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How Low Will The Temperatures Go!

The cold weather is here and is set to stay, well apart from a somewhat less-cold wet and windy day on Monday. Overall though, we continue to see cold northerly winds dominate the weather through the course of next week. At the moment it is likely that by the time we get to Wednesday and Thursday of next week the coldest air of the season so far will be flooding down across the British Isles. Meteorologists often look at the temperatures at the 850mb level to gauge the 'intensity' of any cold spell across the UK. 850mb temperatures of near -5C usually equate to a reasonable cold spell and can mean wintry precipitation to relatively low levels. However, when 850mb temperatures start to fall to near -8C, -9C and the rather impressive -10C values, then you know the air over the UK is particularly cold!

At the moment, by the time we get towards the 29th and the 30th, there is a chance that 850mb temperatures will be near -8C, perhaps nearing -9C across Scotland. This does mean that next Wednesday and Thursday will be particularly cold. Maximum temperatures will be considerably below average.

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Minimum temperatures on Wednesday and Thursday nights in particular could well be particularly low, but this will depend on the strength of the winds by the middle of next week. However, at the moment, minimum temperatures widely between -2C and -5C are likely across inland areas, but there's certainly the potential for temperatures to fall between -6C and -8C in the countryside, across northern areas. As a result, there is a good chance that temperatures next week will be the lowest experienced so far this particular autumn and winter season. Don't forget as well that, meteorologically speaking, the 1st of December marks on the onset of 'meteorological winter' too - Ice scrapers and de-icer on standby for next week!

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