Weather forecasters are finally predicting there could be an end in sight to Britain‘s Arctic conditions, with a ‘heatwave’ expected to hit in May.
Vantage Weather Solutions says May should witness a change in fortunes as “conditions finally warm up, most noticeably in southern and eastern regions”.
The website‘s experts say temperatures could climb to 25C across some parts of the UK, including southern England and Wales, and suggest the chances are that it will “be warmer than usual in south east England”, during May.
Their long-range weather forecast reads: “May will finally herald the arrival of some spring warmth for the UK. Pressure will remain highest across Europe, and often affect southern regions, so this will have a positive influence on conditions for all regions except the north and north-west.
“In the best spells of dry and sunny weather, most likely across southern England and Wales, the mercury will reach the 20-25C.
“Overall the month will be close to average for temperatures, though chances are high for it to be warmer than usual in south-east England; rainfall may approach normal values across the north and west, but it will be drier than usual elsewhere.”
And what about the rest of April? Dan Williams, spokesman at the Met Office, told Aol Travel that the second half of the month should return to temperatures more fitting for the time of year, saying: “There remain signs of a transition from the current colder than average conditions to more typical conditions for the time of year taking place during mid-April.
“This would leave the rest of the month with nearer average temperatures, albeit still with a risk of overnight frost.”
Leon Brown, meteorologist at the Weather Channel, said the word “heatwave” might be a little hopeful, but that May temperatures will be higher.
He told Aol Travel: “20C wouldn’t be classified as a heatwave in May, and is very common. The record for May stands at 32.8C. If temperatures reach the mid-20s for a few days we may describe it as a heatwave.
“We can look forward to a few days of T-shirt weather in May with temperatures in the low 20s, but sea breezes around coasts will keep temperatures a lot lower since sea temperatures are below average and will take a while to recover as we go through the spring.
“We are expecting a transition from the cold blocking high pressure over northern Europe and easterly winds to a less cold and a little nearer average pattern for the second half of April, which hopefully will last to early May.
“However, at the moment the likely pattern change is to a cooler and wetter summer again in response to the rapidly melting sea ice over the Arctic during May.
“This pushes the jet stream southwards over the Atlantic and seems to favour a cool blocking pattern with a persistent trough over the NE Atlantic, as we saw last year and to a large extent in the previous three summers, too.
“If this kicks in quickly then we may be lucky to see much dry weather and warmth in May, but if it is slower to build then we could have some warmer and drier weather.
“So, yes, some warmth and above average temperatures in May but may only last a few days.”
AOL
