Communities across the north and north-east could be waking up to a somewhat white Christmas tomorrow, as light snowfall has been forecast in some areas.
The Met Office issued a weather warning yesterday, extending from 9pm until 11am today for snow and ice across the region and the islands.
But only a little snow has been predicted by meteorologists to fall this evening, in areas such as Aberdeen, Rothienorman, Keith, Ellon, Wick and Orkney.
With freezing temperatures in many upland areas expected overnight, snow could still be laying on the ground by Christmas morning.
The official definition for the Met Office to declare a white Christmas is for a single snowflake to be observed falling over the 24 hours of December 25, somewhere in the UK.
Traditionally, the Met Office used its premises in London as the single location to define a white Christmas, but the number of locations has since increased and now incorporates Buckingham Palace, Belfast, Edinburgh Castle, and Pittodrie, home of Aberdeen FC.
The forecaster also uses data from observing stations across the UK.
The last widespread white Christmas in the UK was in 2010, when there was snow recorded on the ground at 83% of stations.
No record of snow falling on the ground at any weather station was noted in 2018 or 2019, but 11% of stations noted some of the white stuff falling in 2017.
Throughout the 24-hour period of Christmas Day, the Met Office predicts a very low chance for snowfall across the north and north-east, but plenty of rain in the Highlands, especially on the west coast.
Although many areas will start Christmas Day with temperatures around 4C at 9am, when families tuck into their turkeys at lunchtime, warmer temperatures have been forecast.
Thermometers are expected to be as high as 5C in Peterhead, 6C in Elgin, and 8C around Skye and the Western Isles by noon tomorrow.
Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray and the central Highlands are predicted to be fairly dry throughout Christmas Day, but heavy rainfall is expected across a lot of the west coast, Orkney, Shetland and Western Isles tomorrow afternoon and evening.
Some snowfall has been forecast by the Met Office in higher up regions away from the coasts in the early hours of Boxing Day, with some sleet and potentially snow expected in communities including Braemar and Dalwhinnie, and a great deal of rainfall almost everywhere else in the north and north-east, except around Aberdeen and southern Aberdeenshire.
