12 replies to this topic

[Mr_Data]

Over the next a couple of days I will be downloading forecasts from mid April 1998 which provided flooding across parts of the Midlands and a really wintry spell of weather with snow and frosts. I recorded 5 consecutive days with falling snow and 2 days of lying snow under Met office rules. It was a complete contrast to what happened just 2 months earlier when we enjoyed a very mild spell during mid February.

Edited by Mr_Data, 22 February 2012 - 18:38 .

[Snow? norfolk n chance]

I had wet snow on good friday 10th April, decent easter that! 90's winters the best!

Edited by snow? norfolk n chance, 22 February 2012 - 18:22 .

[Thundery wintry showers]

In Cleadon the period surrounding Easter 1998 went as follows:
9th- dry cloudy start but the frontal cloud retreated southwards, sunny afternoon, then evening showers, mostly of rain but one of them turned briefly to snow.
10th- dry bright morning then clouded over, dull with sleety rain in afternoon and evening.
11th- sunshine and snow showers
12th- east-coast snow showers continued overnight with about an inch of snow until mid-morning, sunshine and snow/hail showers
13th- sunny morning, snow showers in afternoon
14th- sunny, after three days of areas to the east of the Pennines seeing the majority of the showers, this time most of the snow occurred to the west of the Pennines.
15th- mostly sunny, a few rain showers in the evening
16th- sunshine and snow showers during the morning, then it became dull with rain and sleet during the afternoon and evening.

I remember that spell pretty well. I remember a couple of BBC forecasts from that period, but interestingly neither of the ones that Mr_Data has posted up (I recall one which had us under a ridge of high pressure on Sunday which never materialised). As a result of this spell, April 1998 ended up as the snowiest April since I began recording, with 6 days of sleet/snow falling and 1 of snow lying despite Aprils 1999 and 2008 both producing slightly lower temperatures at the peak of their cold spells.

[damianslaw]

Remember this spell of weathe very well- we managed about 6 days on the trot with snow falling - on some occasions very heavy snow showers which gave coverings at times. Also some hard frosts as well. It was the wintriest spell of the 1997/98 season!

[Mr_Data]

damianslaw, on 22 February 2012 - 22:47 , said:

. Also some hard frosts as well. It was the wintriest spell of the 1997/98 season!

I go one better, I reckon for this neck of the woods, it was the wintriest spell between Jan 1997 and Dec 2000! In terms of lying snow and falling snow within a short timespan.

[Mr_Data]

Unfortunately the sound quality is low. Interesting the radar during the Countryfile broadcast as it shows no showers inland but a couple of hours later they erupted widely. A neighbour was mowing his lawn that afternoon when a hail and snow shower struck!

[damianslaw]

The above forecasts prove how cold northerly airstreams even by mid April can be. Low maxima of 5-6 degrees in central england and in sunshine - once the showers arrive temps would be lower. It doesn't seem right we are seeing maxima of 19 degrees in late feb, when we still achieve maxima of 5 degrees in mid April.

Roll on winter in April!

[CreweCold]

Looks like a cracking period of weather that, something for everyone. Why oh why can we not have something like that? The weather seems to be stuck on boring mode just lately.

[Mr_Data]

damianslaw, on 23 February 2012 - 22:24 , said:

. Low maxima of 5-6 degrees in central england and in sunshine - once the showers arrive temps would be lower. It doesn't seem right we are seeing maxima of 19 degrees in late feb, when we still achieve maxima of 5 degrees in mid April.

Roll on winter in April!

Also the pecularity of that it can be 3C in January and you get rain and sleet showers and yet you can have 6C in April and the showers are of snow and they start as snow and I have experienced flakes of snow falling whilst the sun was shining in mid April and you can feel the warmth of the sun. Really odd.

[CreweCold]

Mr_Data, on 23 February 2012 - 22:42 , said:

Also the pecularity of that it can be 3C in January and you get rain and sleet showers and yet you can have 6C in April and the showers are of snow and they start as snow and I have experienced flakes of snow falling whilst the sun was shining in mid April and you can feel the warmth of the sun. Really odd.

Guessing it has something to do with the higher cloud tops and the formation of precipitation at a height where it forms as snow, thus helping it maintain as snow throughout the profile to ground level......surface heating being negated by the depth of the cold at the upper air level and the downdrafts that occur within cells.

[Mr_Data]

Here's a couple of forecasts from Easter Monday 1998. It was largely dry during daylight hours here but during the evening, snow showers moved in from the Irish Sea and it really was a wintry scene by 9pm. Had to pinch yourself it was mid-April.

[Mr_Data]

One of the great stats quirks Manchester maxima from 10th-15th February compared to 10th-15th April 1998

10th: 12C, 6C
11th: 14C, 8C
12th: 15C, 7C
13th: 17C, 8C
14th: 15C, 6C
15th: 14C, 8C

10th-15th Feb CET: 10.5
10th-15th Apr CET: 3.8

[Mr_Data]

Here is a Granada news report from 14th April 1998 and a BBC NW News report from 15th April 1998.