Wednesday, March 18 will be the hottest day of the week. (Image: Getty)
Some areas in the UK are experiencing the hottest day of the year so far today (Wednesday, March 18) with temperatures soaring to 22C.
The west of Wales and western England could be hotter than Barcelona and Athens, and will be the warmest areas in the UK.
“Fog patches will clear across England and Wales to leave a warm and sunny day here,” the Met Office said. Dan Harris, chief forecaster at the Met Office, said: “Wednesday looks likely to be the warmest day of the week for many, with high pressure dominant.
“The warmest spots are likely to be in parts of west Wales and western England, where under sunny skies, 18-19C, possibly even 20C is on the cards. This is due to the additional boost expected from the passage of east to south-easterly winds over areas of higher ground, known as the Foehn effect.”
Read more: UK to see warmest day of year so far with 19C forecast on Thursday
Read more: Met Office declares hottest day of the year as map shows UK’s warmest areas
Wednesday (March 18) will be the warmest day of the UK, forecasters said. (Image: Getty)
The forecaster also said the south and west, and areas around the Moray coast, should see sunshine with temperatures reaching 15-16 °C, with an isolated 17°C possible this afternoon. However, much of Scotland and Northern Ireland will hold on to thicker cloud with further outbreaks of rain. Even warmer conditions are expected tomorrow with high pressure dominant.
While temperatures in the UK soar above 20C, the mercury is only expected to rise to around 17C in Malaga, Spain, and in Santorini, Greece, temperatures will just be 16C with rain showers forecast.
The Met Office said these will be the hottest areas on Wednesday.
- Carmarthenshire
- Ceredigion
- Pembrokeshire
- Cornwall
- Devon
- Somerset
- Dorset
- Bristol
- Wiltshire
- Gloucestershire
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The Met Office also issued a forecast for Thursday (March 19) . It read: “After a chilly start, most will have a warm and sunny day with light winds. However, some southern parts of Scotland and northern England will once again remain rather cloudy.”
The weekend, the forecaster also said, will be “dry with sunny spells for many as we move into the weekend. The risk of rain across northern Scotland Saturday, perhaps more widely in the north Sunday. Turning cooler.”
Here is a long-range forecast covering the period going from March 23 to April 1: “Changeable and at times unsettled conditions for many parts of the UK at the start of this period, as areas of low pressure and their associated frontal zones run close to or over the UK.
“These are likely to be most active in the north and somewhat weaker further south, closer to a ridge of high pressure extending northeast from the subtropical Atlantic. There is also potential for a period of widely windy weather during the first part of this period. By the turn of the month high pressure may become rather more dominant once again with plenty of dry weather, but with some overnight fog and frost.”
