Dreaming of a white Christmas? Dream on

The prospect of a white Christmas anywhere in Ireland appears to be receding, although forecasters have warned that painting an accurate picture of what is in store for December 25th is all but impossible.

The cold snap that lasted much of the weekend is likely to come to an end today with temperatures climbing as breezy westerly winds blow across the country.

Mullingar in Co Westmeath and Galway were the coldest parts of the country over the weekend, with temperatures falling to -3 degrees, according to Met Éireann. The cold conditions were very slow to lift on Saturday morning, with difficult driving conditions reported in many places.

A period of heavy rain is expected across much of Ireland in the middle of the week and northerly winds are likely to see temperatures “plunge” on Friday, with a risk of some snow showers in northern parts.

“At the moment we are only really forecasting up to December 23rd,” said Deirdre Lowe of Met Éireann. “We can see a southwesterly front is due on that day, which means it won’t be exceptionally cold in the run up to Christmas.”

Snow showers

She said there were indications a northwesterly front was likely to follow on Christmas Eve “which might give us some snow showers” in the north. She cautioned, however, that it was “a long way off” and accurate forecasting remains elusive because so many of the variables can change.

The number-crunchers at Paddy Power are slightly more convinced a white Christmas is on the cards and the odds of snow falling in Cork on the big day have shortened to 7 to 2 from 4 to one since last Friday. The odds of snow on Christmas Day in Dublin or Belfast are static at 7 to 2.