There could be snow on the way later this month, the Met Office says
Temperatures could plummet and the UK could be enveloped by "significant snow" after a weather phenomenon known as a sudden stratospheric warming took place above the North Pole.
The phenomenon took place earlier this week, with temperatures suddenly rising as much as 50 degrees celsius in the air above the North Pole
Today the Met Office warned it could lead to "prolonged cold conditions" in the UK.
With speculation it is going to get #cold with #snow in the forecast there has been a lot about Sudden Stratospheric Warming in the media today, but what exactly is it? https://t.co/1CEJPkTAW4pic.twitter.com/EuUpHeCM8y
— Met Office (@metoffice) February 12, 2018
According to Frank Saunders, chief operational meteorologist at the Met Office, a sudden stratospheric warming in the North Pole creates a 70 per cent chance cold conditions could hit the UK, with a 10-day lag between the event taking place and chilly weather coming to Blighty.
“The outcome for the UK’s weather is still uncertain, but forecasts from computer models at the Met Office and at other centres are beginning to coalesce around a greater likelihood of cold conditions in the days and weeks to come," he said.
“Signs of this event appeared in forecasts from late January and in the last few days we have seen a dramatic rise in air temperature… around 30km above the North Pole," added Adam Scaife, of the Met Office Hadley Centre.
"This warming results from a breakdown of the usual high-altitude westerly winds and it often leads to a switch in our weather: with cold easterly conditions more likely to dominate subsequent UK weather."
Read more: Brace yourself for "coldest week of winter" forecasters warn
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