An Aberdeenshire village has experienced the UK’s coldest night of 2017, while Scotland was briefly gripped by Arctic conditions.
The mercury in Braemar plummeted to -10.1C as Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray and the Highlands were hit by freezing conditions.
It meant there was a gulf of 19C between parts of England and Upper Deeside yesterday morning, with the South Coast enjoying highs of 9C.
Elsewhere Altnaharra, near Lairg, was a chilly -9C, Aviemore reached a low of -7.8C and temperatures in Aberdeen dropped to -5.2C.
It came just a couple of days after the north-east was hit by unexpectedly heavy snowfall, followed by icy conditions, from Saturday night into Sunday morning.
However, last night, the Met Office said the winter weather would be replaced in the coming days with “unseasonable” mild conditions pervading the north and north-east.
The forecaster also warned that the Northern Isles and parts of the West Coast of Scotland would be struck by galeforce winds this morning and throughout the rest of the day.
There could also be some frost across the country this morning, although temperatures are not expected to drop below 0C in the north-east and Highlands, with rain also predicted.
The Met Office’s Michael Reading said: “We had an area of high pressure on Sunday. Braemar saw the coldest temperatures at -10.1C overnight. But it will be quite a big difference these coming nights.
“We have got a frontal system starting to move into the West Coast. It is bringing with it strong to gale force, southerly winds, and warm air.
“There will be mixed temperatures on Tuesday, with cold and rain suppressing these temperatures a bit.
“The rest of the week is fairly unsettled. There is a fairly complex system over the Atlantic. There will be periods of strong winds, coastal gales and fairly mild temperatures.
“It will be unseasonably mild for the beginning of February.”
Last night, Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside councillor, Geva Blackett, said she hoped snow would be on the horizon to get the north-east ski season off to a very late start.
She added: “We have had very cold weather, unfortunately that has not come with snow, which we so badly need.
“However, there is still time and we hope February will bring more of the white stuff.”
