Britons marked the winter solstice today with a swim at the beach and yoga sessions outside an 11th century castle to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year as hopes continued to build for a white Christmas.
A brave swimmer took a swim at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh. Other early birds joined a Yoga session at Corfe Castle of the National Trust in Dorset for the dawn.
The northern hemisphere’s winter solstice is when the sun begins to set.
This comes at a time when parts of Britain are facing a whiteout Christmas. Snow is expected to begin falling tonight and continue until Christmas Day. However, it’s still unclear which areas will be hardest hit.
Northern Ireland and Scotland are most likely to experience a white Christmas on 25 December, particularly on higher ground. Temperatures could drop to as low as -6C (21F).
This comes just three nights after Britain’s coldest winter night. It was -9.3C (13F) at Braemar, in the Cairngorms, last night. That follows -9.1C (15.6F), on Sunday, and -8.9C (16F), on Saturday in the same village.
Sasha Udell and Charlotte Gardiner take part in an evening swim at Portobello Beach today in Edinburgh to watch the dawn of the longest day.
Glastonbury Tor is a Somerset landmark where people gather to see the sunrise on this winter solstice morning.
Participants take part today in the winter solstice yoga class at Corfe Castle, National Trust.
This morning, thousands of people gather at Glastonbury Tor to celebrate the Winter Solstice in northern hemisphere.
For the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice marks the beginning of astronomical winter. Shetland is the extreme case with only five hours and 49 seconds of daylight.
This graph from Met Office depicts cold air coming in from north and milder air going in from south.
However, the Met Office acknowledged that the exact boundary of cold and warm air is still not known. They stated that they were unsure where snow can be expected over Christmas.
Tomorrow’s conditions are expected to get more unstable, and rain bands will be seen across the UK. Before more snow on Thursday, sleet and snow are expected to prevail over the higher ground of Scotland.
Due to the strong winds, Blizzards may be possible in Scotland Christmas Eve. William Hill is a favourite of Edinburgh and Leeds, while Newcastle, Birmingham and Manchester are all close behind at 10-11.
Some areas further south will remain cloudy and mild with some rain. Additionally, there’s a risk of fog crossing southern England and Wales on Christmas Eve.
The Met Office is uncertain about where Britain’s snow ‘boundary’ might be – between snowy and non-snowy parts of the country – but its official Christmas outlook, predicted Scotland is the most likely place to see snow.
Strengthening northerly winds at Christmas Eve will push the boundary.
You will feel colder and there is a chance for blizzards at high elevations.
The south has mild weather, but cloudy skies and rainy spells from the west.
For the Christmas period, severe weather warnings may be issued because of the forecasted ‘blizzard” for Scotland.
Through the week temperatures will fall, and overnight freezes can reach as low as 6C (21F).
Helen Caughey is the Met Office’s deputy chief meteorologist. She said that because colder air meets milder over the UK the details of Christmas Day forecast are still uncertain.
“Milder air is moving north-east across most of the country in the middle of week with occasional rain. This will eventually turn into snow on higher ground in northern Scotland.
To mark this occasion, people take part in an early morning winter solstice swimming at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh
As people participate in the winter solstice swimming at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh this morning, a woman experiences the cold
Left to right, Agnes Pachacz and Sasha Udell with Charlotte Gardiner, Andrea Taylor, at Portobello Beach today in Edinburgh
Charlotte Gardiner (Sasha Udell), Andrea Taylor and Clare Donoghue are among the many people who visited Edinburgh today.
To witness the sunrise, people take part in an early morning winter solstice swimming at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh.
This morning, swimmers take part in the winter solstice swimming at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh.
To see the sunrise after the longest night, people take part in the winter solstice swimming in Edinburgh.
This morning, swimmers take to the sea at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh for a winter solstice swimming session
The boundary between milder and colder atmospheres is expected to fall south during Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Some will experience colder, clearer weather.
“However, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly where that boundary is at this time. This is crucial for determining where snow can be expected over Christmas.
William Hill, Bookmaker today named Edinburgh and Leeds as his top 4-9 picks for white Christmas in 2021. In addition to this, all thirteen major UK airports have dropped to their lowest point in over a decade.
According to the company, the collective book for a white Christmas was 11-4. This is significantly lower than what happened in 2010 when snow fell on nearly all stations. However, 19% of the stations also had snow.
Rupert Adams (William Hill spokesperson) said, “Although it may seem ironic,” that forecasters have begun to embrace the idea of white Christmas.
Participants take part this morning in a yoga class at Corfe Castle, National Trust, Dorset.
National Trust Corfe Castle, Dorset, is photographed as participants in this morning’s winter solstice Yoga session
Corfe Castle (pictured today) dates back at least to the 11th Century and is one of the earliest to have been built from stone.
This morning, people took part in winter solstice Yoga at Corfe Castle of the National Trust in Dorset
Corfe Castle is a hilltop location that makes it an attractive tourist spot. Today, a yoga class was held at the castle
Participants take part this morning in a yoga class at Corfe Castle, National Trust, Dorset.
To mark the winter solstice, people take part in an evening of yoga at Corfe Castle, Dorset.
There has been some quiet confidence in the prospects, although it was kept behind closed doors for some while, many people have not been willing to risk their reputation.
“As soon as the five-day deadline for forecasting snow fell, people calling the snow day became a lot louder. Therefore punters are enjoying a festive frenzy of renewed confidence.
According to the company, all it takes to declare a white Christmas technically is for one snowflake to fall in any of the 13 UK airports.
Although there have been four white Christmases over the last six years, they only involved a few locations.
William Hill added that since 1960, there have been only four occasions when at least 40 per cent of UK weather stations have reported snow on the ground at 9am on December 25 – those being 1981, 1995, 2009 and 2010.