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December 1933


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Posted
  • Location: Irlam
  • Location: Irlam

December 1933 was one of those months when Scotland recorded a higher mean temperature than south of the Border.

From the Areal series

Scotland: 2.6

England and Wales: 1.3

This was thanks to the position of the anticyclone that dominated much of December 1933. Whilst a cold continental flow or calm conditions dominated the south, Further north, an Atlantic influence flowed around the top of the anticyclone kept northern parts milder especially the Western and Northern Isles; Lerwick and Stornoway recorded only one air frost in the month and no reports of falling sleet or snow.

Rslp19331221.gif

It was a very cold month over England and Wales, the CET was 1.6 and it was the coldest December since 1890.

It was a dry month, the 13th driest December on record for England and Wales. The winter as a whole was a very dry one, 5th driest winter on record. As a consequence, it was a pretty snowless winter despite the CET being only 3.2

It shows that cold weather and snow don't necessarily go hand in hand.

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Posted
  • Location: Irlam
  • Location: Irlam

Here's a list of the occasions when the Scottish Mean Temperature series had a higher value than the England & Wales series. Both series began in 1914

Dec 1916

Scot:2.0 E&W: 1.9

Feb 1917

Scot:1.3 E&W:0.7

Feb 1929

Scot:0.4 E&W:0.0

Dec 1933

Scot: 2.6 E&W: 1.3

Jan 1934

Scot: 4.0 E&W: 3.9

Jan 1940

Scot: -1.0 E&W:-1.3

Feb 1942

Scot:0.2 E&W: -0.1

Jan 1953

Scot:3.4 E&W:3.1

Feb 1956

Scot:0.4 E&W:-0.6

Dec 1962

Scot:2.7 E&W:1.8

Jan 1963

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-2.3

Dec 1963

Scot: 2.4 E&W:2.3

Jan 1964

Scot:3.8 E&W:2.9

Feb 1986

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-1.3

Jan 1992

Scot:3.6 E&W:3.4

Jan 1997

Scot:2.2 E&W:2.0

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Posted
  • Location: Shrewsbury
  • Location: Shrewsbury
Here's a list of the occasions when the Scottish Mean Temperature series had a higher value than the England & Wales series. Both series began in 1914

Dec 1916

Scot:2.0 E&W: 1.9

Feb 1917

Scot:1.3 E&W:0.7

Feb 1929

Scot:0.4 E&W:0.0

Dec 1933

Scot: 2.6 E&W: 1.3

Jan 1934

Scot: 4.0 E&W: 3.9

Jan 1940

Scot: -1.0 E&W:-1.3

Feb 1942

Scot:0.2 E&W: -0.1

Jan 1953

Scot:3.4 E&W:3.1

Feb 1956

Scot:0.4 E&W:-0.6

Dec 1962

Scot:2.7 E&W:1.8

Jan 1963

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-2.3

Dec 1963

Scot: 2.4 E&W:2.3

Jan 1964

Scot:3.8 E&W:2.9

Feb 1986

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-1.3

Jan 1992

Scot:3.6 E&W:3.4

Jan 1997

Scot:2.2 E&W:2.0

Is that all months when it has happened? If so, it's interesting if there are no months outside winter when it has occurred, and the tendency for it to happen in very cold (in E&W) months. I would have thought a late spring or summer month dominated by cloudy NE'lies over the southern half of Britain with a high to the west, where Scotland save for the northeast coast is sheltered/rainshadowed and sunny (with only a few hours of "night"), might stand a good chance- June 1995 and May 1991 are two months that spring to mind?

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Posted
  • Location: Irlam
  • Location: Irlam
Is that all months when it has happened? If so, it's interesting if there are no months outside winter when it has occurred, and the tendency for it to happen in very cold (in E&W) months. I would have thought a late spring or summer month dominated by cloudy NE'lies over the southern half of Britain with a high to the west, where Scotland save for the northeast coast is sheltered/rainshadowed and sunny (with only a few hours of "night"), might stand a good chance- June 1995 and May 1991 are two months that spring to mind?

Its all I could find, you'll notice that they were anticyclonic, easterly or both type months. An easterly is colder further south than up north because of the shorter North Sea track. If the anticyclone sits over England and Wales then the north could experience a milder Atlantic flow as what happened with December 1933.

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Posted
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine, convective precipitation, snow, thunderstorms, "episodic" months.
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire

The temperature maps are most likely influenced by the fact that most of Scotland is on high ground. Summers come out an average of 3C colder in the Scotland series than the England & Wales series, which is an incredible deficit to make up.

For the record, June 1995 did have comparably high average maxima at low levels in western and southern Scotland to much of lowland southern England, a striking example being Glasgow Airport with a mean maximum of 19.5C. However, the minima were somewhat lower, consistent with the higher sunshine totals resulting in a greater diurnal range. Glasgow Airport had 280 hours' sunshine as compared with Heathrow's 188 hours.

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Posted
  • Location: Shrewsbury
  • Location: Shrewsbury
The temperature maps are most likely influenced by the fact that most of Scotland is on high ground. Summers come out an average of 3C colder in the Scotland series than the England & Wales series, which is an incredible deficit to make up.

For the record, June 1995 did have comparably high average maxima at low levels in western and southern Scotland to much of lowland southern England, a striking example being Glasgow Airport with a mean maximum of 19.5C. However, the minima were somewhat lower, consistent with the higher sunshine totals resulting in a greater diurnal range. Glasgow Airport had 280 hours' sunshine as compared with Heathrow's 188 hours.

I noticed that Northern Ireland was very close to England and Wales in both those months I mentioned - May 1991: 10.3/10.4; June 1995 13.4/13.6; for comparison July 2006 was 16.7/19.1.

I would think Glasgow could quite easily notch up substantially more sunshine in May or June than London, simply because there's more daylight available. Looking at station data on the Metoffice site, it seems that Paisley (the closest they have to Glasgow) was quite regularly sunnier than London or Cambridge in June up to and including the late 1990s, but has not been so since 1998 (Cambridge) and 2000 (Greenwich, or Hampstead from climate-uk after 2004 as Greenwich closed).

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  • 11 months later...
Posted
  • Location: Dundee
  • Weather Preferences: Snow, thunderstorms, gales. All extremes except humidity.
  • Location: Dundee
Here's a list of the occasions when the Scottish Mean Temperature series had a higher value than the England & Wales series. Both series began in 1914

Dec 1916

Scot:2.0 E&W: 1.9

Feb 1917

Scot:1.3 E&W:0.7

Feb 1929

Scot:0.4 E&W:0.0

Dec 1933

Scot: 2.6 E&W: 1.3

Jan 1934

Scot: 4.0 E&W: 3.9

Jan 1940

Scot: -1.0 E&W:-1.3

Feb 1942

Scot:0.2 E&W: -0.1

Jan 1953

Scot:3.4 E&W:3.1

Feb 1956

Scot:0.4 E&W:-0.6

Dec 1962

Scot:2.7 E&W:1.8

Jan 1963

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-2.3

Dec 1963

Scot: 2.4 E&W:2.3

Jan 1964

Scot:3.8 E&W:2.9

Feb 1986

Scot:-1.1 E&W:-1.3

Jan 1992

Scot:3.6 E&W:3.4

Jan 1997

Scot:2.2 E&W:2.0

It is noticable that these are all cool or cold winter months and in most the Scottish temperatures are also below average though not as far below as in England.

Can I ask how the average temperatures are calculated as both countries cover a large and diverse area?

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  • 1 month later...
Posted
  • Location: Ossett, West Yorkshire
  • Location: Ossett, West Yorkshire

It does look clear to me that December 1933 was such a cold month overall largely due to an anticyclonic block sat over the UK giving a cold inversion and that there was little in the way of snow for most areas during December 1933.

February 1932 was also a fairly cold month for the CET largely due to an anticyclone sat over the UK although it does appear that a true easterly flow occurred around the 10th - 13th and 28th -29th giving the coldest spells of the month.

It strikes me that Winter 1933-34 bore similarities to 1963-64 - both being fairly cold winters overall but having little snow, and certainly 1933-34 and 1963-64 stand out as being colder than a number of winters that had more snowfall.

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  • 13 years later...
Posted
  • Location: Hampshire
  • Weather Preferences: Bright weather. Warm sunny thundery summers, short cold winters.
  • Location: Hampshire
On 15/01/2008 at 20:36, North-Easterly Blast said:

It does look clear to me that December 1933 was such a cold month overall largely due to an anticyclonic block sat over the UK giving a cold inversion and that there was little in the way of snow for most areas during December 1933.

February 1932 was also a fairly cold month for the CET largely due to an anticyclone sat over the UK although it does appear that a true easterly flow occurred around the 10th - 13th and 28th -29th giving the coldest spells of the month.

It strikes me that Winter 1933-34 bore similarities to 1963-64 - both being fairly cold winters overall but having little snow, and certainly 1933-34 and 1963-64 stand out as being colder than a number of winters that had more snowfall.

I didn't live through 1933-34 or indeed 1963-64, but from what I've read of both, they look similar to 1991-92 which I clearly remember. This was a very anticyclonic and dry winter, aligning with discussions here, and was frequently frosty in the south but perhaps more westerly further north. February was more westerly everywhere I think, but still anticyclonic in the south, so was dry and mild (compared to dry and about average for the other two months - short extremely mild spells prevented any of the three months being notably cold).

January 1997, another in this list, had a different cause, I think. The first 10 days was really intensely cold in the south due to an easterly, but perhaps less cold further north. The rest of the month was mostly average with occasional mild days, albeit still anticyclonic at times, but the first 10 days was what contributed to the resulting temperatures; one of those months where the CET was perhaps skewed by a short intense spell. It was enough, I think, to make it the coldest January from 1988 to 2009 inclusive. It's remarkable how rare Januarys with prolonged cold, two weeks or more, have been since 1988. 2010 is the obvious example, perhaps 2013 also.

Edited by Summer8906
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Posted
  • Location: Hampshire
  • Weather Preferences: Bright weather. Warm sunny thundery summers, short cold winters.
  • Location: Hampshire
5 hours ago, Weather-history said:

20th  w8ziL05.jpeg  VzU9EgW.jpeg   21st hyQXCnA.jpeg9SChn97.jpeg nsQXGOE.jpegvi4X5EZ.jpeg

22nd MAMNX15.jpegvrMgiOT.jpegq22HqUF.jpeg  23rd hp73eua.jpegiz2LdGo.jpeg4mKxrZn.jpeg

 

24th 0CXyacG.jpegjwtiJjf.jpeg  27th 5vAmD7E.jpegjWbMvNG.jpeg   28th mgGhYBM.jpeg  29th EE8bl9q.jpege4yfInT.jpeg

 

30th CkJ7eN1.jpegDNCVePP.jpegXy0M4ps.jpeg

31st    Weather of 1933  RJaPR1t.jpeg6vShAhv.jpeg

 

Interesting that September 1933 seemed to be both wet and sunny, an unusual combination for the time of year but which sometimes happens with three dry weeks followed by 10 days of very wet (e.g. 1991, 2012, 2019). Guessing something similar happened here.

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  • 10 months later...
Posted
  • Location: Cheshire
  • Location: Cheshire

London mean was 35.2F, 6.2F below the average for the month. Nov and Dec 1933 seem to have bucked the trend, with the 9 months, Feb to Oct inclusive all being above average. The weather went into reverse the following year, with 6 months below average but Dec 1934 6.0F above average! 

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