The State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) announces the advance of winter, albeit for a few days only, in the Community of Madrid, coinciding with the entry of a mass of polar air that will leave minimums below zero and severe frosts both in the capital and in much of the region. After several days of rain and mild temperatures, the atmosphere will take a radical turn and the thermometer will drop sharply from the early hours of Tuesday, with values that will be around 0 ° C and will be below this threshold in the mountains and higher municipalities, where light snow could fall.
The official forecast indicates that on Tuesday the minimum temperatures will be around 3 °C, but on Wednesday they will reach 0 °C and on Thursday and Friday the negative records will be common in the metropolitan area and will be even more palpable in the Sierra de Guadarrama and the surroundings of El Escorial, Rascafría or Navacerrada. The maximum temperatures, which in the previous days reached 14-15 °C,will drop to 7-8 °C as the week progresses, leaving cold days throughout the day and winter patterns well ahead of the calendar.
The first cold snap of the season
The reason for this sharp decline is the arrival of an air front of Arctic origin, which sweeps the Peninsula with clear skies at night and great thermal amplitude. The AEMET warns that frosts will be widespread from Tuesday, intensifying on Wednesday and extending over the weekend. Frosty dawns, slippery floors and a particularly low wind chill will be the norm in the capital and towns of the community.
Authorities recommend extreme caution on the roads, protecting pipes and irrigation systems in rural areas, and keeping warm, especially for children, the elderly and vulnerable people. This cold wave, although brief, is a winter advance and marks a change of cycle with respect to the autumn tone of recent weeks in Madrid.