The Met Office has debunked the idea that Wales is to get a white Christmas this year, with the forecaster saying only the mountaintops will see a glistening of the white stuff. Temperatures have risen this week after days of freezing temperatures earlier this month which saw several ice and snow warnings.
After dropping to -8°C in parts, Wales is now back firmly in double digits as the hope of a white Christmas lessens. While there had been some reports that Wales could expect a 'snow burst', these have now been firmly debunked by meteorologists.
A spokesperson for the Met Office said that there is a "likelyhood over the next seven days that areas like Snowdonia and the Brecon Beacons are more likely to see snow because of their higher elevation but at the moment there is nothing to suggest this will be widespread."
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He continued that "some people might see a dusting of snow" on higher ground but that there is no significant snowfall expected for the Christmas period. He said that the weekly pattern shows a "battle between warmer areas on the south coast and it being much colder up north with uncertainty moving up and down the UK."
As a result of the uncertainty, he said it was difficult to predict the exact forecast for each area and the wintery weather may extend south turning into rain. He said the Met Office is able to be detailed in the weather division but were currently unable to pin point exact geographical locations.
"Some elevated places may see some snow but this isn't expected to be widespread and there no plans at the moment to issue any warnings or anything like that," he continued.
Temperatures of -8°C were recorded in parts of Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan on Friday morning (December 16) in what was the coldest night on record. Temperatures then dipped to another low of -13°C overnight, making it the coldest December night since 2010. That low was recorded in Lampeter, with -11°C in Tirabad, Powys.
The Met Office forecast for Wales:
Thursday:
Rather cloudy with scattered showers throughout the morning. A band of persistent, locally heavy, rain will then arrive from the south into the afternoon. Maximum temperature 12 °C.
Outlook for Friday to Sunday:
Changeable into the Christmas weekend with showers and longer periods of rain interspersed by sunny spells. Breezy at times but temperatures generally on the mild side.
Sunday, December 25 to Tuesday January 3
Confidence is unusually low for this whole period. The most probable scenario has cold conditions affecting northern areas and pushing south into milder air at times, however there is significant uncertainty in the location and movement of the boundary between the regimes.
Any milder conditions are likely to be accompanied by wetter weather. Periods of rain are likely to run west-to-east across the country, bringing a threat of snow where they meet the colder air. Temperatures likely to be cold in the north and milder further south in general, however a downward trend is likely across all areas with average to below average temperatures for the country as a whole most likely for this period overall.
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