A COLD snap with icy artic temperatures is on its way, The Evening Star can today reveal. Biting winds, hail sleet and snow are predicted from the end of the weekend.

A COLD snap with icy artic temperatures is on its way, The Evening Star can today reveal.

Biting winds, hail sleet and snow are predicted from the end of the weekend.

Star weather expert Ken Blowers said the cold spell will start on Sunday night and will last until Wednesday Feb 22 and could go on until Thursday.

Mr Blowers said: “There is a cold spell on the way. Once again we have high pressure to the west of Ireland and a depression over the continent.

“This brings in cold air from the North East coming from the arctic region. At this time of year it will be a showery air stream and it could fall as snow, sleet or hail.

“It looks as if it will go on a for a few days and we will have the taste of winter that had been predicted at the end of the month.”

During the predicated cold snap, temperatures are expected to plummet to 38f (3C) during the day and 28F (-2C) at night.

Mr Blowers said earlier predictions for a harsh winter had not proven to be correct.

He said: “Since December average temperatures have only been half a degree lower than we would expect at this time of year.

“Some had said the winter would be worse than the severe winter of 1963. This was completely wrong. January had only four air frosts and during the winter of 2005 to 2006 there was snow on only four days.

“We are now moving into March and the beginning of Spring and any snow that falls in March will be melted quite quickly by the increasing power of the sun.”

2006 Winter:

nIn October weather forecasters warned Britain could be in for a cold winter because of a switch in the North Atlantic Oscillation - meaning warm wet winds from the Atlantic would be replaced by colder winds from Scandinavia during the winter.

nMoscow had its coldest winter since 1942 - when the harsh weather contributed to the defeat of the invading German army.

nNew York has been experiencing its heaviest snowfall since 1969.

nIn Eastern and southern Europe heavy snowfalls led to tragedies when the roofs of sports centres in Poland and southern Germany collapsed.