Weather- January 2010

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Hi Everybody,
Snow, snow, snow...the same in France as in the UK but it is a bit more regular here. Temperatures in Lyon are between -6°C and 1°C by now so I feel a little more lucky than many of you. I couldn't take my car and I won't go for running tomorrow!!! I've probably lost some plants but put extra protection on the most important ones.
Snowy weather is sometimes fine when we're on holidays, snowy landscapes are often "magic" . But is this global warming

[Anthony Darby]

Fredo is a great character Anthony, is he in your garden?  Looks like he might well come to life

Not my garden - 17 doors along from us.

[Lesley Cox]

Richard I've always believed it was poisonous too but in that particular paddock, sheep have kept it down to ground level in previous years when the deer wouldn't touch it. No sheep there this summer but even when it's been available before the deer haven't touched it. We've had a damp and generally miserable summer so there's no shortage of feed about. Greener than for years, at this time of year.

[cohan]

roma--almost looks like here!
robin--lovely shots--like the night shots especially...
we should be above freezing daytimes all of this week at least; still above freezing now, and it feels odd outside with snow piled from knee to waist height around paths, and 'warm' air...
we were into the small city today, and roads were very sloppy there, but still just looks like snow out here...

[Susan Band]

Ragwort is poisonous to horses and cattle. It is a build up poison so you don't see horses keeling over, it gradually affects their kidneys. Sheep however seem to manage to tolerate it. I am using sheep to clear my hill, when they were first put in they chose it over the grass 
Don't know how it affects the humans who eat the lamb. I have not accepted any offer of a lamb from my hill. 
Susan

[Hristo]

Jean-Patrick,
Yes, this is global warming, at least it is looking like the probable effect on the Northen Hemisphere will be a cooling effect. Increased temperatures melt polar ice caps releasing fresh water, decreased salinity appears to be slowing down the movement of the North Atlantic Drift ( warm water from the tropics ), this in turn cools down the Northern hemisphere.
If it shuts down the UK and many other parts of Europe end up with a climate similar to Moscow / Newfoundland.

I suspect it's time we all drop the idea from the mid 1980's that global warming means nice summers and mild winters.
It more likely means more extreme and unpredictable weather as the human race plays 'Brainiac' with it's only home!

[cohan]

yes, chris-
it seems the term 'climate change' gives a better impression, and the best advice seems to be 'expect extremes'
they tell us canada has had mostly 'warmer than normal' winters for a number of years, taken as a whole, but that doesn't mean we haven't had some splendid winter storms! so, on the ground, we don't always feel the overall warming trend, we remember the extra snowfalls, and the week of -40...lol

[Sinchets]

Well you may as well be in the SH Simon. It's only 12C here today, sunny and with gale force winds.

I will accept your invitation and put forward the notion that Eastern Europe divorces itself from Western Europe to become part of the SH! Warm and wet here with out first thunderstorm of the year after a very windy night!

[Stephenb]

That Newfoundland storm has now reached Northern Norway and it's currently raining and about +5C at 70 deg. N! Incidentally temperatures haven't been extremely low this winter in the North. Here it's very steadily getting warmer, now up to -13C from the low of -20C (there's no day-night variation at this time of year due as there's little sunlight (only a couple of weeks before it reappears  )
It's now warm enough to go out for a cross-country ski...

Don't think that any of these is related to climate change one way or the other, just a natural strong cycle as explained in the link below (Bulgaria is mentioned!). I also read that temperatures in Siberia are also much warmer than average...

http://sites.google.com/site/whythe2009winterissocold/

[james willis]

Snow is normally quite rare here in the Vienne with usually a light scattering which is gone within a few hours but this winter we have had snowfall on three separate occasions and it has hung about, the last fall is still with us after a week and likely to remain a little longer yet.  The temperature rises in the afternoons bringing a slight thaw but this freezes again in the night when temperatures this year have fallen to our knowledge to -10 Celsius: this makes the local, back roads rather unpleasant to drive upon though the main roads are generally clear. 

The narcissi which were open in the garden seem to have stuck their heads up through the snow but those in the plunge, open on three sides to the weather, are looking very sad and sorry for themselves and I fear for their survival.

 

[Paul T]

Lesley may have had 12^oC, but we had 39^oC today.  On top of a couple of 37^oC days.  My poor Liliums! (see moan moan moan thread)

Unfortunately your wonderful pictures aren't working.  I don't feel any cooler.  Anthony, I love the neighbours 2 week old snowman.... I'd challenge it to last more than a couple of hours here at present.    Robin, that frozen waterfall of icicles is amazing!  Roma, the horses certainly stand out from the snow, don't they?

38^oC forecast the next 2 days, and given that today was only forecast for 37^oC that doesn't bode well for us.  May hit 40^oC if we're unlucky.   So different from you lot freezing.

[Diane Clement]

38^oC forecast the next 2 days, and given that today was only forecast for 37^oC that doesn't bode well for us.  May hit 40^oC if we're unlucky.  So different from you lot freezing.    

Our coldest has "only" been -8^oC so far, and we "only" had about 5" of snow, so I suppose we've not had it too bad, compared with some areas.  It feels a tiny bit warmer here today, but they have forecast more snow later.  We will see ....

[Hristo]

Thanks for that link Stephen, very interesting.

[Anthony Darby]

You will notice that you don't even need to leave Scotland to find a snow-free area. Just look at the Mull of Galloway in the Nasa photograph. http://twitpic.com/x3jus

[mark smyth]

Are you referring to the area around Stranaer?

Diane when I close my louvres they wind rattles them and they fall out. Yours look fine. What have I done wrong?