[b]Overview[/b]

[url="http://www.snow-forecast.com/overviews/tips_full"]http://www.snow-fore...views/tips_full[/url]

There was again some snow at the start of the week, but milder temperatures over recent days has led to a thaw and the best conditions over the higher slopes. However conditions are set to improve over the weekend with snow and colder temperatures pushing in from the North West. this week is set to be generally cold and turning very cold by the mid part of next week.

[b]Synoptic Charts [/b]

[attachment=158686:Alps 1 Feb Actual.JPG]


[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Sat 2 Feb[/font][/b]
[font=Arial","sans-serif]There is a deep area of low pressure (960mb) centred over North America, and covering the North Atlantic. Further south the Azores High has ridged north over the southern Atlantic, and has starting to ridge just west over the UK. Low pressure also for much of Europe, running down from Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and an area to the SE of the Alps. A cold northerly wind over the UK and over much of Scandinavia, cool over much of Northern mainland Europe including much of the Alps. Mild over SE parts of Europe.[/font]
[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif] [/font][/b]
[attachment=158690:2 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Sun 3 Feb[/font][/b]
[font=Arial","sans-serif]Remaining rather unsettled over much of the North Atlantic with low pressure dominating. The Azores High has ridged further North East, with West to North west winds over the Atlantic and over the UK, where there is a mild flow. Remaining cold and unsettled over Scandinavia, cold over much of the Alps with a NE winds and the eastern edge of the Azores High.[/font][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif] [/font]
[attachment=158689:3 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Monday 4 Feb[/font][/b]
Not that much change in the general pattern with low pressure over the North Atlantic and into Scandinavia. However further south west the Azores High ridges to the North West giving a NW feed over the Atlantic and into the UK and the Alps, feeding in a Polar Maritime airflow, cool to start of the UK and the Alps, turning colder in the UK later.
[attachment=158688:4 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Tuesday 5 Feb [/font][/b]
[font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]A surface High develops over Greenland and with the Azores High ridging north gives a temporary block over the Atlantic. There is low pressure over North America and also over much of Europe, this will give a cold NW flow over the UK, with the potential of wintry or snow showers over windward coasts, this airflow moderated by the time it reaches the Alps, but still cool here. [/font]
[attachment=158683:5 Feb.JPG]

[b]Wednesday 6 Feb[/b]
[font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Wednesday sees the whole pattern edge further east, a cold northerly flow still over the UK, with still the potential for wintry or snow showers over the UK [/font][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif] over windward coasts[/font]. The cold air is likely to have pushed further south into Europe and into the Alps with low pressure to the east. [/font]Low pressure still over America, with the Azores High starting to ridge closer to the UK from the south west.
[attachment=158681:6 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri , sans-serif","serif]Thursday 7 Feb to Friday 8 Feb[/font][/b]
A little bit of uncertainty towards the weekend, but the general theme is for the Azores high ridging closer to the UK, and introducing a little but less cold or maybe even mild air over the UK. Looking to remain unsettled over Europe and still looking cold over the Alps with a wind direction probably from a general northerly direction.
[attachment=158679:7 Feb.JPG]
[attachment=158677:8 Feb.JPG]


[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Sat 2 Feb[/font][/b]
[font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Heavy precipitation is edging South East over the Alps overnight and into Saturday, by 6am, there is heavy precipitation over Switzerland, the French Alps, fringing NW Italy, parts of Southern Germany and W Austria,. Snow levels 700m back edge of front to 1300m front edge of front. During the afternoon the front pushing away quickly through the Alps into Italy and Croatia, but still some precipitation for much of the Alps, moderate over parts of Austria, snow levels 600m-800m. Patchy snow continuing during the evening to increasingly low levels. [/font]

[size=4]Maximum Freezing levels (noon) around 700-900m French Alps, 600m-1000m Switzerland, around 700m Southern Germany, Austria 700m (N) to 1300m (S), Italian Alps 1000-1400m.[/size]
[attachment=158700:Alps 2 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Sun 3 Feb[/font][/b]
[size=4]Moderate snow continuing for a time overnight but becoming increasingly patchy as the day proceeds and largely dry in most places by mid afternoon, with a lot of cold and sunny weather likely. [/size]
[size=4]Maximum Freezing levels (noon) around 600m French Alps, 500m-1000m Switzerland, around 400-600m Southern Germany, Austria 300m (N) to 700m (SE), Italian Alps 700-1000m[/size].
[attachment=158699:Alps 3 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Monday 4 Feb[/font][/b]
[size=4]Further precipitation edging down form the North during the early morning reaching all of the Alps except most of Italy and SE Austria. By 6am, generally moderate and snow to most resort levels. [/size]
[size=4]The precipitation continuing through the day in the same sorts of areas, before slowly fading during the evening, snow becoming confined to middle slopes up during the day as it is milder than recent days. [/size]
[size=4]Maximum Freezing levels (noon) around 1400-1600m French Alps, 1400m-2000m Switzerland, around 1000-1600m Southern Germany, Austria 1000m (NE) to 1800m (SW), Italian Alps 800m (E) to 2000m (NW)[/size]
[attachment=158698:Alps 4 Feb.JPG]
[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Tuesday 5 Feb [/font][/b]

[size=4]Dry in the south to start, but patchy precipitation in Northern areas, during the afternoon this developing into a heavier burst of precipitation for the French Alps, NW Switzerland and SW Germany. By evening this moving eastwards, with some heavy precipitation over much of the western half of the Alps and Western Austria. Snow levels dropping through the day around 1400m to start to around 800m by 9pm. [/size]
[size=4]Maximum Freezing levels (noon) around 1400-1600m French Alps, 1200m-1800m Switzerland, around 1200-1600m Southern Germany, Austria 1200m (NE) to 1600m (SW), Italian Alps 1200m (E) to 1600m (NW)[/size]
[attachment=158697:Alps 5 Feb.JPG]

[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Wednesday 6 Feb[/font][/b]

[size=4]Precipitation (largely snow) to start over many parts of the Alps, but becoming confined to SE and Eastern parts by afternoon, however some heavy snow is possible here. This moving away later, but snow showers possible over the Alps later in the day. [/size]
[size=4]Maximum Freezing levels (noon) around 200-400m French Alps, 200m-400m Switzerland, around 200-400m Southern Germany, Austria 200m (NW) to 600m (SE), Italian Alps 400m to 800m [/size]
[size=4][attachment=158696:Alps 6 Feb.JPG][/size]

[b][font=Calibri","sans-serif]Thursday 7 Feb to Friday 8 Feb[/font][/b]
[size=4]A cold end to the week seems likely with freezing levels close to Wednesday’s levels at this stage, further snow is possible on Thursday but generally moderate at most, but Friday looks rather dry.[/size]

[size=4][attachment=158695:Alps 7 Feb.JPG][/size]
[size=4][attachment=158694:Alps 8 Feb.JPG][/size]