Autumn wind and rain here to stay

Following the driest September on record for the UK and a fine first few days of October, the weather has finally switched into autumn mode.

A deep area of low pressure sitting to the north west of Scotland has thrown a meteorological melange of cloud, wind and rain across us – with some disruption.

This morning, flooding on the M4 motorway in Newport, south Wales led to a nine-mile tailback during the early rush hour.  

Also, a few thousand homes were reported to be without power for a time in Northern Ireland and north west England, as strong winds affected power lines.

Heavy rain and gales

Low pressure spinning around to the north west of the UK has thrown a series of weather fronts eastwards across the country, delivering heavy rain and strong winds.

Severe gales were recorded around coasts and hills in the west for a time, with some of the strongest gusts as follows;

Altnaharra, Highland 78mph

Tiree Island, Inner Hebrides 77mph

Isles of Scilly 66mph

Aberdaron, Gwynedd 63mph

Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire 61mph

The heaviest rain in the 12 hours up to 7am on Monday morning was in the west, across Northern Ireland, north west Wales and south west England, where 25-40mm fell in places.

An unsettled week lies ahead

If you were hoping for a return to something a little quieter, then you may be disappointed, with low pressure set to be the driving force for our weather for the rest of this week.

The jet stream, the fast-moving ribbon of air at around 30,000ft in the sky that drives our weather at the surface, is not only sitting south of us, but also travelling at around 150mph.

This means it will not only spawn areas low pressure over the Atlantic, but also catapult them towards the UK, with more showers or longer spells of rain and brisk winds to come.

There is a slight hint that it may turn a little calmer for a time later next weekend, as a ridge of high pressure builds, before low pressure returns at the beginning of next week.

Don’t forget, you can get the latest forecast on the Channel 4 Weather website. If you take any autumnal weather pictures, you can send them to me on Twitter – @liamdutton

Satellite image: EUMETSAT