Weather

Snow, snow and more snow

Posted on by in Education, Geography and tagged , .

The bad weather we seem to have experienced this month doesn’t seem to be stopping. What with the disruption to the economy, it has caused wide-spread problems with people travelling. I can express my own personal disappointment as I was due to fly to Rome for a few days prior to Christmas – in the end my flights were cancelled like thousands of others. Britain’s two main airports, Heathrow and Gatwick, are still having major problems with the snow. I just hope they all get back for Christmas.

With the recent snow it reminds me of when I started writing my blog back in January with the snow back then. Please let us know what the weather situation is like with you. From the weather reports it is not just Britain but mainland Europe too. It looks like it will be around till Boxing Day.

Winter Blues

Posted on by in Geography and tagged , , , , , .

NASA has taken an amazing satellite image from space of Britain. It shows the majority of Britain under snow and ice. The image certainly illustrates the weather conditions we have been facing this week. According to the Met Office the temperatures reached a low of – 22.3C in Altnaharra in the Scottish Highlands last night. This is the lowest recorded temperature this winter in Britain. Unbelievably, this is colder than Antarctica at present! With the amount of snow that has fallen this week and the freezing temperatures I have had to work from home since Wednesday. The icy conditions in the morning have made the roads treacherous, the pavements a nightmare and the daily commute a no go.

The weather seems to have affected most aspects of daily life for many people. One area of business which has been boosted has been Britain’s ski resorts. The Glenshee Ski Centre in Perthshire has had an increase of 2,000 people a day since the New Year.  Unfortunately many parts of Britain are running out of grit and several places still have no power. Hopefully this will be the lowest temperatures we will encounter but with freezing winds expected over the weekend we will have to wait and see!

The Big Chill

Posted on by in Geography and tagged , , , , , .

Like many teachers, I have found myself working from home today with the snow causing many schools to close. From my house in Hampshire, the snow fall has not stopped and certainly does not seem to be easing off. It has so far reached a depth of seven inches in my front garden! This is incredible and from watching and reading the weather reports it certainly will be around for a little bit longer. The BBC has announced this is the worst weather conditions that Britain has faced since 1981.

The Met Office website has been brilliant for up to date weather reports and has some fantastic free educational weather resources available. These might be very useful in explaining the current cold snap to our students when we finally return.

Be careful on those roads over the next few days!