High-over-low: Blocking weather pattern at Christmas with two distinct weather systems in Europe

The weather will be very stable over Christmas: an extensive and strong high-pressure area has formed over northern and Central Europe. This is contrasted by low air pressure over the Mediterranean.

The general weather situation with a high in the north and a low in the south is called "high-over-low" and is one of the so-called blocking weather situations. In this case, the weather stalls for a while because the large-scale flow is directed around the two pressure systems.

This means that the weather in Europe is divided into two parts: in the high-pressure area, it is mostly calm with sunshine, but in some areas there is also fog or clouds. In addition, it is wintry cold. An icy east wind makes it even more unpleasant in some places.

In contrast, the low pressure system is causing very changeable weather in Southern Europe with lots of precipitation, some of which is falling as rain, but often as snow, especially at higher altitudes.