As of Wednesday afternoon, a DANA (high level isolated depression) and a polar air mass will cross the peninsula, leaving an environment of harsh winter. The snow level will drop from 500 to 700 meters in the northern half of the country and will leave night frosts in most of the territory. Temperatures will not reach 10 degrees in many regions.
According to Rubén del Campo, spokesman for the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), “we are at the gates of an episode of unstable and winter weather in the Iberian Peninsula after a few days in which spring weather has predominated.”
Del Campo pointed out that the trajectory of the DANA is “unpredictable and its position is key when determining in which areas its effects will be most noticeable”, so there is uncertainty about the areas most affected by winter weather, especially starting Friday.
The passage of a cold front will leave the way open for the arrival in Spain of a very cold air mass this Wednesday, while a DANA will form at medium and high levels of the troposphere, which will roam the peninsula in the following days .
With the passage of the front, the cloudiness will increase and there will be rainfall in the northern third of the peninsula, which in the Bay of Biscay, may also be strong and persistent.
In the rest of the northern half there is a possibility of showers accompanied by storms. These are unusual in February, since they are typically springtime, although, according to Del Campo, it is not an “unusual” phenomenon in this month.
The snow level will end up going down to about 600 to 800 meters in the northern third and about 1,000 meters in the rest of the northern half and the central peninsular area. Although most of the snow will fall in mountain areas that day, at the last hours it can also fall in lower areas.
This winter situation will worsen on Thursday, with the DANA located over the northwest of the peninsula. A good part of the northern half, the central zone and points of the Mediterranean area will have very cloudy skies, with locally strong and persistent rains and showers in Galicia, the Cantabrian communities, the upper Ebro and the Pyrenees.
There will also be locally intense showers in Catalonia and slightly weaker showers in points of the Central System, the Iberian System, the Valencian Community and the Balearic Islands.
The snow level will drop to around 400 to 600 meters in Galicia, the Cantabrian Sea and Castilla y León, and to between 500 and 700 meters in the rest of the northern half and central area, and will be between 600 and 800 meters in the southern half. peninsular.
“Especially pay attention on Thursday because the accumulation of snow can be significant, greater than 10 centimeters in 24 hours at low levels of the Cantabrian communities, especially Asturias and Cantabria. There may also be accumulations of snow, in principle minor, at low levels in the Basque Country, Navarra, north and east of Castilla y León, and eastern Galicia,” Del Campo said.
This Friday the uncertainty in the forecast increases, but it is likely that the rainfall will be more limited to the northern third of the peninsula. It can also rain in the Balearic Islands, although these showers could extend to the peninsular Mediterranean area and also to points in the western third.
The snow levels will continue low, around 500 to 800 meters in the interior of the peninsula, although it will be higher the further east.
This situation of snowfall at low levels in the northern third of the peninsula could continue over the weekend, with possible showers also in the Mediterranean area.
In addition to the snowfall, the other outstanding aspect of the winter episode will be the significant drop in temperatures. Although it will be noticeable on Wednesday in the northern third, it will be abrupt on Thursday, when it will practically affect the entire country and, in addition, it will be pronounced in the north and central area of ??the peninsula.
During the day, the thermometers will mark less than 10 degrees in many areas of the northern half. And at dawn, this Thursday there will be frosts in a good part of the interior of the peninsula, which in mountain areas will be intense, of -8 or -10 degrees. It will be between -5 and -7 degrees in the eastern Meseta Norte and páramos in the center.
These frosts will worsen on Friday, when they will affect more areas, so that there will be between -4 and -5 degrees in much of the interior of the northern and eastern half of the peninsula. In addition, capitals like Segovia or Soria will be at -8 degrees. Daytime temperatures will remain below 10 degrees in the northern half.
During the weekend there will be a tendency for temperatures to recover, but the early mornings will continue to be very cold, with significant frosts in large areas, and the cold atmosphere will remain during the day in a large part of the northern half and central area.
“At the moment, and with the current forecasts in hand, we cannot speak of a cold wave in the strict sense because the necessary thresholds of intensity, persistence and extension of the cold episode are not exceeded, but in any case we are facing an episode of Adverse winter cold, with snowfall and very low temperatures”, Del Campo concluded.
