If you don’t have any presents yet, you have to hurry up slowly but surely: Half of the Advent season is already over and Christmas is getting closer and closer. 20 Minutes asked meteorologist Peter Wick how good the chances are that there will be a white Christmas in the lowlands.
The meteorologist ventures a cautious forecast: “Much about the weather conditions on December 24th and 25th is not yet clear, but the chances of a white Christmas in the lowlands are not off the table,” says Wick. According to the latest calculations, the weather on these days will be quite dynamic with precipitation and wind; it is still unclear whether there will be enough snow to reach the lowlands.
In the days before, snowflakes down to low altitudes are unlikely: While the weather is currently dominated by a high, a weak disturbance will reach us on Saturday and Sunday, which will cause small amounts of fresh snow from 500 to 1000 meters above sea level.
According to Wick, a new high will build up over the next week, which will bring fog in the lowlands and sunshine in the mountains. «On the 4th weekend of Advent, more unstable weather arrives. Especially in the Alps, after the mild days there will be a cooling down and probably a portion of fresh snow. More detailed predictions about Christmas weather will only be possible in a few days,” says Wick.
Since the beginning of the month, meteorologists have had a significantly better view of weather events around the world and in Switzerland thanks to a new satellite. Meteosat 12 went into operation on December 4th and has been delighting meteorologists like Wick ever since.
The new satellite delivers “significantly better quality images” compared to its predecessors, as Peter Wick says about 20 Minutes. In addition, the meteorologists received the images about twice as quickly as before. “Meteosat 12 allows us to investigate certain factors much better: Thanks to higher resolution, deep clouds such as fog and high fog in lowlands can be recognized at night,” he continues. Wick describes the satellite as a “huge advance” that also improves the quality of the forecasts.
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