the western slopes of the higher terrain of Scotland and northern England.
The storm on Tuesday is expected to be the more significant of the early week systems. This will bring the highest risk of heavy rain, along with strong wind gusts. Northern Ireland, Scotland and northern England will be at gusts in excess of 50 mph (80 km/h).
Additional storms will likely bring more bouts of rain and gusty winds to the U.K. the rest of the week and into the final days of January.
Content Contributed by Meteorologist Adam Douty