BlueHedgehog074

I must admit the Midlands snow shield (unless you're high up) has been a little too annoyingly strong in the last few years. An axe, a box of dynamite, the apocalypse - nothing can seem to blow it up! It's just fortunate there's still a few months to go for snow chances. All it would take is for a few favourable adjustments in the models to start putting that snow shield under threat. Even if it was to remain mostly dry in the next week or two, hopefully this Winter will still pull out some kind of wintry surprise. The cold/snow enthusiasts in the region (myself included) certainly could do with a dollop of the stuff!

I've heard of that model. The Window gives 100% reliability and is never wrong! The Window 12Z shows that it's dry outside right now.

A comparison between both the 06Z and the 12Z GFS below at 168 hours. Almost virtually indentical, although the 12Z GFS does have slightly better penetration of colder 850 hPa temperatures filtering in from the North and North-East, plus the Atlantic High Pressure is a tad further West. A slight upgrade in that respects, and maybe a chance of a few wintry/snow showers in the East 06Z GFS 12Z GFS

Looking at the models about a week ago, you would probably be fooled into thinking January wouldn't start off all that cold (although I guess there were hints from one or two people of a chilly North-Westerly flow to establish). Don't know what to think really, just hope the models aren't doing that usual 'let's play tricks on the cold weather fans and let them believe The Polar Express is coming to the UK' and then suddenly snatch the dream from us! My guess: 3*C! That train better come...

May you all have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year. And may Santa keep bringing some nice chilly and/or wintry conditions for those that want it. It's nice to see various models showing some kind of mid-Atlantic ridge scenarios with their cold Northerlies and North-Westerlies, especially that from the 12Z ECMWF run! But should that pesky Vortex to our North-West gives us any trouble, there's someone who can take care of that darn thing...

I wouldn't be too surprised if that verified (lol). Must admit, a full zonal Atlantic setup with long drawn Westerly winds does seem improbable at the moment. Despite being only November I think, currently, the Greenland Vortex would rather just chill out watching TV, rather than take on that spot to our North-West. It worked too hard last Winter and it must be very worn out.

There must be something about Saturdays that makes the weather so grumpy. Solihull Sunshine Shield holding up quite a bit, although some brighter, sunnier, spells between the clouds is preventing the shield reaching its full power.

A bit optimistic, but will go for 17*C please. Have a feeling that the core area of the Azores High will stay locked away to the South and West of the U.K. at times with Lows running over the top and into Mainland Europe, although I do also feel that some of the Atlantic Lows may dig far enough South to our West and force some ridging from the Azores High to get pumped North-East into the continent and perhaps allow some Spanish Plume-like instances to occur at times. However, can't really see anything super warm occurring generally and also can't really see any particularly amplified or stubborn High Pressure ridges developing to our East. (hope to be wrong, though).

Hopefully some stormy surprises for some of us in the Midlands if that keeps developing (although feel I might be a bit too far North for anything to develop should any thunderstorms pop up in the South-East later this afternoon). Despite the fairly cool breeze, still feels quite humid and hot outside. Congrats to those of you further North/North-West for some of those big storms you've had so far. Too bad those storms couldn't have occurred further East and taken out all the storm shields in the Midlands instead. (But well done still, nonetheless)

Looks as though the weather should be okay for anyone who may be doing the Great Midlands fun run today in Sutton Coldfield. Having said that, it is still cloudy at the moment, but hoping the slate gray skies will give up the ghost and let some brighter conditions to break through.

Going to close the lid on this thread as it's getting a bit long and start up a new Wales Weather Chat thread for you ladies and gentlemen to take part in. New thread here:

Greetings! Fresh new thread for you ladies and gentlemen in the land of Wales. Previous topic was getting a bit long and since Easter has arrived, seemed suitable to unravel a new thread. Please continue your discussions regarding the weather in here. Old thread here:

If you guys are okay with it, going to lock-up this thread as it's getting a bit long and start up a new North-West England Weather Chat thread for you to take part in. New thread here:

Howdy! Fresh new thread for you ladies and gentlemen in the North-West England zone. Previous topic was getting a bit long and since Easter has arrived, seemed suitable to unravel a new thread. Please continue your discussions regarding the weather in here. Old thread here: (Picture above: Grange-Over-Sands)

Going to close the lid on this thread while it's quiet and also due to it getting a bit long. Will start up a new Scotland Weather Chat thread for you ladies and gentlemen to take part in. New thread here:

Ahoy their Scotlanders! Fresh new thread for ya ladies and gentlemen in Scotland. Previous topic was getting a wee bit long and since Easter has arrived, seemed suitable to unravel a new thread. Please continue your discussions regarding the weather in here. But not only that, you guys get the pleasure to have not one, but two 'Weather Chat' logos! None of the other regional weather threads have two Weather Chat logos, so count yourselves lucky. Old thread here:

@Mapantz Looks as though @ajpoolshark has beaten me to it. Booooo... Currently quite gloomy at the moment with cloudy and damp conditions and a temperature of around 11.5*C. Not as good as yesterday with the sunnier skies.

With Spring pretty much on the doorstep, thought it was time to unleash a fresh new Midlands thread. Please continue your discussions about the weather in the Midlands, here. It's that time when snow becomes increasingly less likely, (but still possible), and warmer and perhaps thundery weather begins to take hold. Buds open out, trees get greener, flowers bloom and there's that familiar smell of cut grass. Going out and about on walks while taking in that fresh Spring air becomes a real treat. Hopefully this will be a Spring to bring a proper mix bag of weather with thunderstorms, plumes, warm sunny days, wintry mix of showers, some frosty mornings, and a few odd heavy and/or blustery rain events. It does looks as though that the next few days will see some longer spells of rain mixed in with some blustery showers as the models show Low Pressure in the Atlantic invading us to the North-West. Nothing perhaps too warm with the rain and showers helping to keep it fairly cool at times. In between showers, however, it could feel quite pleasant in sunnier spells. With the 500mb thicknesses looking fairly low with the 850 hPa temperatures looking to get below 0*C at times, then there's certainly a chance for some thundery showers perhaps with a chance of hail. Some hints on models, such as the GFS, that some kind of mid-Atlantic ridge could then topple towards us (maybe allowing a chilly Northerly beforehand) and bring a less unsettled spell again. However, it could just be brief and there's always a risk of the mid-Atlantic ridge (if it happens) building a little too far North-East bringing us an Easterly feed. Mind you, the ridge could just get knocked into mainland Europe with heights rising in that area and maybe allow the first plume-like spell of the season (which admittedly would be nice). Little too far out to worry about at the moment, though. I think what ever does happen, fingers crossed Spring 2016 will be one that delivers for the Midlands, especially for those of you who were let down by uninviting Winter 2015/16.

Indeed. Considering Spring is pretty much here, going to lock this one (while it's quiet) and open up a new thread ready for this new season. Certainly been a pleasant day today, though.

Same. Though wet and sleety, today marks the first time this year to see a bit of snow fall during the daytime. To think it has happened just as the meteorological part of Winter is through with us. Agree about the part regarding the floods - should be grateful to not had much problems with that. Imagine North-Western parts, especially, will be welcoming a much drier period of weather. A sustained period of proper settled weather seems to have been lacking for a while now (even though, to be fair, February generally delivered some quieter and less disturbed conditions). The High Pressure systems' just don't seem to want to take a 2 week, or longer, holiday over the UK. But maybe something will make them change their mind at some point.

Quite amusing that now that March has arrived, finally get to see a bit of daytime snowfall. Something that Winter 2015/16 failed to accompolish. Compared to quite a few areas, though, it's been rather marginal here with alternating rain and very wet snow (an even heavier burst probably would have kept it stuck as falling snow). But better than nothing I guess and a nice little surprise to see. Hopefully some more surprises for the Midlands snow weather enthusiasts in the next few days with some chilly cyclonic North-Westerly/Northerly and North-Easterly flows. More especially for anyone who didn't get to see anything wintry today (which I know how annoying it can be where everywhere else gets snow, but you).

A little bit too late now really (apologies), though would have probably gone for a CET between 5 and 6*C - specifically 5.5*C.

One thing for sure is that this Winter was no 2009/10. Or even, in some ways, Winter 2010/11. Considering the rarity of Winters like that, would have been astonishing had Winter 2015/16 been able to replicate a 2009/10 style Winter so soon. Didn't indeed appear to be that likely anyway with that El Niño, some spoke about, being an enemy for cold and low level snow for the UK - especially for that first part of Winter anyway. Those upper and surface troughs/lows and highs/ridges being darn sneaky setting themselves up in the wrong places for many of the cold weather fans (myself included) for that first part of Winter. Still, there is plenty of other Winters down the line to bring some appetising, wintry, weather. As bothersome as it might have been for some of those who dread warm weather, it's nice that the mild weather enthusiasts got to experience one of the mildest month's on record, just like the way the cold weather enthusiasts got to experience (almost) one of the coldest months on record (those being the December 2015 and 2010 ones). I confess that I'm not fully sure whether months such as December 2015 was a record breaking month for mild in all areas of the U.K., though (despite it's overall CET figure being impressive). I think certainly the further South you were, the more likely it was to have been a record breaker. When it comes to snowy weather, the Southern UK snow fans, in particular, could really do with their turn next time. Unless Spring manages to deliver some wintry weather (which seems possible), Winter 2016/17 will have a lot of snow shields to bomb to death.... although it might take a few asteroids and comets to competely wipeout the Southern UK snow shields.

A good point raised. It is nice for all the seasons to have there own characetristics - e.g: Thunder and warmth in Summer, Atlantic storms in Autumn, some snow and frost in Winter etc. Sometimes can seem as though the wrong weather occurs in the wrong seasons at times. In Winter's case though, think there still probably should have at least been more in the way of wintry weather and a bit more convective weather. May have been a bit generous with the rating given for Atlantic storms. Kind of ironic really since it's not my preferred weather type either. Outside of the lack of snow and okayish amount of frosty, bright weather, the storms was only really the aspect of Winter that was reasonably entertaining (except for those pesky floods some of those wind and heavy rain events caused). Hopefully next Winter will deliver more in the way of snowy weather. (I admit it's not to everyone's taste, though).

Howdy. Now that March is arriving, it's that time when topics like this begin to arise out of the ground of Netweather. Therefore thought it was time to ask you ladies and gentlemen what you thought about this Winter. Technically, for some of you, Winter might not be over till 21st March or even when the last flaje of snow has landed on ya house. And indeed, just like what could happen this month, March can turn out to be more Wintrier than the main Winter months. But since the main part of the season is behind us, still seemed suitable to start up this thread. For some, this could quite possibly be one of the worst Winters of your dreams. For others, this could be one of the better ones. What did seem clear, however, is the further South you were, the fewer the snow events were. I think admittedly, it has been a season full of frustrations for a number of people - not just for the below average snowfall, but for the menacing floods it has caused. One of those Winter's where you feel like you may need a sick bucket to throw up in. For me, this is what I'd score this Winter, Frost: Generally below average. Frost was practically non-existent in December thanks to an incorruptible European High Pressure system constantly swallowing up mild air from the South-West through the UK, especially the Southern half. Things did slowly start improving for frost possibilities in January with a few cold, crispy mornings. And then, as Februrary took the spotlight, frosty weather become noticeably more common, especially towards the end of the month, with a chillier anti-cyclonic influence. A couple of days containing mornings where the frost was quite thick. Nothing too exceptional, though, and if it wasn't for February, frost levels would have been significantly below normal. Rating: 2.5/5 Snow: Very piteous. There was hardly any daytime snowfall which, for here, is disappointing. Can't really think of many others years that went by without a daytime snowfall here. Even the almost snowless Winter of 2013/14 produced some daytime falling snow (where an Atlantic front in February turned to snow as cold Westerly winds undercut the system). Nevertheless, there were one or two little snowfalls in January, as some chilly conditions developed from the North during the middle of the month with a thin covering on one of the days. Additionally, one evening produced a wintry mix of showery precipitation with an unstable North-Westerly flow. No snow whatsoever in December and there was... one snow shower in February! While not a completely snowless season, it could have been better. Was just a tad superior to Winter 2013/14, but no dumpings of snow greater than 1cm. Do, however, feel sorry for those of you cold weather fans even further South who probably haven't even seen a covering, let alone any falling snow. On the whole, the Solihull Snow Shield was strong. Rating: 2/5 Northern Blocking: Nothing too remarkable, but would be fair to say this Winter hasn't been totally absent of it. For a time, January managed some fairly brief periods of weakish heights and surface High Pressure over Greenland with some blocking in the Atlantic towards the middle of the month. Some fairly modest heights towards Scandinavia just before mid-month as blocking over Europe sent some Warm Air Advection towards the Arctic, though shortwave developments over the Norway part destroyed what could have been some stronger blocking to our North-East. The Arctic Osscilation, I think, went into neutral/negative territory for a brief period, but don't think it lasted as long as some were anticipating. Bit of a let down in that respect. Hardly much, if any, High Latitude Blocking in December with the troublesome Vortex to our North/North-West joining forces with the European High by maintaining a general flattish West to South-Westerly pattern. February had at least seen more amplification in the weather patterns allowing a more meridonal setup to establish, particularly towards the second half with, again, some blocking to our West and some weakish heights over Greenland. Not strong enough, nor sustained enough to completely wipe out the Vortex over that area (models, though, do continue to play about with some kind of mid-Atlantic ridging). But perhaps better than nothing and the blocking in the Atlantic has helped assist Low Pressure to drop South-East into Europe at times with some okayish Easterlies. Rating 2.5/5 Convection: Something else that has been lacking this Winter. Not many days I can recall with sunshine and showers. Just the odd day or two here and there. Unless I missed any days with grapualy type precipitation, can only recall one day with just one hail shower (and that other one with an evening snow shower). On any other days where sunshine and showers occurred, the convection in the sky didn't look particularly 'clean'. Love those proper convective sunshine and shower setups with the inviting displays from towering Cumulonimbus clouds. As such, it was a pity that this Winter didn't produce much in the way of that. Selective memory perhaps might be an issue when it comes to sotuations like this, but feel as though convection and these sunshine and shower setups have become less frequent in the last few years or so. Rating: 1.5/5 Storms: One of the stronger aspects of this Winter. An active Atlantic in December and, in some ways, during January throwing a number of wind storms our way. One or two producing wind gusts around 30/40mph and over. There were a few odd nights where I had some squally precipitation with rain absolutely lashing it down against the windows - one instance of which produced monsoon-like conditions that made me feel as though I was under a Tropical Storm. Not as many wind storms in February, though, with a less active Atlantic and a wavier Jet Stream. Atlantic storms aren't really my thing, but one or two of them were interesting to experience, especially the one which produced some monsoon rain type conditions. Also, I think in terms of windy weather, it could be a subjective thing for some people since getting numerous wind storms doesn't necessarily make it a great Winter. And I guess the same thing could be said for snow, too. One of the main issues, however, was the flooding some of these moody Lows created over North-Western parts. Rating: 3.5/5 Sunny/Bright Intervals: Virtually absent in December. Too much gloomy weather around which made for some depressing days. Bar one or two odd brighter days, the amount of cloudy weather around was incredible with barely any peep from the sun. Was glad once it reached January, and February especially, that the never ending supply of Tropical Maritime air was in decline with an increased frequency of clearer air masses such as Polar Maritime and some little fleetings of Arctic Maritime and Polar Continental air. February as a month seemed much less duller compared to December. Did still have it's fair share of cloudier days. But a fair share of sunnier days, too. Despite the dullness of December, February helped to make up for it. A bit. Rating: 2.5/5 Variation: Fairly poor really with not much snow (although I know it's easy to expect too much sometimes) and not much in the way of heavy showers, specifically those containing a wintry mix. A few odd heavy downpours from frontal precipitation, nonetheless, to spice up the action a little. Frosty weather did at least become somewhat more common the later in the season it got. And, oddly enough, the exceptionally mild December with its lack of varied and bright weather is something that would probably make this Winter stand out (despite how much I enjoy cold and snowy weather). To get a December CET above 9*C is phenomenal. The season could have still done with more variation though, and it would have been cool to get a very mild December without such cloudy weather. Little too much in the way of cyclonic weather, too, even though rain amounts didn't seem much above average. Rating 2.5/5 Total Score: 17/35 A seriously uncool Winter overall. The snow just too grumpy to come to the UK (mostly for those to the South of Northern UK anyway). It's only redeeming features being the amazement of how mild December was and also some of the brighter, frosty, weather towards the end. The fatigue of chasing every dreamland cold chart in the models became a little overpowering by the time February approached and has made me started to crave for some Spring weather (still with the hope of a daytime snow event). Maybe wouldn't be surprising if March really did turn out to be the chilliest and/or wintrist month outside of Winter. Whatever you do Winter 2015/16, please don't come back! What about you guys - how'd you rate this Winter?