HERE WE SNOW
Met Office weather – EIGHT weather warnings in force for snow and ice across UK and Beast from East set to hit next week
BRITS will experience further widespread snow and ice as the Met Office has issued EIGHT weather warnings before the weekend.
And with the Beast from the East set to arrive next week, snowstorms and extreme temperatures are expected to batter Britain in the cold blast.
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The last Siberian weather front to be given the nickname hit in 2018 when snow blanketed large parts of Britain and temperatures plummeted to -10C.
The Met Office has warned of ice and snow today until the weekend, issuing a total of EIGHT weather warnings before Saturday.
Brits across the country have been battling chilly temperatures today - with even more areas affected by extreme weather tomorrow.
It's already been a cold start to the year - with the Met Office issuing weather warnings in the days since New Year's Eve.
But Siberian winds are still pushing in from the east, with the UK expected to see more frost, ice and snow during the rest of the week.
And forecasters are now warning that a "Sudden Stratosphere Warming" (SSW) could trigger another Beast from the East next week.
As well as the Beast from the East, meteorologists are also tracking a La Nina in the Pacific, which could bring wet and stormy weather as it increases the UK's chances of westerly winds.
Researchers from the Universities of Bristol, Bath and Exeter have predicted an imminent SSW over the North Pole, bringing severe consequences for jet stream and weather in the UK.
Earlier this week, temperatures dropped to -13C in parts of Scotland - with similar freezing temperatures expected throughout this week.
Weather forecasting models are now predicting with increasing confidence that a Sudden Stratosphere Warming event will take place this week.
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Two ice and snow warnings are in place today, with wintry showers and icy patches expected in the eastern parts of England and the entirety of Scotland.
And four weather warnings are in force tomorrow, covering the entire UK apart from central and southern parts of England.
On Friday, December 8, two more snow and ice warnings are in place - bringing more wintery weather to England, Wales, and Scotland.
Dr Richard Hall, leading the research on the SSW, said: "While an extreme cold weather event is not a certainty, around two thirds of SSWs have a significant impact on surface weather.
"What’s more, today’s SSW is potentially the most dangerous kind, where the polar vortex splits into two smaller ‘child’ vortices."
In 2018, Public Health England issued a Level 3 “cold weather action” alert, one step below “national emergency” as major services and power supplies were disrupted.
The winter of 2019 was relatively mild but experts warn this year we might not be so lucky again.
John Hammond from Weathertrending told The Sun Online: "So while last winter was very mild, there are signs that this winter will be quite different.
"Of course some places have already had snow, and much of early December stayed quite cold, with the possibility of further snow in places."
BEAST FROM THE EAST
He said the notorious Beast from the East brought record cold temperatures because of a phenomenon called a Sudden Stratospheric Warming - which is when rapid warming occurs 10 to 50km above the earth's surface.
Mr Hammond said: "That caused the 'Polar Vortex' to go into reverse, delivering bitter winds from Siberia, instead of our more usual mild Atlantic winds.
"There are signs that the stratosphere is beginning to ‘misbehave’ again this winter, which may have unpredictable and extreme impacts on our weather later on this winter."
Mr Hammond warned that not every Sudden Stratospheric Warming leads to a Beast from the East but if it did then "the likelihood of a very cold spell of easterly winds would increase markedly".
He added: "With this would come the chance of severe snowfall and extreme cold - last seen after the Sudden Stratospheric Warming event in late winter 2018."
The Beast from the East in 2018 hit the UK in early March after smashing into Storm Emma.
The lowest temperature recorded during the historic cold spell was -14C in Cairn Gorm in the Scottish Highlands.
At least 19 inches of snow fell on high ground.
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It lead to at least 17 deaths in the UK - including a seven-year-old girl in Cornwall.
Schools were forced to shut and hundreds of flights were grounded.
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UK weather forecast for Tuesday 5 January - Cold and icy with scattered showers
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