POLAR VORTEX TO BRING BIG FREEZE

Arctic 'from the East' is on way after warmer spell

- MATTHEW YOUNG

AS FROST, snow and ice carpet much of the country, forecasters warn that another Beast from the East is expected to blast our shores next month.

High-altitude polar vortex winds, which spin around the North Pole and keep cold air trapped in the Arctic, could fall significantly lower next week.

The knock-on effect will be a weaker jet stream - which usually brings our mild westerly Atlantic breezes - opening the door to Arctic air plunging towards Britain about two weeks later.

It was this phenomenon which helped to cause 2018's Beast from the East and the month-long Big Freeze in 2010.