Cold Spell Discussion

[Mark Bayley]

Sky was very wierd tonight, never seen it so red!

[Costa Del Fal]

Quite a red sky here tonight too. Looks very unlikely here will get any snow this weekend/next week unless the Cheshire Gap will kick in.

[JamieUK]

The sky tonight is so awesome! So orangey Red it's unbelievable, looks very beauitful though!

[WREXHAM]

I noticed this too

[Mark Bayley]

Still got some big piles of snow where its been shoveled to (car parks etc...) Should last till the end of the month, if not longer if the cold spell at the start of Feb can stick around (which is certainly possible going by the latest models and teleconnections)

Most of my mates are fed up of the cold and snow so will be disappointed with more on the way

Edited January 26, 2010 by mark bayley

[Andy Bown]

Re the sky : similar happened for several nights in a row a few years ago and I think I recall people saying it's due to dust/pollution in the atmosphere being pulled across the country from the East. Certainly a spectacular sight

[I remember Atlantic 252]

Quite a red sky here tonight too. Looks very unlikely here will get any snow this weekend/next week unless the Cheshire Gap will kick in.

well the winds look NW, from saturday night to monday, but gfs precip charts suggest dry, Just hope the winds are not too westerly like the dreaded 20th Dec,

been my hope for a cheshire gap streamer on saturday night, even though models dont show anything

[Iceni]

Look East BBC just warned of the threat of "Significant" snowfall in the west of the Anglia region on Thursday night! Anyone care to comment on the fax chart at 72hrs?

Wouldn't be surprised… this morning was perishing (had to go back inside and put on a coat) and the ponds had ice on them again. Chilly NE wind too. Gone back to freezing now.

[Thunder Snow]

Hmmmmm could be some snow around at the end of the week, but we have to remember the days are getting alittle longer and the sun alittle stronger.

[John Snow]

Hmmmmm could be some snow around at the end of the week, but we have to remember the days are getting alittle longer and the sun alittle stronger.

5 days time will be exactly a year since I got 15 inches of snow so if the precip is there there will be snow

[Cheese Rice]

Look East BBC just warned of the threat of "Significant" snowfall in the west of the Anglia region on Thursday night! Anyone care to comment on the fax chart at 72hrs?

I think the forecaster jumped the gun abit there, there is a chance of snow but if there was a risk of significant snow the meto would have adviserys out by now, although there is a threat of snow. Probably not in the West of the Anglia region.

[Alex95]

Hmmmmm could be some snow around at the end of the week, but we have to remember the days are getting alittle longer and the sun alittle stronger. :blink:

That shouldn't be too much of a problem yet, its generally after mid February that the sun becomes significantly stronger. Don't forget that in February 1947 and in late January 1963 the sun was no weaker than it is now!

[Thundery wintry showers]

Re the sky : similar happened for several nights in a row a few years ago and I think I recall people saying it's due to dust/pollution in the atmosphere being pulled across the country from the East. Certainly a spectacular sight :blink:

8-20 February 2008 had a succession of stunning sunsets here in Norwich, there's a good chance that may have been it.

[Scorcher]

8-20 February 2008 had a succession of stunning sunsets here in Norwich, there's a good chance that may have been it.

What a wonderful month February 2008 was. Doesn't look like we will get a repeat this year, but I will take the cold for the first half of the month if the second half is sunny with temperatures of 13-16C!

[Jamie.]

OFF Topic - sorry mods - don't know if this is a pre cursor to more "cold" weather but we've had an amazing RED sunset sky tonight the like I've pretty much never seen before - bit like a martian sky - really weird! - could be a sign of the impending siberian cold to come!

I saw that too! Was so nice!

Same thing occured Yesterday aswell.

red sky at night, sheppards delight.

red sky at morning, sheppards warning.

Edited January 26, 2010 by Jamie.ed

[Upgrade]

sky was amazing this evening, everyone at work went to the windows to look at it. purples, reds - quite something and unusual.

i silently hoped (and wondered) whether it was a portent of a very cold and snowy period to come as i stood there!!!

and then i looked at the ECM!

Edited January 26, 2010 by jimmyay

[Ben_Cambs]

sky was amazing this evening, everyone at work went to the windows to look at it. purples, reds - quite something and unusual.

i silently hoped it was a portent of a very cold and snowy period to come as i stood there!!!

There was a beautiful sunset here too, but I dont know what it signals!

[Peter Henderson]

Hmmmmm could be some snow around at the end of the week, but we have to remember the days are getting alittle longer and the sun alittle stronger.

Forget this weekend which looks like nothing more than a topling high situation and somewhat milder weather next week. Take a look at the charts for later next week though:

http://www.ukweather.freeserve.co.uk/nwp.htm

they look very interesting indeed. The weather outlook would seem to agree:

Big freeze likely for February

The next few days will bring generally cold weather, and during Thursday and Friday we are expecting rain, sleet and snow to push south across Britain, with some places possibly having significant accumulations of snow. It is a very marginal situation though, and rain is more likely further south and west. We'll issue an update about this on Wednesday evening.

Looking further ahead, we are expecting more cold weather, and there is a chance of a spell of severe wintry weather developing across the country as we head towards the middle of February. We'll be keeping a very close eye on how this develops as it may well bring the chance of an exceptionally cold February to Britain. The last time the UK had a month when the Central England Temperature (CET) was less than 0C was February 1986, and there is an outside chance that we'll see a similarly cold month this year. As well as being bitterly cold, February 1986 was actually mostly dry. The black and white picture is from the dim and distant past, and shows what conditions were like during February 1947 which is one of the most famous months in UK weather history. As well as being bitterly cold it also brought heavy and widespread snowfalls across almost all of Britain. We're not suggesting February 2010 will be a carbon copy of either of these months, but with a huge amount of cold and heavy air just to our east there is a realistic chance of it turning into a month to remember

even the Met office is getting in on the act:

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/ni/ni_forecast_weather.html

UK Outlook for Sunday 31 Jan 2010 to Tuesday 9 Feb 2010:

Cold at first, with overnight frosts. Wintry showers likely on exposed northern and eastern coasts, but it should be drier and brighter elsewhere, particularly inland. Rain expected to spread from the west on Monday, with snow possible, particularly over hills and in the far north. Turning less cold in the west on Tuesday, with bright or sunny spells and wintry showers in the northeast. Drier conditions are likely further south, extending to most parts by Wednesday (3rd), with lighter winds but cold to near normal temperatures. The mainly dry weather with frost and fog is likely to continue for much of the rest of the period, with temperatures mostly below normal. However, a low risk of much colder conditions with wintry showers may develop at the end of the period.

Updated: 1234 on Tue 26 Jan 2010

It'll be interesting to see how this one pans out.

[yamkin]

OMG :shok: http://www.knmi.nl/exp/pluim/vijftiendaagse/index.html :cold: :cold:

BBC24 forecast by Rob McElwee just said with raised eye brows & a big cold ramp smile 'A proper Winter' :clap: :cold:

Edited January 26, 2010 by yamkin

[Ben_Cambs]

OMG :cold: http://www.knmi.nl/e...agse/index.html :clap:

If anything those ensembles get even colder!

[Freezing-Point]

This winter has not surprised me at all so far and will continue that way.

IMO winter patterns began shifting to a new phase back in late 2006 when we saw signs of the Atlantic power house weakening and allowing a brief easterly in that had not been seen for years. You will all recall the 90's and most of the 00's when the winters in western Europe were dominated by the unstoppable SW flow. We would see temps of 13-14 degrees for days and weeks at this time of year (I may recall 17c somewhere in the UK?) accompanied by winds hardly veering from a SW - W direction. The only hope then was the 'Northerly Toppler' and this only lasted a few days max and would usually only be snow for Scotland and the East coast.

When was the last time we saw the weather dominated by such an Atlantic influence over and extended period?

Since 2006 we have waited on bated breath for synoptics to pan out which were very rarely shown before, but the all the ingredients have not been in place. I seem to recall Easterlies in late Feb / March every year since then, an extended cold period in Dec 2008 (although no snow) and now this winter is just following the trend to a colder period.

Of course this is just my opinion and I expect to be shot down by some, but its undeniably based on a fact....historically weather patterns are cyclic.

[Guest North Sea Snow Convection]

This winter has not surprised me at all so far and will continue that way.

IMO winter patterns began shifting to a new phase back in late 2006 when we saw signs of the Atlantic power house weakening and allowing a brief easterly in that had not been seen for years. You will all recall the 90's and most of the 00's when the winters in western Europe were dominated by the unstoppable SW flow. We would see temps of 13-14 degrees for days and weeks at this time of year (I may recall 17c somewhere in the UK?) accompanied by winds hardly veering from a SW - W direction. The only hope then was the 'Northerly Toppler' and this only lasted a few days max and would usually only be snow for Scotland and the East coast.

When was the last time we saw the weather dominated by such an Atlantic influence over and extended period?

Since 2006 we have waited on bated breath for synoptics to pan out which were very rarely shown before, but the all the ingredients have not been in place. I seem to recall Easterlies in late Feb / March every year since then, an extended cold period in Dec 2008 (although no snow) and now this winter is just following the trend to a colder period.

Of course this is just my opinion and I expect to be shot down by some, but its undeniably based on a fact....historically weather patterns are cyclic.

Although I have started scrutinising the models more closely and cautiously than I used to do, and, having seen Siberia to Canada (the long way) railroad track charts for a while now to take them with a pinch of salt, I entirely agree with your post. You are absolutely right.

You had to be brave (as I know to my cost!) to post that sort of thing a couple of years ago as a probability of what may yet come - but the proof is in the pudding. Enough has already been seen to justify it.

Historically weather patterns are indeed cyclic. Well said

Edited January 26, 2010 by North Sea Snow Convection

[Snowyowl9]

Although I have started scrutinising the models more closely and cautiously than I used to do, and, having seen Siberia to Canada (the long way) railroad track charts for a while now to take them with a pinch of salt, I entirely agree with your post. You are absolutely right.

You had to be brave (as I know to my cost!) to post that sort of thing a couple of years ago as a probability of what may yet come - but the proof is in the pudding. Enough has already been seen to justify it.

Historically weather patterns are indeed cyclic. Well said

I think FP missed a year and should of said the change to seeing more of these type of charts again

were from 2005 late february.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/2005/Rrea00120050220.gif

That was a potent N-ly considering I remember it like the back of my hand that time.

http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/2005/Rrea00120050222.gif

[Guest North Sea Snow Convection]

I think FP missed a year and should of said the change to seeing more of these type of charts again

were from 2005 late february.

http://www.wetterzen...00120050220.gif

That was a potent N-ly considering I remember it like the back of my hand that time.

http://www.wetterzen...00120050222.gif

Yes - it was 2005. I think that it when the talk of synoptic changes started on here after that extensive blocking cold spell and easterly that went into the start of March. Several cms of snow here at the start of March 06

[cyclonic happiness]

Rob mcelwee has that sparkle in his eye again.....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/weather/