Precipitation

Several parts of Türkiye are currently under the influence of radiation fog induced by high pressure, an expert has said, warning that the effect of this veil curtailing visibility will prevail for an extended period.

The lowest temperature is from zero in the south to 10 in the north of Serbia, and the highest from 10 to 16 degrees Celsius. Temperatures remain above average, and snow is possible only on high mountains above 1,600 m above sea level.

Forecaster Petar Yankov has foreseen a change in weather patterns, heralding the end of the current warm spell by January 7. According to Yankov, light rain is expected in Kyustendil and Sofia today, accompanied by light snowfall in Western Bulgaria.

With light rains witnessed on the first day of the new year, experts predict the occurrence of intermittent precipitation across the country for the coming week.

The Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministries sent letters to all companies with heavy machinery on Wednesday, urging them to outline the services they can provide during severe snowfall. 

This follows a comprehensive meeting on December 22, focusing on planning and coordination for potential extreme weather events, especially in the Athens metropolitan area.

A messy mix of snow and rain wreaked havoc in parts of the country, as roads were closed to traffic in the province in the eastern and southeastern Anatolian region due to heavy snowfall and blizzards causing low visibility.

Transportation was severely disrupted in the provinces of Tunceli, Hakkari, Kars and Sivas, with some vehicles stranded on the roads.

About 14 percent of the country's land surface was covered in snow on Sunday, the National Observatory of Athens' Meteo weather service has reported.

Satellite data shows that that the area under snow during last week exceeds the average of the period from 2004 to 2022 and is the third most extensive since 2005 for the same timeframe.

Renowned climatologist Prof. Georgi Rachev has forecasted a weather rollercoaster for the upcoming holiday season in Bulgaria. Speaking on bTV, he outlined a mix of rain and snow in the immediate forecast, with a significant shift to warmer temperatures around Christmas.

"On Thursday and Friday it will rain, there will be over 700-800 meters of snow. Christmas will be snowless, I don't see any precipitation until December 25 in the whole country", said Prof. Georgi Rachev on bTV.

The weather in the Balkans is warmer than in Spain, he added. However, there will be snow for the skiers.

Today, before noon, there will be temporary increases in cloudiness over the country, but only in isolated places will light rain fall, in the mountains - light snow. In the morning hours, there will be reduced visibility in places in the Upper Thracian plain. Clouds will reduce to mostly sunny weather over most of the country after midday.