4wd

Re. ground water it should be borne in mind that only a very few areas source water from deep aquifers in this country, and those areas are not likely to be drilled for gas anyway. Almost all our water supply is from surface storage or surface springs, and that simply isn't going to be affected by fracking at great depth.

I wonder if in practice this will actually extend the productive life of existing fields rather than require new onshore drilling. Good news anyway and if the US price falls are anything to go by we could see real benefits of downward pressure on prices even within months.

-5.9C and still creeping down No fog but a lot of hoaryness

-3.2C here, much lower than last night.

Much colder this evening already at -1.4C

In the real world oil companies like any business need to see profits or they won't attract investors and have wherewithal to drill. Bearing in mind the tax take on oil at every stage it's public coffers that benefit more than anything.

So you don't think it's significant that all but one of the stations showing some warming were explained by normal processes i.e. not AGW? That sounds like seizing on the W word without trying to understand why some warming was recorded.

BBC weather seems to be talking about a different country with all the emphasis on frost and fog. It's only briefly been below freezing here with quite a stiff westerly wind most of the night. +1.5C currently. There is some white frost and hills are slightly white from yesterday's showers.

The actual figures are somewhat irrelevant over time, it becomes more important to compare today, this month, this year with previous data. So best to avoid any changes which upset the comparison. If you felt an adjustment was needed before, keep doing it. Or possibly stop doing it but revise earlier figures at least the record ones.

This study investigates the statistical significance of the trends of station temperature time series from the European Climate Assessment & Data archive poleward of 60°N. The trends are identified by different methods and their significance is assessed by three different null models of climate noise. All stations show a warming trend but only 17 out of the 109 considered stations have trends which cannot be explained as arising from intrinsic climate fluctuations when tested against any of the three null models. Out of those 17, only one station exhibits a warming trend which is significant against all three null models. The stations with significant warming trends are located mainly in Scandinavia and Iceland. http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2012/2012GL054244.shtml

I'm not surprised. Hating those who supply the energy that is keeping you warm and that computer running is on a par with stupidity to hating those who keep food in the shops. I suggest you switch off the gas and electric at the mains and see how it feels.

Hills are slightly white after a couple of heavy showers this afternoon, 1.7C looks like being a seriously icy night.

2.9C with sleet + hail showers rattling on the roof on and off through the night.

Windy and drying night, drying up for snow my Dad would have said.

You must be delighted with the news about vast gas reserves about to be tapped. Your children's future never looked brighter provided the greens aren't allowed to block progress.

There has been plenty of capital made about them shrinking, which was due as much to reduced snowfall as warming/melting. The articles states there has been significant recovery in glacier mass. I don't see why there is any need to suggest they are idiots because they can't speak English properly.

More good news about fracking and energy reserves. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2244822/Thought-running-fossil-fuels-New-technology-means-Britain-U-S-tap-undreamed-reserves-gas-oil.html

Increased winter snows boost Himalayan glaciers http://articles.time...aciers-snowfall

That's surprising Paul, I've been to Malton today, and mostly it was sunny. Quite treacherous over the moors as roads looked clear but salt was washed off in parts and under the clear skies there was patches of black ice. Still good snow cover above about 1000feet. It seems to have been drifting a fair bit late yesterday when it became windy. Interesting to see considerable expanses of water gleaming in the sun across Ryedale - visible from the Blakey road. On reaching the new lake areas they are mostly frozen over.

6.8mm of melting snow and sleety showers overnight. Hills still mainly white though. 2.6C

1.3C with slight snow falling. It's been above freezing all afternoon and yesterday's snow is starting to slowly thaw. Very windy and windchill is around -5C

A few tiny flakes in the wind, older snow is drifting in the wind, but it's just above freezing now. 0.3C

Cloudy here now with quite strong SSW wind at -1.8C Windchill is about -7 Not liking the sound of the next couple of weeks, I think we are going to have yet another well below average December. The worst thing with these severe spells early in winter is the weakness of the sun - so when it's cold there's little compensation of brightness like later in winter.

Excellent, ignoring the pathetic scaremongering and hand-wringing greenies - decision made http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/osborne-to-offer-tax-breaks-for-shale-gas-8373865.html