Let the thaw commence

After a wintry two weeks across the UK, this weekend will see less cold air spread to all areas, with a gradual thaw of any lying snow.

By early next week, daytime and night time temperatures for most parts of the UK will be above freezing, with the hard frosts of the past two weeks soon becoming a distant memory.

For the past fortnight, the wind has largely been blowing from the east, bringing cold air from continental Europe, giving much of the UK the first widespread snowfall of the winter.

Photo from Anthony Waltham of Holbeach, Lincolnshire in the snow.

This weekend, milder air of Atlantic origins will seep southwards across us, bringing drizzly, cloudy weather, but also a notable rise in temperature.

Early next week, temperatures will be around 6-9C by day and around 2-6C by night, which is close to, even a little above average, for mid-February.

However, in the process of the milder air returning, there will still be a few nights with a significant ice risk – especially where there’s still snow lying on the ground.

Snow will thaw by day, but the residual moisture and slush could refreeze on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, giving a notable ice risk – particularly across England and Wales.

Another problem that may occur as a result of milder air moving over snow covered ground is fog. The milder air will contain a lot of moisture, which when chilled by the cold ground will condense to give fog.

This is something that some weather computer models don’t always handle very well and is particularly noticeable if you use weather apps that rely on automated data. They sometimes eagerly go for sunshine, when in reality it can be a somewhat cloudier picture.

There are hints that towards the latter part week it may turn colder again, but it’s a long way off in the weather world, so keep an eye on the forecast through the weekend for updates.

Once again your weather reports and pictures have been very useful during the past few weeks. It’s always good to see what’s happening in different parts of the UK and talk about how the weather is impacting upon every day life.

Don’t forget, five day forecasts are available on the Channel 4 Weather website and I tweet regularly about all things weather related on Twitter – @liamdutton