After officially recording the warmest New Year’s Day ever, Britain will be facing bitterly cold temperatures as low as 3C (37) on Tuesday.
As the Arctic chill moves across the country, temperatures are expected to drop to 7C (or 44.6F) in London or Cardiff.
Yellow weather warnings have been issued for Northern Scotland by forecasters for Tuesday and Wednesday. Wind and snow are expected in the area with gusts up to 70 mph and “blizzard conditions” possible.
Just a day ago, Britain’s warmest New Year’s Day was recorded by the Met Office. Temperatures in the capital were above 16C (61F).
An ensemble of people takes a stroll along the Thames path as New Year’s Eve approaches, while the nation braces for the possibility that temperatures will plummet.
Because of the mild weather this weekend in the UK, many people take their dogs along for a walk on the Thames.
As the river levels continue to rise, water covers the Welney Wash area.
As the UK celebrates its warmest new year, a woman tosses seaweed at her dog Padstow Beach
Today’s showers are expected to clear for the majority of the UK today, except for Northern Ireland, western England, and Wales where it will stay wet most of the night.
A dry and bright start is forecast for many tomorrow but with showers for north-west England, Northern Ireland, Wales and southern Scotland.
North-west England will continue to experience showers, while parts of Scotland such as the Midlands and Scotland are likely to see sunny periods.
On Tuesday, cooler temperatures and the occasional shower in Northern Ireland or Wales will prevail.
Yesterday, meteorologists reported that temperatures reached a new record high of 61F (13.2C) at St James’s Park in London.
This provisional number beats the 15.6C (60F) previous record, despite the fact that much of the country continues to experience an “exceptionally mild” start to the new year.
Friday saw temperatures soar to 16C (61F) in Merryfield (Suffolkshire), and Nantwich, Cheshire. This beats the old record of 15C (59)F.
Met Office reported that two new New Year’s Day records had been set for New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. This unusual situation saw one weather system breaking record for weather for two separate days.
A balmy start to 2014 saw many happy participants in New Year’s Day swims at various locations across the UK, such as Derby Pool, New Brighton and Wirral.
Craig Snell, a forecaster, stated that the record had been broken before it was even possible.
“It’s the first time in December 2016 that three days have passed without us reaching 15C (59F). This has been an extended mild spell.
“It might break records but it was more likely that we’d see record breaking temperatures on New Year’s Eve, because there is an older record. It will be an extremely mild start to 2022.
According to Mr Snell, the December average temperature is 7C and January begins at 8C. This year’s warm temperatures are due to the presence of a southwesterly wind.
He said that higher temperatures tend to be localized, however, a lot of areas have experienced highs up to 15C in December. He said that January may see temperatures drop.
Somerset House, London, yesterday announced that it will close its ice skating rink for New Year’s Day in response to the warmer weather.
As the British Meteorological Office reported the UK’s highest New Year’s Day temperature, a woman runs by a cherry blossom tree in St James’s Park.
As the country celebrated its warmest New Year, the sun sets on Blackpool’s beach
As the Arctic chill moves across the country, temperatures are expected to drop to 7C (or 44.6F) in London, Cardiff, and Edinburgh.
For Tuesday and Wednesday, forecasters issued yellow warnings for wind and/or snow in northern Scotland
Somerset House spokesperson tweeted, “Skate Update: Because of the ongoing warm temperatures on the quality ice, it was necessary to close the rink at 1 January. We are contacting all customers directly for a complete refund.
“We’re currently handling a high volume of customer inquiries so we may need to take longer than normal to reply. We regret this inconvenience, and we are doing our best to reopen the office as soon as possible. If there are any other issues, we will let you know as soon as possible.
The threat from Covid-19 led to Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, cancelling the traditional city firework display.
Boris Johnson, the head of Boris Johnson’s New Year’s Eve celebration, urged everyone to test before they meet up.
“Everybody should have a good New Year, but it must be done in a safe and responsible manner. Take a test, ventilate, consider others, but most importantly, take a booster.”
Next week, the Prime Minister will make a decision about whether new restrictions on coronavirus are imposed to restrict indoor socializing.
Mr Johnson opted not to impose new curbs between Christmas and New Year’s Eve but rising Covid case numbers could see new measures implemented.
This comes at a time when NHS leaders warned that the Government “needs be ready to implement tighter restrictions at a real speed should they become necessary”.
Chris Hopson of NHS Providers said that additional curbs may be necessary ‘if the evidence warrants. Because health bosses are’still not sure’ whether there will be an increase in elderly hospitalisations, which could cause Mr Johnson to take action, he suggested new measures.