Scotland sees 'mildest' Christmas morning as snow maps predict New Year's flurries
Scotland experienced a particularly mild Christmas morning as Santa was greeted to double digit temperatures on his annual visit.
According to the Met Office, Scotland's highest daily minimum temperature records for Christmas Day have been officially broken, but maps are forecasting a very different outlook for New Year's Day.
The north has seen the most of this warmth, with areas including Aultbea and Aviemore seeing 12C temperatures. The record for warmest minimum temperature is 10.6C in Dourney, Caithness back to 1971.
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According to the Met Office, the highest single temperature to hit Scotland on Christmas Day is 15.1C in Dyce, Aberdeenshire back in 2011 and again in 2016, in addition to Urquhart, Ross & Cromarty this same year.
Widespread temperatures averaged between 10-11C and these mild conditions are set to last throughout the day. The mercury is set to rise even further in the northeast, with the national forecaster anticipating 13C for Aviemore.
Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: "We have provisionally seen the mildest start to Christmas on record for Scotland and Northern Ireland. Temperatures here for the last 24 hours have not dropped much below 11 or 12C in places, so very mild indeed."
It may be mild, but that doesn't make for sunshine, as Jonathan further reports a dull Christmas Day outlook. "Although mild it is certainly coming with a lot of cloud. The early satellite image showing quite a lot of grey skies around."
Looking further ahead, the latest weather maps indicate major flurries for parts of Scotland on New Year's Day, with 2cm an hour predicted to fall over Fort William and surrounding areas.
The latest WXCharts data shows this snow front moving as the day goes on, covering the Western Isles before migrating further north by Thursday, January 2.
The Met Office long range forecast, which spans between December 29 until Tuesday, January 7, is currently reporting incoming unsettled conditions which include chances of rain, snow and chillier temperatures.
It states: "Fronts or low-pressure areas are increasingly likely to cross the country, bringing an increased threat of heavy rain. As colder air from the north progresses southwards, the risk of sleet and snow increases, especially in northern areas.
"Temperatures will start around average but will become slightly below average for most, though milder interludes are possible in the south. While there is moderate confidence in this trend, confidence is low for the exact positioning of any systems, which will be crucial in determining which areas see rain or snow."
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