Does it feel like spring to you?
Spring flowers have been blooming across the UK over the last few weeks bringing plenty of colour
- Published
Just feeling the sun's warmth on your face is enough to know spring is here.
With trees and flowers in bloom, gardens and outdoor spaces have suddenly looked more colourful.
It has certainly felt like spring over the last few days too, with the temperatures reaching 18.8C in Charlwood, Surrey.
However, it will get colder with temperatures closer to average with the weather remaining unsettled in the run up to Easter.
Colder weekend ahead
It has been a mild start to spring but wet too.
And yes, the forecast for the weekend does bring a return of colder weather.
Frequent showers on Saturday will be wintry over some higher ground, particularly in Scotland.
The weather high up can be vastly different from what you leave behind at the bottom of a mountain. It can very easily catch out even an experienced walker.
Wintry showers are likely over the higher ground such as this in Fort William, Highland over the next few days as temperatures drop
Saturday will feel colder especially when we factor in a strong wind.
But Sunday promises to be the drier day of the weekend as the winds and showers ease. In the increased sunshine it will feel pleasant.
The sun at this stage in March is as strong as in September.
- Published3 May 2022
Our days are longer than our nights now we have passed the equinox.
But our seas are at their lowest temperatures, which means a wind off the sea will still be bracing.
This has a big impact on how a March day can feel. It is often described as a month of transition, feeling almost summer-like one day to winter the next.
Forecast temperatures this weekend are actually only a little lower than the late March average - 9C in Scotland to 13C in southern England.
Snow more likely at Easter than Christmas
With more days of snow in March than December, a "white Easter" is statistically more likely than a "white Christmas"
Statistically we are more likely to get snow at Easter than Christmas, especially when Easter falls earlier in March.
One of the reasons for this is down to the sea surface and ground temperature.
Seas around the UK are colder in March so, when air travels over them, there will be no warming taking place, and in a north-westerly or north-easterly wind from the Arctic, the atmosphere can be cold enough for snow to fall.
In December, with the sea and land slightly warmer, that little bit of warming can restrict snowfall by a small margin.
If Easter falls in April, then the rapid warming of late March and April means this statistic doesn't hold up as well.
Prospects for this Easter?
In the week leading up to the Easter weekend the weather will remain unsettled with showers or longer spells of rain.
Temperatures will start to rise to around the seasonal average, perhaps a little above.
You won't therefore have to do an Easter egg hunt with the added problem of snow but there could be some rain.
Being a week away there are some uncertainties in the detail of the forecast, so make sure to stay up to date with the forecast on our website, app or socials.