A fine, sunny autumnal weekend is on the cards for much of the UK, as high pressure pushes in from Europe and blocks out depressions from the Atlantic. These are ideal conditions to bring on the change in leaf colours now underway across the country.

Shorter days, weaker sunshine and cooler temperatures are a signal to leaves to start breaking down their green chlorophyll. After this, yellow, orange, red and brown pigments — normally hidden from view — appear. The yellows and oranges come from carotenoid pigments which are present in carrots and buttercups; tannins give the brown tones, and are best known for giving tea its colour.

The most dramatic, blushing red leaf displays need a particular sort of weather: a run of warm, sunny days and cool, crisp but not freezing nights, around 5C (41F). These specific conditions cause the spectacular autumnal colours of New England’s trees. During a weather spell of this kind, the leaves produce lots of sugars, but the cool temperatures at night prevent the sugars from draining away. Bright sunlight then cooks the leaf sugars into brilliant red anthocyanin pigments, which give strawberries, tomatoes and other fruits their colours. In contrast, a run of mild, gloomy, wet weather tends to produce a drab display of insipid yellows, pale oranges and muddy browns.

So dramatic is the change in leaf colours that they can be seen from satellites as a wave travelling roughly from north to south through Western Europe at some 65km (40 miles) a day. In a few weeks the chlorophyll is totally destroyed and the leaves fall.

For a guide on where to see the best autumn colours across Britain, see forestry.gov.uk/autumn