Surface pressure forecast
January 1st, 2011 | 
Author: Met Office view of 0000 UTC surface analysis
A ridge of high pressure over the UK is gradually eroded from the Atlantic by increasing southwesterly flow. This will bring low pressure southeast of Greenland towards the UK, coupled with the double frontal structure entrained around it. The innermost warm front is strengthening with time (it is frontogenetic).
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Heavy snow and icy roads
Take extra care
When temperatures fall to sub-zero, the number of deaths from heart attacks peaks three days later, from strokes five days later and from respiratory infections ten days later.
When snow or icy roads are forecast you should adjust your driving to suit the conditions. Black ice isn’t always visible and so can be an even greater hazard for both motorists and pedestrians. Black ice may be formed when rain or drizzle fall on a road surface which is at a temperature below zero.
Make sure you know what to do
Before snow or ice
- If you have to make a journey when snow is forecast, make sure you have warm clothes, food, water, boots, a torch and spade, and let someone know when you expect to arrive and your route. Try to wait until the roads have been gritted before travelling.
- Put grit or cat litter on paths and driveways to lessen the risk of slipping on compacted snow.
- Check on vulnerable neighbours.
During snow or ice
- Avoid travel if possible.
- If you must drive check the Highway Code for advice on driving in ice and snowy weather. A summary of the advice is: Take care around gritters. Don’t be tempted to overtake. Slow down — it can take 10 times longer to stop in snowy or icy conditions, so allow extra room. Use the highest gear possible to avoid wheel spin. Manoeuvre gently and avoid harsh braking and acceleration. If you start to skid, gently ease off the accelerator and avoid braking. If braking is necessary, pump the brakes don’t slam them on. If you get stuck, stay with your car and tie something brightly coloured to your aerial.
- If you go outside wear several layers of clothing and keep dry to prevent loss of body heat. Watch out for signs of hypothermia — uncontrollable shivering, slow/slurred speech, memory lapse and drowsiness and frostbite — loss of feeling in and pale appearance of fingers, toes, nose and ear lobes. Keep moving your arms and legs to help the blood circulate.
After snow and ice
- Be careful when walking or driving on compacted snow — it may have turned to ice.
- Take care when shovelling snow. Cold air makes it harder to work and breathe, which adds some extra strain on the body and can be the cause of heart attacks in the vulnerable.
Mountain Weather Information Service
About the Mountain Weather Information Service: great downloadable mountain-specific forecasts for NW, W and SE Highlands, Cairngorms, Southern Uplands, Peak District and Lakes in PDF format. Plus a Snowdonia forecast. Scottish forecasts are seven days a week, the Lakes are six days a week and the Peak/Dales and Snowdonia forecasts are now available all week.
Check individual forecasts for specific details. Arguably the best mountain-specific forecast out there by a way . Production is now fully funded by the Scottish Government in the interests of mountain safety with operating and development down to commercial sponsorship.
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Forecasts Saturday Dry with mostly light winds and areas of bright sunshine and excellent visibility, generally around freezing on the tops, but Scottish terrain likely to be widely frozen at all levels. As cold as -6˚C in North Wales. Sunday Pretty much Saturday all over again in Snowdonia and the Lakes, but Scottish hills getting windier – gusts as high as 60mph possible in the far north, with some patchy drizzly rain and snow on high areas to the north and west. Cloudy though with glimpses of sun, again around freezing or a few degrees below on the tops. Outlook ’Sunday will be fine with extensive sunshine and light winds across most mountain areas, but western Scotland will become windy, and areas of low cloud will in some areas penetrate well inland. Check specific forecasts for details as the weekend progresses. |
Fifteen dead and airports closed as wild weather lashes Europe
HEAVY snowfalls forced some of Europe’s busiest airports to close and wreaked havoc on roads and railways yesterday as a cold snap swept the continent, claiming at least 15 lives.
Eight people died of exposure in Poland, three in the Czech Republic and two in Lithuania, officials said yesterday.
And in the UK, two died in accidents blamed on the weather – one in a motorcycle crash and the other after falling into a freezing lake.
In some parts of Germany temperatures dropped to as low as minus18C, while heavy rain in Italy triggered the collapse of two Roman walls in Pompeii and flooding in Venice.
Albania proclaimed a state of natural disaster in the north with more than 200 people evacuated from one region as hundreds of homes were flooded.
Transport chaos hit the whole of the continent, and Britain – shivering in the coldest December 1 on record in one of the earliest snowfalls – was one of the worst affected.
Insurance companies estimated that the big freeze is costing the UK economy up to £1.2 billion ($1.87 billion) a day. Shops, restaurants and bars were the worst hit and more than 1500 schools were also forced to close.
London’s Gatwick Airport – one of Europe’s busiest passenger hubs – said it would remain shut until at least 10am local time (9pm AEDT) today as staff worked to clear the runways.
Edinburgh Airport was also shut, with delays reported at Glasgow and Aberdeen, as well as Newcastle in northeast England and Jersey in the Channel Islands.
About a third of all UK rail services also either suffered delays or cancellations at midday yesterday.
Eurostar, which operates high-speed passenger trains linking London to Paris and Brussels, advised passengers to postpone travel today if not essential.
“Due to the current weather conditions, Eurostar will be operating a significantly reduced timetable on Thursday 2 December, with a number of cancellations,” a statement on the website said.
“In addition, Eurostar services will be subject to delays of up to 90 minutes.”
Heavy snowfall also shut Geneva International Airport where 100 stranded passengers had to spend the night in the terminal. With hotels fully booked, about 200 more were sheltered by authorities.
Switzerland’s biggest airport at Zurich was still operating, although 70 flights had been cancelled because of bad weather at other airports.
At Germany’s Frankfurt hub, 153 flights were cancelled and a further 250 cancelled at Munich.
Around Paris, authorities asked airlines to cancel 25 per cent of their flights at Roissy airport and 10 per cent at Orly because of expected snowfalls.
French roads fared no better with 17,200 trucks abandoning their journeys.
Part of the motorway orbiting London was shut and there were severe delays on north-south routes, while serious accidents were reported on the main road between Prague and the eastern Czech city of Brno.
In Italy snowfalls also disrupted traffic in city centres and on motorways in the northern Lombardy and Piedmont regions, and in Spain school transport services were disrupted by heavy snow in northern and central regions.
Man survives 1000ft fall in Grey Corries
A 35 year old hillwalker has escaped with only minor injuries after falling 1000 feet down a mountainside in the Grey Corries. The climber, who was 35 and from Glasgow, was part of a group of hillwalkers.
He fell from near the summit of Sgurr Choinnich Mor in the Grey Corries at around 2pm yesterday. He had struck the hillside on the way down, scattering some of his gear and passing three rocky outcrops. The rescuers – on HMS Gannet’s Sea King Helicopter – arrived within half an hour from a training mission, and after seeing a man standing up and reading his map at the foot of the slope, initially assumed he was not the man they were searching for.
“It seemed impossible. So we retraced our path back up the mountain and, sure enough, there were bits of his kit in a vertical line all the way up where he had obviously lost them during the fall,” said Lieutenant Tim Barker.
“It was quite incredible. He must have literally glanced off the outcrops as he fell, almost flying.”
Paramedics lowered to the man found he had suffered only a minor chest injury and cuts and bruises.
“He was shaking from extreme emotional shock and the sheer relief at still being alive.
The casualty was then transferred to Glasgow Southern General Hospital.
What to do in severe weather
As the national meteorological service for the United Kingdom, the Met Office has a vital role in public safety.
We warn the community of severe or hazardous weather which has the potential to cause danger to life or widespread disruption of communications or transport through our National Severe Weather Warning Service. But what should you do when we issue a warning?
Make sure you know what to do when severe weather is forecast
The first and most vital is check local and national weather forecasts.
Advice during periods of:
- Severe gales
- Heavy rain
- Heavy snow and icy roads
- Thunderstorms and lightning
- Heat and sun
- Dense fog
Content disclaimer
Every effort is taken to ensure that the information published on this website is accurate. This website is provided for information, and the Met Office cannot accept responsibility for any loss, damage or injury that arises from the use of this website.