Wide Firth (Orkney Islands) weather

Headline:

Friday mostly cloudy with light rain Orkney. Shetland dry, bright.

This Evening and Tonight:

Dry over Shetland with largely clear skies and just a little patchy cloud allowing a much cooler night than previous days. Cloudier for Orkney with some light rain in the evening before turning drier overnight. Light northerly winds. Minimum temperature 4 °C.

Friday:

Largely dry and mostly cloudy over Orkney though a few sunny spells possible. Plenty of clear skies and sunshine for Shetland with a little cloud spreading from the west later. Maximum temperature 10 °C.

Outlook for Saturday to Monday:

Mostly dry Saturday with some bright spells. A dry start Sunday with bright spells, turning cloudy with outbreaks of rain later. Cloudy Monday with heavier rain at times. Winds strengthening.

The unsettled weather looks to continue, with areas of low pressure running in from the west or southwest. This means further spells of rain or showers, possibly accompanied by strong winds at times, with one particular watch point for this in the first couple of days of this period. That said, some drier interludes are still probable, though the duration of these much shorter than the predominantly dry spell at present. Temperatures probably near normal overall, but day-to-day values high dependent on the track of any lows. Later in the period, there may be a transition to a slightly cooler and more showery northwesterly regime, as high pressure builds over the Atlantic and low pressure becomes centred to the east of the UK.

A showery northwesterly regime should give way to a generally changeable and at times unsettled period as we move into early November, as low pressure systems over the Atlantic track towards the UK. Given this setup, the wettest conditions are most likely in the west, and strong winds could feature at times too. There are just hints that a drier interlude may unfurl across more southern areas towards mid-month, which could increase the incidence of overnight fog.