The weather on the long weekend in December: first cold and then general rains

This Friday begins the longest bridge of the year in Spain, with the holidays of December 6 and 8 in all the communities, and it will do so with a cold weekend, which will be followed by several days of widespread rain.

"The environment will be cold for the next few days, with night frosts in large areas of the center and north of the peninsula until Monday, and temperatures in the central hours of the day that will not exceed 10° in said areas," said Rubén del Campo, spokesman. of the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), which reiterates, given the false and alarmist information announcing the arrival of a supposed beast from the east, that it is not in any case a cold wave.

"The extension, intensity and duration requirements that are required are not met, it is a normal and expected cold for this time of year,

More information

What is true and what is not about a supposed cold wave in Spain

As for the rains, between now and Saturday they are expected in the peninsular and Balearic Mediterranean area, with possible locally intense showers.

“Starting on Sunday, Atlantic storms arrive with mild and humid winds, which will cause a rise in temperatures and precipitation in large regions for a good part of the next week, especially in Andalusia, Extremadura, western Castilla-La Mancha, the surroundings of the central system and other points in the central zone, although throughout the days it can rain anywhere in the territory, with snow on the mountains”, explains Del Campo.

The first of the storms will also affect the Canary Islands, so there will also be intense rainfall in the archipelago until Monday.

At the moment, the uncertainty in the forecast is high, so it is not possible to quantify the amount of rain that the different areas will receive each day, but they are excellent news, since "they will help to partially alleviate the meteorological drought after one more autumn dry than normal.

This is the prediction by days:

Rainy Thursday and Friday in the Mediterranean

Skies covered with showers in the peninsular Mediterranean area and in the Balearic Islands, which can be locally strong and stormy.

Accumulations of more than 20 liters per square meter in one hour are expected in Ibiza, south of Tarragona and points in the Valencian Community (there are yellow notices, the lowest of a scale of three), which may extend to neighboring areas.

It will also rain lightly in other points in the east of the Peninsula and in the Bay of Biscay, with the snow level generally starting at 1,500 meters.

The atmosphere will be cold, with night frosts of up to -8° in the Pyrenees and up to -4°/-5° on the northern plateau and central páramos.

In the central hours of the day it will not go from 8° to 10° in the center and north of the peninsula.

On the other hand, in the Andalusian Mediterranean it can be close to 18°.

At the gates of the "weekend" and a week with holidays, what weather do we expect?

For the next few days, cold weather and rain in some areas, which will increase.

After... it's more complicated to make a forecast than we'd like 😅

In this #VideoAEMET we tell you about it.

pic.twitter.com/98QVvqIzlp

– AEMET (@AEMET_Esp) December 1, 2022

cold weekend

Minimum temperatures will continue to drop "due to the arrival of colder air from high latitudes and little cloudy skies in large areas of the interior."

The values ​​will be repeated in the Pyrenees and the northern plateau and moors in the center, with "widespread frosts, but weaker, in points of the north-eastern half and the rest of the center."

In capitals such as Burgos, Soria and Vitoria, the thermometers will not rise above 5° and in a large part of the center and north of the Peninsula, 10°.

On Saturday it will rain again, locally intense, in points of the peninsular Mediterranean and in the Balearic Islands, although with a tendency to subside in the afternoon.

It can also rain lightly in the eastern half and the Cantabrian.

The snow level will drop to 1,000/1,200 meters.

On Sunday the first of the successive storms will arrive, so "the rains will gain ground at dawn on the other side of the country, western Andalusia."

These precipitations will extend throughout the day to Extremadura, western Castilla-La Mancha and the surroundings of the central system.

These are the minimum forecasts for Thursday/Friday in the peninsula and the Balearic Islands.

Frost 🥶 is widespread in the North plateau, Cantabrian mountain range, Central System, Iberian and especially in the Pyrenees.

The weekend is scheduled to lower 🌡️ +info: https://t.co/cW5Vi0HTsy pic.twitter.com/9GNYVPhtoD

– AEMET (@AEMET_Esp) November 30, 2022

In the Canary Islands, temperatures will rise over the weekend.

On Friday, rains are expected in Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and the north of the most mountainous islands, which will continue on Saturday, with showers on the eastern slopes of the islands.

Starting on Sunday, the rainfall will intensify, with locally strong and stormy showers, especially on the western and southern slopes of the most mountainous islands.

There will also be gusts of very strong southwest winds.

Bridge week: rain on the Atlantic slope

The rains will become generalized on Monday in the western half, "irrigating especially western Andalusia, Extremadura, western Castilla-La Mancha, the surroundings of the central system and other areas of the central zone."

On Tuesday and Wednesday, precipitation is expected to reach more parts of the northern and eastern halves, but it is "unlikely" to reach the Mediterranean.

It will snow in the mountains.

"It is probable that this situation of rains and general unstable environment will continue during the second half of the week," Del Campo glimpses, although at the moment neither the quantities nor the most affected areas can be delimited.

As for the temperatures, they will rise at the start of the week due to the temperate and humid nature of the air masses carried by the storms, so the frosts will gradually disappear.

"There could be a thermal drop for the second half of the week", which would drag down the snow level.

"We cannot completely rule out that it snows in flat areas of the northern half, although at the moment it is unlikely," concludes the Aemet spokesperson.

In the Canary Islands, the intense showers will continue on Monday, but on Tuesday the wind will turn north and the weak rainfall will be limited to the north of the islands.

The temperatures will drop.