Constanza Sanchez
Una mass of polar air will bring a significant drop in temperatures, especially in the maximum temperatures in the interior of the peninsula.
The arrival of a storm and new fronts from the Atlantic will leave a weekend marked by instability in much of the Peninsula and will extend until the end of Easter, according to the forecast of the State Meteorological Agency.
For this Good Friday, the arrival of a new storm is expected to enter through the northwest and bring rain this Good Friday in most of the Peninsula, while temperatures will experience a «notable» increase reaching 23 degrees in cities like Logroño, Granada, San Sebastián, Albacete, Granada or Lleida, and 24º in Valencia.
Rainfall during the day will be persistent in Galicia, where A Coruña and Pontevedra have yellow warnings activated for rainfall of up to 40 liters in 12 hours, according to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet). As the day progresses, showers will spread to the rest of the Peninsula, although they will be less likely and intense in the Mediterranean area and are not expected to reach the Balearic Islands. In the Canary Islands, the skies will be cloudy and there may be some light precipitation in the northern mountainous islands. The snow line, which at the beginning of the day will be around 2,000 meters, will drop in the northwest to 1,100/1,400 meters by the end.
Maximum temperatures will decrease in the western third of the peninsula and the Mediterranean coast, while increases are expected in the rest and in the Balearic Islands, which in large areas will be «notable». Minimum temperatures will increase in most of the Balearic and peninsular territory, and the increase will even be locally significant in the northern plateau, while in Andalusia and Mediterranean coasts, no significant changes are expected. In the Canary Islands, there are also expected to be few changes in both maximum and minimum temperatures. Frost will continue to retreat, affecting mountains in the extreme northern peninsula.
The wind will blow weak to moderate from the south and west, stronger on the coasts of the Cantabrian Sea, Galicia, and Alboran, where strong intervals are expected. Very strong gusts are expected in the mountains of the extreme north. In the Mediterranean and the eastern third, a southwesterly wind will dominate. In the Canary Islands, the moderate trade winds will continue with possible strong intervals in exposed areas.
TEMPERATURE DROP ON SATURDAY
This Saturday, instability is expected to persist, possibly increasing in the northern half of the peninsula. The most significant precipitation will occur in Galicia and the northeast, especially in the Pyrenees and Catalonia, being locally strong and persistent. Additionally, they could be accompanied by storms and small hail. It will rain more lightly in other areas, with the likelihood of precipitation decreasing towards the southeast.
The intrusion of a mass of polar air will bring a significant drop in temperatures, especially in the maximum temperatures in the eastern interior. The snow line will drop to 1,000-1,400 meters and it will snow in the mountainous systems of the northern half, with significant thicknesses in the western Cantabrian mountain range and the Huesca Pyrenees. West winds intensifying in the northwest and in Alboran, with probable very strong gusts that could extend to points in the northern plateau and the southeastern sierras.
NEW FRONTS ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY
According to the Aemet, new fronts are expected to arrive from the Atlantic on Sunday and Monday, with more abundant and frequent precipitation in the northwest and the Cantabrian coast, and less likely on the Mediterranean coasts and the Balearic Islands. The snow line will rise, although the probability of snowfall in mountainous areas would remain at the beginning of the period. Temperatures would begin to rise on Sunday in the western half of the peninsula, with increases becoming widespread on Monday.
West winds would be maintained with a tendency to calm down, except for some very strong gusts on the coasts of the Cantabrian Sea and Alboran on Sunday.
