After the large amounts of precipitation over the last few days, the focus is now temporarily shifting to the wind. On Friday night, a small storm depression will move eastwards over France and Germany. After that, our weather will remain dynamic and dominated by low pressure.
Storm and gale-force winds – A brief summary
A turbulent night of storms lies behind us, but the wind has already died down considerably. The center of storm depression Frederico is now already over Austria and the Czech Republic. The peak was reached shortly before midnight, the strongest gust of 171 km/h in Switzerland was registered at 23:00 on the Säntis. The Bantiger followed at a respectful distance with 151 km/h. At the lowland stations, Lucerne was in the lead with a gale-force gust of 118 km/h ! Wind peaks of over 100 km/h were also recorded at several other stations. The wind will continue to calm down over the next few hours. However, there are still occasional obstructions due to fallen trees or broken branches in the early morning traffic.
Strongest wind gusts (<800m, as of 04:00)
| Lowland stations | Strongest wind gusts (in km/h) |
|---|---|
| Lucerne (456 a.s.l., LU) | 118 |
| Wädenswil (463 a.s.l., ZH) | 117 |
| Schaffhausen (438 a.s.l., SH) | 113 |
| St. Chrischona (493 a.s.l., BS) | 112 |
| Egolzwil (522 a.s.l., LU) | 110 |
| Salen-Reutenen, Homburg TG (718 a.s.l., TG) | 105 |
| Steckborn (398 a.s.l., TG) | 105 |
| Sattel (790 a.s.l., SZ) | 104 |
| Koppigen (484 a.s.l., BE) | 103 |
| Bern (565 a.s.l., BE) | 102 |
| Zurich-Zurichberg (556 a.s.l., ZH) | 100 |
| Cressier (432 a.s.l., NE) | 99 |
| Rünenberg (610 a.s.l., BL) | 99 |
| Le Bouveret (375 a.s.l., VS) | 97 |
| Schmerikon (408 a.s.l., SG) | 96 |
| Delémont (439 a.s.l., JU) | 96 |
| Schüpfheim (760 a.s.l., LU) | 96 |
| Oberägeri (724 a.s.l., ZG) | 94 |
| Fribourg-Posieux (646 a.s.l., FR) | 92 |
| Glarus (515 a.s.l., GL) | 92 |
Strongest wind gusts (>800m, as of 04:00)
| Mountain stations | Strongest wind gusts (in km/h) |
|---|---|
| Säntis (2502 a.s.l., AR) | 171 |
| Bantiger (942 a.s.l., BE) | 151 |
| Titlis (3040 a.s.l., OW) | 145 |
| Chasseral (1599 a.s.l., BE) | 136 |
| Jungfraujoch (3580 a.s.l., BE) | 135 |
| Napf (1406 a.s.l., BE) | 134 |
| Hörnli (1132 a.s.l., ZH) | 133 |
| Uetliberg (869 a.s.l., ZH) | 133 |
| Crap Masegn (2480 a.s.l., GR) | 124 |
| Great St Bernard Pass (2472 a.s.l., VS) | 124 |
| La Dôle (1670 a.s.l., VD) | 123 |
| Pilatus (2106 a.s.l., LU) | 122 |
| Moléson (1972 a.s.l., FR) | 120 |
| Glacier des Diablerets (2966 a.s.l., VD) | 118 |
| Gornergrat (3135 a.s.l., VS) | 115 |
| Plaffeien (1042 a.s.l., FR) | 110 |
| Eggishorn (2893 a.s.l., VS) | 106 |
| Les Attelas (2733 a.s.l., VS) | 105 |
| Château-d'Oex (1029 a.s.l., VD) | 104 |
| Lägern (868 a.s.l., ZH) | 101 |
A few more showers, then brief intermittent highs
The heavy rain is over, only a few showers will pass through today. The snow line will be between 1400 and 1500 meters. There will be some sunshine between the clouds. With a moderate south-westerly wind, maximum temperatures of 10 to 13 degrees will be reached. In the evening and during the coming night, an intermediate high will temporarily affect the weather. At first it will be partly clear, but later high clouds will return.
Warm front
A warm front will reach us tomorrow, Thursday. It is part of a small storm depression called Frederico – whose center will be over northern France and the English Channel around midday. In the east, the day starts with clear spells and the sun still shines through the high clouds. In the west, it will already be very cloudy and rain will start to fall during the morning, accompanied by a freshening south-westerly wind and the snow line will quickly rise to over 2000 meters. This precipitation will spread further eastwards in the afternoon, but the amount and intensity will be limited. Behind the warm front, the clouds will clear again from the west.
Fig. 1: Weather tomorrow Thursday: Lots of clouds and some rain in the north, friendlier in the south; Source: MeteoNews
Stormy night
On Friday night, the storm depression will move across France and the Benelux countries towards Germany, quickly moving eastwards.
Fig. 2: Location of the storm depression on Friday night, November 17, 00:00 UTC; Source: MeteoNews, Ubimet
On its southern flank, the wind will also freshen up considerably in our area, with the peak of the autumn storm currently expected to be reached between midnight and 3 am. Over the Swiss Plateau, we expect wind speeds of 80 to 100 km/h, and even more at higher altitudes. On mountains, there will be gale-force gusts in some places, with peaks of between 130 and 150 km/h on exposed summits and ridges. By the time rush hour begins on Friday morning, the wind will have subsided considerably, but there will be occasional obstructions caused by objects on the roads – such as broken branches.
Fig. 3: Wind peaks in the night to Friday, November 17, 00:00 UTC; Source: MeteoNews, Ubimet
Changeable over the Swiss Plateau, cloudy along the Alps
On the back of this storm depression, much cooler air will flow back to the north side of the Alps, which will begin to accumulate along the mountains. Friday will be cloudy and often wet along the Alps and foothills of the Alps. The snow line will generally be around 1000 meters, but at higher intensities it may drop a little lower in some valleys (although this will also depend on the wind). Between 20 and 50 centimetres of fresh snow will fall on the mountains, which will be transported by the persistently strong winds. Accumulations of drifting snow are forming and the risk of avalanches is increasing. Over the Swiss Plateau, it will be more changeable with variable cloud cover and occasional showers, with significantly less precipitation in comparison. In the valleys on the southern side of the Alps, there will be a strong northerly Foehn wind.
Fig. 4: 24-hour precipitation amount until Saturday, November 18, 00:00 UTC; Source: MeteoNews, Ubimet
Fig. 5: 24-hour snowfall until Saturday, November 18, 00:00 UTC; Source: MeteoNews, Ubimet
First an intermediate high, then new frontal systems
In the night to Saturday, an intermediate high will again have an effect on the weather and the precipitation will decrease. Saturday will be temporarily calm and mainly dry, but the sun will share the sky with extensive cloud fields in the north. A warm front with new precipitation will hit us on Sunday night. The snow line will rise again to over 2000 meters along the foothills of the Alps and even to over 2500 meters in the west. A cold front is likely to follow in the course of Sunday, bringing the snow line back below 2000 meters. In general, the temperature trend for the coming week will be downwards, but it is still too early for details.
Fig. 6: Outlook for the coming days; Source: MeteoNews
Two women's downhill races are on the program this weekend in Zermatt and Cervinia. And just like last weekend, the weather conditions are difficult, especially in view of the strong winds at altitude. A more detailed forecast will follow here on Friday at the latest.
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