UK awakes to a winter wonderland

Large parts of the UK woke to wintery scenes this morning as snow flurries passed over the country.

Around 5 cm of snow fell at higher altitudes but many regions saw a dusting of the white stuff while patchy snow continues today.

Weather warnings for ice were in effect for northeast Scotland and have now spread along eastern Scotland into England.

Some areas even saw the rare phenomenon of thundersnow.

These thunderstorms which produce snow rather than rain are rare because the two need different conditions to form.

Thunderstorms need unstable air, which means cold air must be on top of warm air, whereas when it snows, the air is usually cold throughout the atmosphere.

However, sometimes in a winter storm there can be a small layer of slightly less-cold air, and this can be enough to trigger a thundery snowstorm.

The weather was joined by freezing cold temperatures with a low of -5.6C recorded in the highlands of Scotland.

Remaining snow patches remain throughout today but should largely clear by Friday.