Britons are poised for snow as the latest weather maps show parts of England and Scotland affected just days after wall to wall sunshine. One map generated today (Sunday, April 13) shows snow over Greater Manchester, parts of Cumbria, the Pennines and southern Scotland at 9am on Wednesday (April 16). A second map shows the snow having shifted northwards by 3pm, affecting mainly the south of Scotland, according to WXCharts, which uses Met Desk data.
Maps also show snow won't be particularly heavy or deep on the ground if it settles, with less than a centimetre falling per hour and about the same in terms of depth, WXCharts' maps show. They also indicate snow falling somewhere in the UK over at least a 12-hour period between 6am and 6pm on Wednesday. While WXCharts shows snow, forecasters have not confirmed whether Britons could see spring snow. Earlier this week, the Met Office suggested a chance of some wintry showers over higher ground in Scotland, which the forecaster said is relatively common even for April.
The Met Office said any snow which does fall is unlikely to settle other than on higher peaks across Scotland. In its latest five-day forecast, the Met Office said it will be particularly chilly at night between Tuesday and Thursday (April 15-17). Met Office Chief Meteorologist Jason Kelly has said high pressure will sink southwards and allow low pressure to take hold during this weekend. He said this will bring more cloud, rain, showers and lower temperatures.
Mr Kelly added: "By Sunday (April 13), conditions will be fresher, with sunny spells and light to moderate winds. Showers will be most frequent in the west and northwest, where they could be heavy, bringing a risk of isolated thunderstorms and hail.
"Precipitation may be wintry over the highest ground, over 600 metres. Many eastern and southeastern areas are likely to stay dry and rather warm following clearance of early rain, whereas temperatures will be much cooler in the northwest of the UK."
Netweather forecaster Ian Simpson said the low pressure will bring cooler, more changeable conditions. He added: "While most areas won't see significant rainfall until Tuesday, expect sunny intervals mixed with scattered 'April showers' instead of constant sunshine.
"This pattern maintains a relatively high wildfire risk in southern and eastern Scotland. From Wednesday onwards, the potential for very wet weather increases."
Looking ahead, Mr Simpson suggested Easter Weekend could be a bit disappointing, with cloud and rain.
Sunday, April 13 - Thursday, April 17
Headline: Sunshine and showers for the foreseeable future.
Sunday will see sunny spells and showers, which will be heaviest in the northwest. These will be accompanied by isolated thunder and hail. Southeastern areas will be mostly dry. It will be less warm than Saturday, but temperatures will still be above the average for April in the southeast.
Tonight brings a mix of clear spells and showers. These will be mostly in the west while eastern areas stay drier. It will be a chilly night with a slight frost in sheltered, rural spots.
A more organised band of showers moves eastwards before stalling across parts of Britain on Monday. Locally, there will be some heavy rain with a risk of thunder while it will be drier and warmer to the southeast.
The outlook for Tuesday to Thursday is for it to remain changeable with sunny spells and showers. These will perhaps be heavy and at times merge into longer periods of rain. Temperatures will be near the seasonal average, though it will be chilly at night.
