Big freeze: Cold weather and snow to sweep western Europe this weekend

Weather forecasts on Friday showed Northern and Western Europe were set for a weekend of cold and snow, with some parts expected to experience temperatures as low as 12C below average.

Saturday afternoon was set to bring a cold front in countries including Portugal, Spain, France, Ireland, the UK, Benelux and Scandinavia, according to data compiled by weather blog Tropical Tidbits.

A map of temperature anomalies - which shows the difference with baseline temperatures recorded between 1981 and 2010 - revealed that parts of Spain, Scotland and Scandinavia would see the mercury drop up to 12C below average over the weekend and into Monday.

To check expected temperature anomalies over the next few days, click here .

But the chill looked like it would be milder than the polar vortex which engulfed large swathes of North America this week, claiming the lives of at least 21 people. Temperatures in Cotton, Minnesota, for instance, went as low as -48C on Thursday. In Chicago, it reached -30C.

Still, forecasts predicted over the coming three days temperatures in parts of Norway and Finland would plummet to between -17 and -22C. In Scotland they would fall below zero into the double digits and Spaniards would face temperatures as low as -4C.

To see expected air temperatures across the whole weekend, click here .

Britain's Met Office also issued a yellow warning for Saturday and on Monday an alert for snow and ice. In France, meteorologists predict snowfalls in areas from 700 m altitude.

Tropical Tidbits forecasted that some of the most abundant snowfalls would be across the Alps and Pyrenees mountain ranges, as well as in Finland although most of the West European region would be impacted.

To check expected snowfall where you are across the weekend, click here .