UK Weather - Spring 2015

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Sun 15/03/2015 03:27

March has been warmer and drier than average and today (Weds 11th) was mostly sunny with a maximum temperature of 12*C. A few of the daffodils are already in flower. The CET for March up to the 10th was 6.4*C (+1.5*C) and the EWR up to the 9th was just 9mm - only 12% of the monthly average of 74mm.

A sharp cold front crossed the country on the 1st but did not produce any tornadoes, although it brought snow down to low levels from the Midlands northwards on its rear edge. The 7th was a mild and sunny day with temperatures reaching 15-17*C in most places.

A Scandinavian high is likely to develop over the next few days introducing cold and rather cloudy weather for the weekend, but there is no snow in the forecast

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 17/03/2015 01:52

We did indeed have a north-easterly flow over the weekend and it was cloudy and cool with daytime maximums of 7*C on both Saturday and Sunday. This flow will persist into the new week but it will be a little milder and the sun is likely to put in an appearance. The weather remains rather quiet and boring! On a more positive note, we have a solar eclipse to look forward to on Friday (20th March) morning which will reach around 85% solar coverage here in Milton Keynes. Forecast is currently for a rather cloudy day - lets hope this is wrong!

The CET for March up to the 15th was 6.3*C (+1.2*C) and the EWR was 20mm up to the 14th which is 27% of the monthly average.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Mon 23/03/2015 03:29

The weather has remained rather nondesript over the last week or so and it has remained mostly dry. The CET for March was 6.3*C (+0.9*C) up to the 21st and the EWR was just 23mm up to the 20th, which is only 31% of the monthly average.

The eclipse was well observed by much of the UK although cloud plagued the SE. Here in Milton Keynes it was cloudy with a low stratus sheet and hazy at the start of the day, but the low cloud broke up as the eclipse started at 08:30 and cleared away by mid-eclipse (09:30) just leaving scat thin Ac. However, the lack of low cloud made it impossible to photograph the eclipse without a decent filter, so I was only able to get a few snaps through the low cloud when it was at about 40% coverage. It looked good through welding glasses, though.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Thu 26/03/2015 08:40

Yesterday (Tues 24th March) was a decent convective day, although the showers did not produce any high rainfall totals. It was a typical NW flow day for spring with cold uppers and quite high based convection producing mostly hail or snow pellet showers - the ones that break up when they hit the concrete. We had a couple light showers of this type in the early afternoon with pellets in the size range 3-6mm, but further convection was initiated later in the afternoon. This type of weather set-up does provide some very photogenic scenes and the two photos below were taken around 5pm - the shower over the city only appears to have produced a brief moderate rain and hail shower. The first is directly east and the second is the view to the south to south east.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Mon 30/03/2015 09:01

British Summer Time began this morning as the clocks went forward an hour to give us lighter evenings, but the weather did not play ball. Whilst it was quite mild (13-15*C) it was very windy and showery with a squall line passing across Lincolnshire and Norfolk in the afternoon giving thunder, hail and squalls to 60mph. Here in Milton Keynes it was windy and showery with quite a few gusts to 50mph late morning into the afternoon. Luckily the trees are not in leaf yet, so only a few twigs and small branches were removed. Looking cool and breezy through much of the coming week with a few April showers.

CET for March up to the 28th was 6.3*C (+0.7*C) and the EWR up to the 26th was 33mm which is just 44% of the monthly average.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Wed 01/04/2015 09:59

It was another very windy day across the country today (Tues 31st March) as a low (975mb) moving across the North Sea left a long stretch of westerly winds in its wake sandwiched between a big Azores high (1039mb) and numerous low pressure systems over the northern Atlantic and NW Europe. Here in Milton Keynes we have had gusts to 60mph overnight and this morning with a slight moderation in the afternoon and this was accompanied by rain and hail showers. Highest gusts nationwide were:

97mph at Capel Curig (subject to funnelling)
76mph at Weybourne (Norfolk coast)
69mph at Liscombe (Somerset) + Loftus (Northumberland)
66mph at Bedford
63mph at Little Rissington (Gloucs)
60mph at Northolt (NW London), Pitsford (Northamptonshire) + Yeovilton (Somerset)

Some good pictures at the Daily Mail link even if the journalism leaves a bit to be desired.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... -days.html

Nev · Unread post by **Nev** » Wed 01/04/2015 10:32

Wow, some pretty strong winds!

Sadly, a few fatalities across the channel as well…

'Fatal storms hit Germany and Austria' - BBC

UK Met Office Synoptic Map - Mar 31, 1200z.gif

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 07/04/2015 08:17

Thanks for the European report, Nev. I was not aware of this until seeing your post.

It was mostly cloudy over the Easter period here in Milton Keynes but today dawned sunny with a nip of ground frost and we had a beautiful sunny day. The temperature reached 16*C by 1pm but a NE breeze in the afternoon brought cooler air from the North Sea across eastern England and the temperature fell to 12*C by 4pm despite continued sunshine. The warmest weather has been in NE England and E Scotland where the mercury hit 20-21*C on Sunday afternoon, the highest temperatures of the year so far - best seen was 20.7*C at Aboyne (just to the E of Aberdeen).

Final CET for March was 6.4*C (+0.7*C) and the EWR was 51mm which was only 68% of the monthly average.

CET for April up to the 5th was 8.1*C (+1.7*C) continuing the warm trend so far this year and the EWR up to the 4th was 9mm, 14% of the monthly average of 62mm. The week ahead should be dry and with more sunny days it could get quite warm by Friday.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Sat 11/04/2015 17:20

it was the warmest day of the year on Friday (10th) with plenty of hazy sunshine pushing the mercury to 20*C in Milton Keynes. There was even a bank of Ac Cast around the middle of the day with a brief light shower of big raindrops making it look very much like a 'summer 'plume' day! It was even warmer in the London area with maximum temperatures of:

21.9*C at St James Park
21.7*C at Kew Gardens
21.5*C at RAF Northolt
21.3*C at London Heathrow

There was also a poor air alert for the SE of the UK, although I did not notice anything more than a bit of haze in Milton Keynes and it should be washed away by rain this morning.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32233922

It will be cooler for the weekend, but warming up again next week with 24-25*C possible by Weds/Thurs.

Orion · Unread post by **Orion** » Sat 11/04/2015 22:01

Interesting weather for the time of year. Did the raindrops deliver any Sahara dust?

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Mon 13/04/2015 06:24

Orion, the lunchtime shower was just a few spots of rain and I did not notice any dust deposits on my car later in the day. I think the press got a bit ahead of themselves on this occasion because the main concern for Friday was imported pollution from Europe and home grown transport fumes building up in the still air. We do get instances of dust deposition from Saharan dust and they can make your car very dirty, but thankfully they only occur a few times a year and mostly in the summer months.

The warm weather has brought the fruit trees into blossom and the daffodils are everywhere! It was much cooler yesterday (Saturday 11th April) at 12*C but there was plenty of sunshine.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Wed 15/04/2015 08:29

After the clearance of a rather stubborn stratus sheet (that formed at 8am)just before noon today (Tues 14th April) it became clear and sunny and reached 20*C here in Milton Keynes. In the London area it was warmer still as they were not troubled by the low cloud and it was the warmest day of the year so far with max temps of:

22.8*C at St James Park (London) + Shoeburyness (Essex)
22.4*C at Manston (Kent)
22.2*C at Gravesend (Kent) + London Heathrow

Patchy fog and an onshore breeze from the English Channel made sites on the south coast much cooler with max temps of just 14.2*C at Langdon Bay (Kent - about 30km south of Manston but on the opposite coast) and 12.8*C at Portland Bill (Dorset).

CET for April was 9.2*C (+2.4*C) up to the 13th and the EWR was 14mm up to the 12th which is 23% of the monthly average of 62mm.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Thu 16/04/2015 10:32

It was even warmer today (Wednesday 15th April) in the SE of the UK as the sunny weather persisted. Maximum temperatures were:

25.0*C at St James Park, London
24.7*C at RAF Northolt (NW London)
24.6*C at Gravesend + London Heathrow
24.5*C at Shoeburyness (Essex)
24.3*C at Charlwood (Surrey)

It was much cooler out to the west and from the Midlands northwards with a max temp of just 10.5*C at St Mary's (on the Isles of Scilly) in fog and also at Bingley in Yorkshire.

It has turned much cooler this evening as the cold front moves into the south but I think the warm air will cling on in the SW tomorrow before a big high becomes established to the north of the UK to give us dry but cool weather for a few days.

EDIT: The highest temperature for the 15th has been updated to 25.6*C at Faversham in the County of Kent.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 21/04/2015 06:40

The dry weather has continued through the last few days with alternating cloudy and sunny days. If we get a direct feed off the North Sea at this time of year it can push St or Sc cloud well inland and give much of the SE half of England a cloudy day. But this can alternate with drier air from slightly south of east and the cloud will burn off in the sun during the morning. Today started clear at 6am but low St and fog spread over quickly at 7am clearing away the frost, but it burnt off by 10am giving us a clear sunny day with a max of 17*C.

CET for April up to the 19th was 9.5*C (+2.1*C) and the EWR up to the 18th was 14mm which is only 23% of the monthly average.

It looks like remaining dry and quite warm up to Thursday then we are looking to the W and SW as depressions approach threatening rain from Friday and the hint of a cold northerly for early next week.

cantygal · Unread post by **cantygal** » Tue 21/04/2015 15:16

Really enjoy your UK reports and very informative Simon

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Sat 25/04/2015 10:04

Thank you for your kind comments cantygal. The weather has remained dry and rather warm for the time of the year in the last few days but this will be coming to an end this weekend as a cooler and more cyclonic north westerly flow becomes established. The recent dry weather has left much of the countryside vegetation prone to heath fires and sadly many of them appear to have been started deliberately - allegedly by children as young as nine! Whilst there has been little property damage, the effect on the landscape and wildlife will take a while to repair. South Wales appears to have been the worst affected area. See article below:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-sout ... s-32426401

The CET for April up to the 23rd was 9.6*C (+2.0*C) and the EWR up to the 22nd was 15mm which is only 24% of the monthly average.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 28/04/2015 07:53

The weather has turned cooler over the last few days and we managed 5-10mm of showery rain overnight Saturday into Sunday but the days have still seen plenty of sunshine. The blossom is in full swing at the moment and it is a great joy to see and to breathe the fragrance as you walk past it. It is a pity that it only lasts a few weeks of the year. Here are a couple of photos from around 7pm on Saturday (25th April) to give you an idea of the spectacle!

Orion · Unread post by **Orion** » Tue 28/04/2015 20:35

Beautiful double flowering cherry blossoms

NZstorm · Unread post by **NZstorm** » Tue 28/04/2015 21:02

I liked the Horse Chesnut trees in London in flower in May. Big trees covered in flower.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Wed 29/04/2015 06:25

The coldest of the weather has been in the north of the UK, especially N Ireland and Scotland with snow to sea level on both Sunday and Monday. Overnight Sunday/Monday (26th/27th April) was very cold for the time of the year under clear skies and the UK date record minimum was broken for the 27th. Lowest temperatures were:

-8.0*C at Katesbridge (Co Down, N Ireland)
-6.8*C at Shap (Cumbria)
-6.2*C at Warcop (Cumbria)
-5.8*C at Sennybridge (Powys, mid Wales)

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 05/05/2015 06:32

The weather has turned decidedly unsettled in the last few days with a deepening low (from 990mb to 980mb) moving northwards to the west of the UK during yesterday (Sun 3rd May) giving rain and showers to all areas, although it was only breezy rather than windy. The rain was heaviest in the west and particularly in Northern Ireland. A few thunderstorms developed over England during the afternoon in the unstable air behind the collection of fronts associated with the main low. Highest rainfall totals were (24hrs to 2100GMT on Sunday 3rd):

69.2mm at Killowen (Co Down)
51.0mm at Lough Fra (Co Derry)
44mm at Ballypatrick Forest (Co Antrim)
31mm at Castlederg (Co Tyrone)

Another developing low is currently moving north from Biscay (992mb at 1200GMT) to be over N Ireland by the same time tomorrow and at around 977mb. This will bring plenty of rain and showers and also some strong winds tomorrow and into Wednesday for the whole country.

The CET for April ended up at 9.0*C (+1.1*C) continuing the warmer trend and the EWR was just 28mm which is only 46% of the monthly average.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Fri 08/05/2015 09:24

We have had a couple of very windy days for the time of year (Tues + Weds 5/6th May) with a strong WSW wind on both days, but thankfully very little damage was reported. Highest gusts for both days were:

73mph at The Needles Lighthouse (Isle of Wight)
69mph at the Mumbles (near Swansea)
67mph at Weybourne (north Norfolk coast)
61mph at RAF Coningsby (Lincs)
60mph at Coventry Airport
58mph at Cranwell + Holbeach (both in Lincs)

The worst of the gusts over inland areas were in East Anglia where there was a minor occurrence of what is known as a Fen Blow, where lose dry topsoil is blown in the wind over the flat terrain of this area.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-ca ... e-32610473

Orion · Unread post by **Orion** » Fri 08/05/2015 13:32

Very disheartening for farmers to see their good topsoil billowing away.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Tue 12/05/2015 06:16

Hello Orion, the issue is not as bad as it might seem. This was a brief and minor occurrence, but they can be more severe. Fen blows appear to have been a greater menace in the past as modern farming techniques have assisted in preserving the soils characteristics. Soil in East Anglia has a peat element in it and this combined with it being the driest part of the UK and a very flat stretch of land make the soil vulnerable to scouring when it is dry - as it has been in March and April this year.

Today (Mon 11th May) has been a better day with a sunny afternoon and temperatures of 20-22*C over much of England, but it will be cooler for the rest of the week and some heavy rain is on the way for us in the south on Thursday. After that, it looks rather cool and unsettled. Further to our south, the models are suggesting a very hot spell for Spain with a peak on Wednesday when the mercury is forecasted to reach 43-44*C in the Seville area. This would be a month record for Spain for May....I think.

CET for May was 10.4*C (+0.2*C) up to the 10th and the EWR was 44mm up to the 9th which is 67% of the monthly average of 65mm.

Simon Culling · Unread post by **Simon Culling** » Mon 18/05/2015 08:06

Thursday was indeed a wet and cold day over the southern half of the UK as a low slid SE across the SW Approaches and into France as a filling system. However it was quite wet for most of the day with many stations reporting 10-20mm, with 36mm in Cardiff. It was also a cold and cheerless day in the easterly breeze with some quite low maximum temperatures for the time of year, especially for the south:

7.9*C at Lake Vrynwy (mid Wales) + Little Rissington (Glos)
8.9*C at Stowe (Bucks)
9.0*C at Kenley (Surrey) + Lyneham (Wilts)
9.3*C at Brize Norton (Oxon)

It has been drier and still rather cool since then as we seem to have got stuck in a generally W to NW flow and this is set to continue for the coming week. Some good convection on a cold front tomorrow (Monday) and generally in heavy showers on Tuesday so at least its interesting!

CET for May up to the 16th was 10.9*C (+0.3*C) and the EWR up to the 15th was 55mm which is 84% of the monthly average.

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