January and February 1985

[Weather-history]

January 1985 was a cold wintry month with frequent frosts and snowfalls. There were few mild days and the mildest days came at the end of the month.

It had a CET of 0.8C. The New Year began with a northerly and a high near Iceland.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850101.gif

On the 4th, the high was to the north of the UK and cold NE winds brought heavy snow showers to eastern areas and sub zero maxima.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850104.gif

On the 6th, a low over Norway slipped southwards and deepened in the North Sea producing an omega block. This brought many eastern areas widespread snowfalls and strong NElies.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850106.gif

Fronts crossed through the UK on the 9th and 10th and this brought further wintry weather before the high to the north slipped southwards across the UK bringing quieter, frosty foggy weather.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850110.gif

On the 12th, the high moved into Scandinavia and a trough over northern Germany moved westwards and introduced very cold easterlies across the UK.

By the 13th, it was very cold everywhere with sub zero maxima and snowfalls, the heaviest over East Anglia and Kent where depths were reaching 15cm.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850113.gif

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00219850114.gif

By the 16th and 17th, very low maxima were being recorded with places like Brighton, Shrewsbury and Wittering recording maxima of -6C.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850116.gif

A depression moved into northern France and this produced heavy snowfalls to south Wales and southwest England.

Another depression on the 20th, tracked across the UK bringing snowfalls and then a thaw with rain as milder weather was introduced into the UK.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850120.gif

This low deepened as it sat off the NE coast of Scotland introducing a very cold northerly to the UK. This gave heavy snowfalls and drifting snow to northern parts.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850123.gif

Aviemore recorded a level snow depth of 50cm. With the winds easing, severe frosts ensued with Aviemore recording a minimum of -22.4C on the 27th.

The cold weather finally ended on the 28th, as a new low and fronts introduced milder and more unsettled weather until the end of the month.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850128.gif

Here's some data for that month

Heathrow

Mean Max:4.1C Mean Min:-1.7C Highest Max: 11.7C Lowest Min: -8.0C

Air frosts: 20 Falling sleet/snow: 14 days Lying snow: 11 days

Manchester

Mean Max:3.9C Mean Min:-2.7C Highest Max: 11.8C Lowest Min: -7.5C

Air frosts: 25 Falling sleet/snow: 15 days Lying snow 10 days

Glasgow

Mean Max:3.8C Mean Min:-2.9C Highest Max: 10.1C Lowest Min: -11.1C

Air frosts: 24 Falling sleet/snow: 12 days Lying snow: 7

February began unsettled and became very mild as high pressure built across Europe allowing a SWly flow from the Meditterenean to move across the UK.

Maxima were widely around 12-13C.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850201.gif

Around the 5th, high pressure over Greenland began to ridge towards Scandinavia with very cold air and then it began

to ridge southwestwards toward the UK with the very cold air.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850205.gif

On the 7th, fronts began to move up from the SW and at first they brought rain but as the colder air to the north began to push south,

the rain turned to snow across the north. The snow area slowly pushed southwards just as a low was moving through northern France.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850207.gif

There were heavy snowfalls across the south of the UK with drifting snow in the easterly winds with depths of snow was approaching 20cm+ across many parts of the south.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850209.gif

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00219850210.gif

The weather became brighter and mostly dry by the 10th but it was very cold with severe frosts at night and subzero maxima.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850213.gif

The easterly flow was replaced by a SWly flow across the north as an Atlantic system moved in on the 18th and the flow was cut off elsewhere by the 20th.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850220.gif

The rest of the month was generally was dry and increasingly mild as southerly winds flooded the country with maxima around 13-15C

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850228.gif

January 1985: 0.8 (-2.

February 1985: 2.1 (-1.6)

Coldest spells for January-February 1985

12th-18th Jan 1985: -2.3

9th-19th Feb 1985: -2.7

First half of January: -0.3

5th-19th January: -1.8

Mildest daily CET maximum: 12.4 27th February

Coldest daily CET maximum: -3.0 16th January

Coldest nightly CET minimum: -8.8 17th January

January

http://www.kentishstour.org.uk/images/SB%2...fields%20lg.jpg

http://www.mkheritage.co.uk/shhs/photo/ce004.jpg

http://www.planetdan.co.uk/Ghosthill/ghsnow2.jpg

February

http://www.eastsomersetrailway.com/imagedb...es/00001880.jpg

Edited November 19, 2006 by Mr_Data

[Weather-history]

I remember winter 1984-85 very well, it was my first winter here in the UK since coming back from Australia. Boy did I suffer that winter!

I remember January 1985 really well, those snowfalls especially. Sunday 20th January 1985, the transistion from the cold to mild, we had snow here and it stuck that morning. The thaw came later that day and by evening it had melted.

Also remember the transistion from rain to snow that Friday in February (7th?). We had wet snow at dinner time but by time leaving school, it had stuck and we had a covering.

Something I didn't mention was that snowfall mid March. I remember those wintry showers that Friday and by Friday night it was snowing and sticking, really big snowflakes. Saturday morning was very wintry with snow falling and a covering. It cleared up later that morning.

What a year 1985 was even with that bad summer.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850316.gif

[DAVID SNOW]

I remember winter 1984-85 very well, it was my first winter here in the UK since coming back from Australia. Boy did I suffer that winter!

I remember January 1985 really well, those snowfalls especially. Sunday 20th January 1985, the transistion from the cold to mild, we had snow here and it stuck that morning. The thaw came later that day and by evening it had melted.

Also remember the transistion from rain to snow that Friday in February (7th?). We had wet snow at dinner time but by time leaving school, it had stuck and we had a covering.

Something I didn't mention was that snowfall mid March. I remember those wintry showers that Friday and by Friday night it was snowing and sticking, really big snowflakes. Saturday morning was very wintry with snow falling and a covering. It cleared up later that morning.

What a year 1985 was even with that bad summer.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/19...00119850316.gif

remember it well MR. D. great times

[Thundery wintry showers]

One thing that impresses me about 1985 was the frequent occasions on which even western areas picked up significant snow- from easterlies. I mentioned that Lancaster's records showed that the location only got 1cm from the January 1987 easterly, but there were 11 days of lying snow there in January 1985 (with 10 in Manchester and 7 at Glasgow Airport showing consistency)

My parents were briefly living 'down south' at around that time and reported significant snow, although as per usual the north-east of England was even more heavily hit.

[acbrixton]

For those of us in western parts of Greater London or to the west of London although we had some truly severe frosts/ice days I cannot recall a day on low ground in NW Surrey where there was more than 1/2" snow.

I was aorking as an Articled Clerk in Holborn at the time and as was often the case whilst the partners lived in the virtually snow-free outer suburbs of the north west and south west the secretaries commuted in from Kent and Essex where conditions were sometimes severe. I can recall a blizzard marooning a secretary on a train near Sittingbourne whilst her bona fides were questioned by the partners.

Regards

ACB

[Terminal Moraine]

January 1985 was unusual here too in that it was very cold ( mean max' 1.6c ) and there were 25 mornings with lying snow but the greatest single fall was only a little over 7cm.

February 10th was a very cold day, the 09-09hr max' was -5.0c.

I recorded 10 'freezing days' in January and 9 in February.

T.M

[North-Easterly Blast]

Another classic winter of the 1977-87 era, and the start of three cold winters in a row.

January 1985 CET Trackometer:

1. 4.0

2. 3.1

3. 2.4

4. 2.2

5. 1.6

6. 1.4

7. 0.8

8. 0.4

9. 0.1

10. 0.1

11. 0.1

12. 0.1

13. 0.0

14. -0.2

15. -0.3

16. -0.5

17. -0.8

18. -1.0

19. -0.9

20. -0.8

21. -0.6

22. -0.4

23. -0.3

24. -0.2

25. 0.0

26. 0.1

27. 0.1

28. 0.2

29. 0.4

30. 0.6

31. 0.8 (0.845*C)

February 1985 CET Trackometer:

1. 9.4

2. 9.0

3. 8.4

4. 8.2

5. 7.4

6. 7.1

7. 6.5

8. 5.9

9. 5.0

10. 4.1

11. 3.4

12. 2.8

13. 2.3

14. 2.0

15. 1.7

16. 1.4

17. 1.3

18. 1.1

19. 0.9

20. 0.9

21. 1.0

22. 1.1

23. 1.3

24. 1.5

25. 1.6

26. 1.8

27. 2.0

28. 2.1 (2.09*C)

[Weather-history]

Newspaper photo montage from January and February 1985

 

[Sunny76]

I’m drawing a complete blank. I can’t remember anything about 84/85 for some reason, yet I remember the previous two summers and summer of 85.

[I remember Atlantic 252]

Assume my area had loads, always did in those days!

[Sunny76]

With those temps, it wouldn’t surprise me if central London was just dry and cold. But yes, it was a very cold period of weather.

[damianslaw]

Very easterly months. Kent had a very snowy winter. Further west much less so. There was a run of cold easterly months in mid-late 80s, Jan 85, Feb 85, Nov 85, Feb 86, Jan 87. Thereafter we had to wait until Feb 91 for a cold easterly.

[Weather-history]

What struck me about the charts from January 1985, there is northerly blocking about and there are cold pools but visually they don't look that spectacular to me