UK issued start date for first heatwave of the year
The exact date the first heatwave of the year is likely to kick off has been revealed by forecasters. As we head deeper into April and towards May, the UK has been told temperatures could soar with the country basking in the glow of warm sunshine over the first Bank Holiday weekend.
The BBC predicts a "warming up" on Monday, May 6 – the first Bank Holiday of May. And looking ahead to May, the Met Office forecast for May 8 onwards reads: "Also worth noting that average temperatures themselves rise by around 1C per week at this time of year."
Looking from May 6 to May 12, Netweather TV says: "It looks probable that high latitude blocking will persist during this period, with high pressure often especially centred around Greenland. There is not a strong signal for low pressure over Britain, so confidence is relatively low in the specific weather patterns that will affect Britain.
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"But with a Greenland high there is a chance of one or two chilly northerly outbreaks, giving potential for damaging frosts, especially in the north, but warmer spells are also probable, most likely associated with high pressure ridging across from the west and north-west at times."
"Overall, it is likely to be drier and sunnier than average in north-western Britain, while the east and south of England are most likely to see wetter and/or cloudier than average weather, though it looks more likely that rainfall in most of southern and eastern England will be near normal," it adds.
And in its outlook from May 13 onwards, the Netweather team state: "Temperatures overall are likely to be near to slightly above average for much of the country, possibly 1 to 2C warmer than average in some western regions. Sunshine is likely to be above normal in most western areas."
The Beeb adds: "We will see which trend will continue into mid- to late May. Some of the factors mentioned in the previous reports, such as the influence of the late state of the stratospheric polar vortex and the upcoming final stratospheric warming and some other factors, are still contradictory."