* Cold in eastern Europe to linger to March
* Milder weather seen across western sections
(Recasts, adds background, details)
LONDON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Unseasonably cold weather in
eastern Europe is likely to linger into March, but Britain looks
set to enjoy slightly milder than normal temperatures,
U.S.-based Weather Services International (WSI) said on Monday.
The specialist in forecasts for the weather-sensitive energy
industry said in late January it expected abnormally cold
weather to return to much of northern Europe towards the end of
February.
During the last couple of weeks Nordic regions and eastern
Europe have seen a return to colder than normal temperatures.
But Britain, which suffered one of the coldest starts to winter
on record in late 2010, has remained relatively warm.
"The UK has been caught in the middle between the persistent
cold Scandinavian ridging and the stormy, warmer cyclonic flow
in the eastern Atlantic, resulting in near to slightly
above-normal temperatures there," WSI Chief Meteorologist Todd
Crawford said.
"As we progress into March, this pattern of cold weather in
eastern European sections and milder weather across western
sections will continue... For Europe as a whole, however, we
continue to expect below-normal temperatures to be more
prevalent than above-normal temperatures through most of the
spring."
After a relatively warm March, WSI expects April to be
cooler than normal in Britain -- Europe's biggest consumer of
gas because of heavy reliance on gas central heating -- but sees
above average temperatures again in May.
For the whole of Europe WSI predicts regional temperature
anomalies as follows:
MARCH
Nordic Region - Colder than normal
UK - Warmer than normal
North Mainland - Colder than normal, except northern France
South Mainland - Colder, except southern France/Iberia
APRIL
Nordic Region - Colder than normal
UK - Colder than normal
Northern Mainland - Colder than normal
Southern Mainland - Colder than normal, except Southeast
MAY
Nordic Region - Warmer, except southern Sweden/Finland
UK - Warmer than normal
Northern Mainland - Colder, except Benelux/northern France
Southern Mainland - Colder than normal
(Reporting by Daniel Fineren, editing by Anthony Barker)
