Images taken at around 1:30 p.m. show how snow has covered the Ibones area in Astún, where the ground, rocks and areas around the facilities appear tinged white. The snowfall has been accompanied by heavy cloud cover that considerably reduces visibility. In the lower part of the resort, however, the snow has not yet settled in the same way, and the brown tones of the hillsides predominate.
AEMET PLACES THE SNOW LINE BETWEEN 1,800 AND 2,000 METRES
The State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) had forecast a change in weather for the Aragonese Pyrenees on Thursday, with rain, showers and a drop in the snow line to between 1,800 and 2,000 metres by the end of the day. The precipitation is concentrated especially in areas near the French border, where skies remain cloudy or overcast and visibility may be reduced.
The episode is also accompanied by falling temperatures and northerly and northwesterly winds. According to the Aemet forecast, light frosts are expected at high elevations, while winds may reach 40 kilometres per hour at an altitude of 3,000 metres. Showers will generally be light or moderate, although locally heavy precipitation could not be ruled out in the western Pyrenees during the early hours.
The snow may, however, be short-lived. Temperatures will rise again from Friday and throughout the weekend, so this first white blanket could disappear from many of the areas where it has settled.
