The UK has enjoyed a weekend of glorious sunshine, but the warm spell is set to come to an abrupt halt as heavy rain is forecast to sweep across the country. According to the latest weather maps from WXCharts, torrential downpours are expected to batter parts of the British Isles on Sunday, May 31, with up to 15mm of rainfall predicted in some areas.
Rainfall Forecast for May 31
The maps indicate that a band of rain will move in around midnight, stretching from Plymouth through Wales and into Lancashire, affecting major cities such as Manchester and Liverpool. Northern England and Scotland are also expected to experience significant rainfall. Simultaneously, the South East will face heavy downpours of up to 4mm per hour. The rain will persist throughout the day, with the North West and Scotland bracing for the heaviest falls at 6pm on Sunday.
Specific forecasts show up to 2mm of rain per hour in Plymouth at midnight, while Wales can expect up to 1mm per hour. Parts of Lancashire and the North West may see slightly heavier rainfall, with up to 2mm per hour. Scotland, including Edinburgh, Stirling, Glasgow, and Falkirk, will also be drenched. London and the South East are bracing for showers at a rate of up to 4mm per hour.
The rain is expected to gradually clear from most regions during the afternoon. However, large areas of Scotland, particularly Glasgow and western regions, will continue to experience rainfall at 6pm on Sunday. An accumulative precipitation map shows 8mm of rain in southwest Scotland by midnight on Monday, June 1, and parts of the Scottish Highlands could see a total of 15mm by the end of Sunday.
Temperature Drop Ahead
Alongside the heavy rain, temperatures are set to plummet across the UK. This follows the Met Office recording 30.5°C in Kent on Saturday, May 23, making it the hottest day of the year so far and the warmest May temperature since 2012. While further warm spells are expected on Bank Holiday Monday and throughout the coming week, the mercury could take a sharp nosedive by the end of next weekend.
Weather maps from WXCharts indicate lows of 3°C in central Scotland at 6am on Monday, June 1. In England, temperatures could drop as low as 12°C in London and Manchester, 10°C in Plymouth, and 11°C in Newcastle. The cooler conditions will persist throughout the morning, with maps revealing midday lows of 14°C in London and similar conditions across most of England, while Scotland may see temperatures as low as 4°C.
Met Office Long-Range Forecast
In its long-range forecast for the UK covering Friday, May 29 to Sunday, June 7, the Met Office predicts heavy rainfall across the nation. The forecast indicates increasingly unsettled conditions as June begins. It states: "The south of the UK is expected to be mainly fine and dry at the start of this period, with temperatures well above normal. It will be cloudier in the north with some rain at times, this heavy in places."
Moving into early June, conditions will likely become unsettled across the UK as a whole. Atlantic weather systems will move in from the west, bringing showers or longer spells of rain at times. The rain will likely be heaviest in parts of the west and northwest, while temperatures will probably be near normal.
