Sun and frost set to kick off 2017 as cold weather forecast

The year 2017 is set to kick off on a sunny, frosty note with cold weather and sunshine forecast for the first day of the new year.

Temperatures will drop over the weekend with Met Éireann forecasting heavy rain and a chance of snow on higher ground on New Year's Eve.

Saturday will begin cloudy and breezy but dry in many places apart from some local drizzle.

Persistent rain will spread through northwestern and northern counties during the afternoon and turn heavy in the evening.

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Temperatures will range between 9 and 11 degrees on Saturday, however it will turn colder during the evening in the north as fresh southwesterly winds move north.

The rain is due to clear on Saturday night and it will become much colder .

Scattered showers will continue to affect western and northern counties later in the night with Met Éireann forecasting snow on northern hills and temperatures falling close to zero.

New Year’s Day will be cold with good sunshine. There will be scattered showers in coastal counties that may fall as snow on higher ground, particularly in the north and east.

Top temperatures will reach 5 to 7 degrees.

Sunday night will be very cold with frost and temperatures dropping to -3 degrees.

The weather is expected to remain dry with a scattering of showers in coastal counties and on higher ground.

The cold weather will continue into next week with good sunshine at times. Temperatures are expected to rise later in the week.