What do we have in store?

[Supacell]

What does the near future hold for us?

This summer has been diabolical thus far and it is primarily down to the fact that the jet stream that is normally to our north in the summer months has stayed over us. Usually this jet stream will shift north in summer to leave us under drier, warmer conditions and then spread south again in Autumn to put us into a pattern of Atlantic systems one after the other (something we are now seeing in summer) throughout winter.

Question is what will happen to the jet stream this winter? Assuming its not going to shift back north again during the summer (and there is no signs of it doing so) will it just sit where it is over the UK for the winter or move south and affect areas in Southern Europe - leaving us to its north?

Not wanting to create a sense of impending doom but i am concerned how we will cope if it was to sit over us all winter. A wet autumn and winter is normal in the UK but it usually comes off the back of a drier summer, what is going to happen if we have to endure a normal wet, mild winter on top of this apalling summer. Will the rivers be able to hold?

Alternatively, if the jet was to shift south as it would normally do - would this leave us with the extreme cold that would normally affect northern latitudes? Could we be on for the coldest winter for many years? Add to this that temperatures will not have had the summer warming we normally get, this winter could be one to remember for a different reason than floods.

I am no scientist and my thoughts may be ridiculous. This is why i am posting in the hope of getting a more experienced or knowledgeable opinion.

Edited July 21, 2007 by Supacell

[Interested]

Funnily enough I was thinking about this today. I recall on this site a year or two ago that someone said 2007 was being speculated as an overdue extremely snowy event during the winter.

I guess we'll have to wait and see.

[Snowyowl9]

We had a S-ly tracking jet in summer 2004 as I remember the BBC showing the same thing then with the jet coming over us but it should be much further north towards Iceland.

The we had charts like this during winter when we had a major pattern change of northern blocking and the return of the east winds.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/20...00120050223.gif

But this summer i`s relentless as the jet is stronger and even further south over torwards Spain at times with lows tracking further south and not moving much which is why we`re getting much much more rainfall looks like it goes further north next week as lows over Scotland once again with strong W-lys.

Maybe a sign of a colder winter to come if we`re on the polar side but who knows what`ll happen it`s really surprised me this year has since January actually.