Weather and climate change

Headline:

Turning warmer through the week.

Today:

Cloudy at first in the south, but sunny spells develop through the day. A few spots of drizzle are possible in the south from any thicker cloud. Dry in the north with pleasant sunny spells.

Tonight:

Patchy cloud spreads north tonight with a few spots of drizzle in places. Fog patches in the south where clear spells develop. Chilly in the north with a rural frost.

Wednesday:

Fog patches slow to clear in the south. Sunny spells developing for most and feeling warm in the sunshine. Clouding over in the far northwest with outbreaks of rain.

Outlook for Thursday to Saturday:

Warm for many on Thursday with sunny spells, but cloudy across much of Scotland and Northern Ireland with rain. Turning cooler into the weekend with patchy cloud.

Updated: 04:00 (UTC) on Tue 3 Mar 2026

A broad northwest-southeast split in the weather looks the most likely scenario as we move into the second week of March. High pressure centred over continental Europe should maintain enough of an influence across southern and eastern UK to allow for a fair bit of dry and at times bright weather, whilst the majority of rain-bearing weather systems affect the northwest of the UK. Some strong winds are likely at times in the northwest. Temperatures look to be mostly near to a little above average. Towards the end of this period, there is chance that unsettled conditions in the northwest may become rather more widespread.

Updated: 14:00 (UTC) on Tue 3 Mar 2026

A more widely unsettled spell of weather is possible through the middle part of March, with periods of rain and strong winds affecting much of the UK. Whilst confidence in the details is low, there is the potential for weather patterns to become slower-moving towards late March, with unsettled weather become more confined to parts of the south, whilst areas towards the north and northwest turn drier. Given this pattern, the chance of wintry hazards will increase compared to earlier in March. Overall, temperatures will probably end up near to average, but there is an increasing chance of below average temperatures towards the end of March, though at present, there is no strong sign for any really cold weather to develop.

Updated: 15:00 (UTC) on Tue 3 Mar 2026