A yellow snow and ice alert has been issued and ends today (February 10) at 9am, as Britons have been warned of potential injuries of slipping on icy surfaces.
The sub-zero freeze that the UK is experiencing is also set to cause likely delays to travel with the Met Office warning the public by road, bus and train services could be affected by longer journey times.
WXCharts weather maps demonstrate that areas of the UK could be covered with up to 5cm of snow next weekend.
READ MORE: UK snow maps show ‘5cm per hour’ blast as Met Office predict ‘polar vortex collapse’
Forecasters have warned that a Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) event may reach the UK in the next few days.
(Image: Andy Wasley / SWNS)
The weather event has been likened to the Beast from the East phenomenon back in 2018 which brought heavy snow and freezing temperatures to the UK.
Forecasters say that an SSW event is “now likely” and is defined as when “rapid warming occurs high up in the stratosphere”.
The Met Office say that the event can have consequences in weather on the surface in the following weeks.
Exacta Weather’s James Madden said: “The upcoming Sudden Stratospheric Warming should now be a major one.
(Image: Rowan Griffiths / Daily Mirror)
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“It means we are now facing extensive cold and snow later in February and into the start of March.
“This could delay any spring warmth by several weeks, meaning temperatures might not recover until the back end of April, or even later.”
Sky News weather said current forecasts “are not showing any major cold snap for the UK as a result of the current SSW”.
They added: “That doesn’t mean we won’t have cold spells – it’s cold now, after all, but that’s due to the normal progression of high and low pressure systems and nothing to do with an SSW.”
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