Weather forecasters expect a cold, cloudy New Year's Eve
Temperature set to drop to 10°C on Thursday
The Met Office is forecasting cloudy weather for Wednesday, with the chance of isolated showers at times throughout the day on New Year’s Eve.
The temperature is set to reach 16°C and fall to around 12°C overnight.
Winds will be moderate to rather strong during the morning (force 4 to 5), blowing from the west-northwest, before easing and becoming light from the north by the evening.
Similar conditions are expected to usher in the new year.
On Thursday, the weather is set to remain mostly cloudy, again with the chance of isolated showers.
Winds are expected to veer to an easterly direction and strengthen slightly during the day (force 4–5), before easing to force 3 as they continue to shift to a south-easterly direction.
New Year’s Day is also expected to be particularly cold, as a cold air mass originating from Siberia is forecast to dominate over Italy and the central Mediterranean.
As a result, maximum daytime temperatures on Thursday are not expected to exceed 15°C, dropping to around 10°C by the evening.
For those who will not be working in the days following New Year’s Day and are planning to enjoy the remaining festive period with family and friends, more favourable conditions are expected.
Between Friday and Sunday, the Meteorological Office is forecasting partly cloudy weather with temperatures above the seasonal average.
The coldest New Year’s Eve on record remains that of 11 years ago, when temperatures between the night of December 31 and January 1 dropped to 2.1°C.
On that occasion, light snowflakes were also observed briefly over the Maltese Islands.
Meanwhile, New Year’s Day 2024 was the warmest in the past decade, with temperatures reaching 18.5°C.