A 400-mile wall of snow is set to descend on Britain from the North Sea as a cold start to March continues. The latest weather maps and data by WXCharts.com shows the imposing weather band making its way towards Britain next Tuesday (March 11), blanketing much of the country in snow. The weather will also bring with it significant showers for much of the UK.
Weather maps show white patches along Britain’s east coast with as much as 2cm of snow falling every hour through Tuesday afternoon. The snow threatens to bring with it travel misery as bitterly cold weather is also forecast that could trigger ice patches on roads. Inverness, Newcastle, Manchester, Birmingham and Cardiff are likely to be amongst those feeling the brunt of the wintery conditions, especially in higher areas.
Data from WXCharts.com shows that by midday on Tuesday, the country could see temperatures plunge to below freezing.
The freezing conditions pose an evident hazard to local authorities as they battle to protect communities from the effects of snow and rain in freezing conditions.
Further south, the weather will likely be wet if not snowy, with London and the South East subjected to rain throughout much of the day.
The weather could be part of a wider band of adverse conditions throughout next week, with one expert warning of a “stratospheric” weather event on March 12.
The stratospheric weather event could see a warming event develop over the next two weeks, “leading to a collapse of the polar vortex”.
According to the National Weather Service: “Many times during winter in the northern hemisphere, the polar vortex will expand, sending cold air southward with the jet stream.
“This occurs fairly regularly during wintertime and is often associated with large outbreaks of Arctic air.”
A polar vortex is a large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding both of the earth’s poles.
The Met Office’s weather forecast for March 11-20 reads: “High pressure will build across the UK from the northwest during the early part of this period. This will bring north or northeasterly winds during the middle of next week, with a mixture of sunny spells and some showers.
“The showers are likely to be most frequent in the north and east, and they will bring some snow to high ground. Temperatures are expected to be below normal.”
