Snow & ‘hazardous’ freezing rain to hit UK TODAY as Met...

SNOW and sleet along with rare freezing rain could hit parts of the UK today, forecasters say. High pressure to the north and east of the country continues to bring cloud and cold air this weekend, according to the Met Office. Up to two inches of snow could fall over higher ground and freezing rain is possible in northern England with people told to expect some travel disruption. Freezing rain, a rare phenomenon in the UK, forms when supercooled rain droplets freeze on contact with cold surfaces creating a layer of ice.

Image Credit: The Sun [Car covered in ice after freezing rain.]

There is also the chance of snow over higher ground in Scotland and some heavy rain over parts of southern Wales and south-west England. Last night temperatures plummeted to -9.6°C in Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands. The UK Health Security Agency has issued a cold weather alert covering parts of the northeast of England, Yorkshire and The Humber. Met Office meteorologist Matthew Lehnert said: "Through Saturday the rain will move further east and as it does it'll bump into the colder air meaning some snow is likely mainly for parts of northern England.

Image Credit: The Sun [Weather map of the UK showing rain and hill snow.]

"Two to five centimetres is possible over the Cheviots and North Yorks Moors and it's possible we could see some localised accumulations to lower levels. "Some freezing rain could affect higher parts of the Pennines for a time too leading to icy conditions.". The cold air will still be close by through Sunday and Monday. Southern parts of the UK will be mostly dry but cloudy and further north rain, drizzle and some hill snow will continue in places.

Brighter conditions with spells of sunshine are likely to develop for many areas on Tuesday. Milder and more unsettled conditions will then begin to move in from the Atlantic during the second half of next week. FREEZING rain is a rare type of liquid precipitation that strikes a cold surface and freezes almost instantly. The conditions needed for freezing rain are quite specific and we don't see this phenomenon very often in the UK.

It can produce striking effects as the rain drop spreads out momentarily across the surface before it freezes encasing the surface in a layer of clear ice. However it is not just these eye-catching scenes which the freezing rain can bring. The weight of the ice can sometimes be heavy enough to bring down trees and power lines. The glaze of ice on the ground effectively turns roads and pathways into an ice rink.