The Met Office is warning that icy conditions are here to stay and snow could blanket Britain as early as next week.
According to forecasters, plummeting temperatures and disruptive snow are expected in London as the cold spell continues to bring grey conditions with patches of rain and sleet across the South of England.
Experts believe the cold weather could go on for several more weeks, although weather models have so far failed to deliver confident predictions.
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The uncertainty is due to a sudden stratospheric warming event that occurred at the end of the Christmas week. It caused atmospheric temperatures to rise rapidly and opened Britain up to the possibility of an extended cold spell.
In some areas of northern Scotland, temperatures plunged as low as -9C (16F) as the weekend got underway.
In the South, conditions continued to hover just above freezing, while a band of snow was forecast for the North on Sunday.
Conditions at the start of next week look set to get even colder.
Good evening! England & Wales will be cloudy overnight, although patchy rain & hill snow will largely die out. Eastern England & southwest Scotland will have clear spells. Rain & hill snow will arrive in the northwest later. A patchy frost. https://t.co/lvmvtqQWBN ^Kayleigh pic.twitter.com/xYyJrFG759
— Met Office (@metoffice) 19 January 2019
Speaking to The Independent, Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna said: “All areas go into a colder, northwesterly airstream for Tuesday and Wednesday.
“Wintry showers could be hail, sleet, snow almost anywhere. Especially in the areas that are much colder.”
On Monday and Tuesday, sleet and snow could also hit the lower areas of the country.
In an Evening Standard report, Met Office spokesperson Mark Wilson said: “Most of the snow will be in higher ground and the further north you go the more likely for snow in those areas.
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“At the moment we’re not expecting it in London but it is not completely out of the question.”
According to Aidan McGivern, another meteorologist with the Met Office, a cold front was forecast to sweep in on Sunday morning from the North West.
It will sweep along with it a fresh dusting of hill snow from Grampian Mountains and other parts of the Scottish Highlands, then the Pennines in northern England and North Wales’ Snowdonia as it progresses south.
Mr McGivern added: “The cold weather is here to stay for now, and there could be more significant cold and disruptive snow at times through next week.”
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