The Times - UK (2021-12-18)

the times | Saturday December 18 2021 85

We a t h e r

Channel Islands

NORTH

SEA

CHANNEL

IRISH

SEA

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

Aberdeen

Glasgow Edinburgh

Carlisle

Newcastle

York

Manchester

Liverpool

Hull

Llandudno

Shrewsbury Nottingham

Sheffield

Norwich

Cambridge

Oxford

Bristol

Swansea

Cardiff

Plymouth

Exeter

Southampton

Brighton

London

Londonderry

Belfast

Galway

Dublin

Cork

Birmingham

CELTIC

SEA

Orkney Shetland

19

Tuesday

6

3

6

6

Aberdeen

Aberporth

Anglesey

Aviemore

Barnstaple

Bedford

Belfast

Birmingham

Bournemouth

Bridlington

Bristol

Camborne

Cardiff

Edinburgh

Eskdalemuir

Glasgow

Hereford

Herstmonceux

Ipswich

Isle of Man

Isle of Wight

Jersey

Keswick

Kinloss

Leeds

Lerwick

Leuchars

Lincoln

Liverpool

London

Lyneham

Manchester

Margate

Milford Haven

Newcastle

Nottingham

Orkney

Oxford

Plymouth

Portland

Scilly, St Mary’s

Shoreham

Shrewsbury

Snowdonia

Southend

South Uist

Stornoway

Tiree

Whitehaven

Wick

Yeovilton

Around Britain

Key: b=bright, c=cloud, d=drizzle, pc=partly cloudy

du=dull, f=fair, fg=fog, h=hail, m=mist, r=rain,

sh=showers, sl=sleet, sn=snow, s=sun, t=thunder

*=previous day **=data not available

Temp C Rain mm Sun hr*

midday yesterday 24 hrs to 5pm yesterday

Noon today

2 S 0.2 2.0

7 DU 0.0 0.0

8 B 0.0 0.0

0 FG 0.0 0.0

10 DU 0.0 **

5 FG 0.0 **

9 DU 0.0 0.0

8 M 0.0 **

10 DU 0.0 0.0

9 PC 0.2 **

9 DU 0.0 0.0

10 B 0.0 6.4

9 DU 0.0 0.0

9 PC 0.0 0.0

3 S 0.2 0.0

9 DU 0.0 0.0

9 DU 0.0 **

8 M 0.0 0.0

7 M 0.4 3.8

9 DU 0.0 0.0

10 PC 0.0 **

10 S 0.0 0.0

8 S 0.0 **

7 PC 0.0 0.0

6 S 0.2 **

9 PC 2.0 0.0

6 S 0.2 0.2

4 FG 0.2 6.2

9 C 0.0 **

8 B 0.0 0.0

9 C 0.0 0.0

7 S 0.0 0.0

9 M 0.2 0.0

9 DU 0.0 **

5 S 0.4 **

5 M 0.4 0.1

9 S 0.0 0.0

9 DU 0.0 **

10 C 0.0 **

10 DU 0.0 **

11 DU 0.0 **

7 DU 0.0 0.0

9 DU 0.0 0.0

6 C 0.0 **

7 M 0.4 0.0

9 DU 0.0 **

10 DU 0.0 0.0

9 DU 0.0 0.0

6 S 0.2 3.3

7 S 0.0 **

10 DU 0.0 0.0

The world

All readings local midday yesterday

Alicante

Amsterdam

Athens

Auckland

Bahrain

Bangkok

Barbados

Barcelona

Beijing

Beirut

Belgrade

Berlin

Bermuda

Bordeaux

Brussels

Bucharest

Budapest

Buenos Aires

Cairo

Calcutta

Canberra

Cape Town

Chicago

Copenhagen

Corfu

Delhi

Dubai

Dublin

Faro

Florence

Frankfurt

Geneva

Gibraltar

Helsinki

Hong Kong

Honolulu

Istanbul

Jerusalem

Johannesburg

Kuala Lumpur

Kyiv

Lanzarote

Las Palmas

Lima

Lisbon

Los Angeles

Luxor

Madeira

Madrid

Malaga

Mallorca

Malta

Melbourne

Mexico City

Miami

Milan

Mombasa

Montreal

Moscow

Mumbai

Munich

Nairobi

Naples

New Orleans

New York

Nice

Nicosia

Oslo

Paris

Perth

Prague

Reykjavik

Riga

Rio de Janeiro

Riyadh

Rome

San Francisco

Santiago

São Paulo

Seoul

Seychelles

Singapore

St Petersburg

Stockholm

Sydney

Tel Aviv

Tenerife

Tokyo

Vancouver

Venice

Vienna

Warsaw

Washington

Zurich

** **

** **

12 PC

21 B

26 S

33 S

29 B

** **

-3 S

16 R

5 B

6 B

20 B

** **

** **

3 R

8 PC

27 S

18 B

24 S

23 S

28 S

4 PC

6 B

14 PC

17 S

26 S

** **

16 B

15 S

8 B

** **

** **

1 S

24 PC

28 PC

5 R

15 R

19 B

27 SH

3 R

19 S

21 S

** **

14 PC

13 PC

19 S

20 PC

** **

** **

** **

16 PC

28 S

22 PC

28 B

7 M

29 B

9 B

1 B

29 S

3 FG

24 B

14 S

26 B

15 B

** **

19 S

-1 S

** **

22 B

6 PC

5 R

5 DU

32 PC

23 S

14 S

13 PC

27 S

26 SH

-4 PC

29 B

29 PC

1 DU

4 S

23 B

15 R

21 PC

10 B

6 PC

6 S

7 B

4 B

18 B

3 B

The Times weather

page is provided

by Weatherquest

Five days ahead

Mainly dry with a mixture

of cloud, fog and bright

spells, but the risk of rain

or snow later in the week

Today Largely dry with thick cloud, fog patches and some sunshine, mainly in Scotland. Max 10C (50F), min -3C (27F)

Tides

Tidal predictions.

Heights in metres

Today Ht Ht

Aberdeen

Avonmouth

Belfast

Cardiff

Devonport

Dover

Dublin

Falmouth

Greenock

Harwich

Holyhead

Hull

Leith

Liverpool

London Bridge

Lowestoft

Milford Haven

Morecambe

Newhaven

Newquay

Oban

Penzance

Portsmouth

Shoreham

Southampton

Swansea

Tees

Weymouth

00:37 4.0 12:57 4.1

06:27 12.3 18:49 12.2

10:41 3.5 23:01 3.3

06:16 11.4 18:39 11.4

04:59 5.2 17:18 5.1

10:36 6.2 22:58 6.3

11:07 3.9 23:20 3.7

04:33 4.8 16:51 4.7

11:51 3.5 --:-- -.-

11:07 3.8 23:31 3.8

09:51 5.3 22:05 5.2

05:28 6.9 17:49 7.0

01:56 5.1 14:16 5.2

10:35 8.7 22:51 8.7

01:05 6.6 13:20 6.8

08:49 2.3 21:15 2.5

05:35 6.4 17:53 6.4

10:46 8.7 23:01 8.7

10:31 6.3 22:55 6.2

04:27 6.5 16:44 6.5

04:54 3.7 17:19 3.8

04:02 5.1 16:18 5.1

10:56 4.5 23:23 4.4

10:40 5.9 23:04 5.8

09:50 4.3 12:45 4.2

05:41 8.8 18:02 8.8

02:55 5.1 15:17 5.2

05:58 2.0 18:25 1.9

Synoptic situation

A broad area of high pressure

centred off the east coast

of Yorkshire will continue to

bring largely dry and settled

conditions. There will be rather

a lot of cloud at times though

with lingering fog patches, as

well as a few spots of drizzle.

The best of the brightness will

be in parts of central Scotland,

where some places will see

largely unbroken sunshine.

Highs and lows

24hrs to 5pm yesterday

Warmest: Loftus, 11.1C

Coldest: Topcliffe,

North Yorkshire, -4.3C

Wettest: Lerwick, 2.0mm

Sunniest: Tibenham,

Norfolk, 6.8hrs*

Sun and moon

For Greenwich

Sun rises:

Sun sets:

Moon rises:

Moon sets:

Full moon: December 19

Hours of darkness

Aberdeen

Belfast

Birmingham

Cardiff

Exeter

Glasgow

Liverpool

London

Manchester

Newcastle

Norwich

Penzance

Sheffi eld

15:55-08:15

16:28-08:13

16:24-07:45

16:34-07:44

16:39-07:42

16:13-08:14

16:23-07:54

16:22-07:32

16:20-07:51

16:08-07:58

16:10-07:33

16:50-07:47

16:17-07:48

General situation: Largely dry but

rather cloudy for many with fog

patches. Sunny in northern Scotland.

Republic of Ireland, N Ireland: Dry but

generally cloudy with some fog patches

in places. A few brighter periods may

develop. Light southeasterly winds,

moderate in the south. Maximum

9C (48F), minimum -1C (30F).

Wales, SW Eng, Cen S Eng, Channel Is,

IoM: Some sunshine developing in

the west, but generally cloudy with

some fog patches. Light to moderate

southeasterly winds, fresh to strong in

Cornwall and Devon. Maximum

10C (50F), minimum 3C (37F).

E Anglia, London, SE Eng, Midlands,

NW Eng, Cen N Eng, E Eng: A largely

cloudy and overcast day with a few

spots of drizzle, as well as lingering

mist and fog patches. Brighter periods

are possible. Light easterly winds,

moderate in the south. Maximum

10C (50F), minimum 1C (34F).

Moray Firth, Cen Highland, Aberdeen:

A dry day with plenty of unbroken

sunshine inland. Cloudier near the

coasts. Light, variable winds. Maximum

8C (46F), minimum -3C (27F).

Lake District, NE Eng, SW Scotland,

Borders, Glasgow, Argyll, NW Scotland,

NE Scotland, Edinburgh and Dundee,

N Isles: Remaining dry with a few

bright or sunny spells at times, but

mainly cloudy with lingering mist and

fog patches in places. The best of the

sunshine in the southeast. Light and

variable winds. Maximum 8C (46F),

minimum -2C (28F).

Tomorrow

7

4

9

8

Monday

7

3

7

6

Wednesday

4

2

5

5

Thursday

5

3

6

11

11

erly winds fres

27 16

1

oooo

14

11

9

13

14

neyney Sh

19

18

7

7

6

5

4

5

3

6

7 7

8

8

9

8

6

9

7

6

5

8

r

ih

L

k

F

95

86

77

68

59

50

41

32

23

14

5

C

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

-5

-10

-15

Wind speed

(mph)

Temperature

28 (degrees C)

34

Sea state

Calm

Slight

Moderate

Rough

Flood alerts and warnings

At 17:00 on Friday there was one fl ood

alert and no warnings in England, and

no fl ood alerts or warning in Wales

or Scotland. For further information

and updates in England visit fl ood-

warning-information.service.gov.uk,

for Wales naturalresources.wales/

fl ooding and for Scotland SEPA.org.uk

Cold front

Warm front

Occluded front

Trough

LOW

HIGH

LOW

LOW

HIGH

LOW

LOW

1032

1032

1024

1016

1016

1008

1008

1000

992 1000

(^992992)
Some patchy rain in northern Scotland,
otherwise dry with sunny spells, more
widely than in previous days. A fairly
widespread cold and frosty start.
Max 8C, min -7C
Little change from previous days with
high pressure bringing largely dry
weather, although with a lot of cloud
and lingering fog patches in places.
The best of the sunshine in the west.
Max 10C, min -3C
Thick cloud may bring some drizzle or
light rain in places, but generally dry
with a mixture of variable cloud, bright
spells and fog patches. Windy in the
southwest.
Max 8C, min -5C
A widespread frosty start, leading to
a cold but largely dry day in England
and Wales with bright spells and fog
patches. A few showers in Scotland.
Rain pushing into Ireland.
Max 8C, min -4C
Cloud and rain will push northeast
across the British Isles, falling as
snow in central and some northern
areas. Sunny spells and showers in far
northern Scotland.
Max 11C, min -4C
08.01
15.51
15.09
08.34 Sun
8
S
kies the colour of battleship
grey shroud most of the
country, and now fog has
also descended across many
areas. But if this gloom is
getting you down there is one bright
spot that shines out, and in a very
surprising place.
The Highlands are a beacon amid
the murk, and anyone climbing the
peaks will be rewarded with bright
and warm sunshine, with
temperatures possibly reaching
about 14C today while much of the
country is stuck in cold and cloudy
weather.
This peculiar weather is thanks to
a huge and powerful block of high
pressure sat firmly over Britain. This
anticyclone has dragged in moisture
off the North Sea with blankets of
low, grey stratocumulus, a most
depressing cloud. It is called
anticyclonic gloom, as if a curtain
has been pulled across the sky, and
is especially common in winter and
early spring with stubborn blocks of
high pressure.
The air in an anticyclone sinks
from high up, pressing down on the
ground, but the high pressure can
also create a curious anomaly, an
invisible lid of warmer air that traps
colder air towards the ground, along
with mist, fog, low cloud and often
air pollution as well. The sunshine at
this time of year is weak, so it takes
a good deal of time for the sun to
break up any mist and fog, if it
disperses at all.
That makes for drab, grey, murky
and cold conditions summed up by
Shakespeare in Henry V: “Where
have they this mettle?/ Is not their
climate foggy, raw and dull?”
A striking example of a
temperature inversion in a winter
anticyclone came in the notorious
Great Smog of December 1952,
caused by coal smoke combining
with fog. London was choked in a
record peasouper that brought the
capital to a standstill for days on
end. But up on the high ground of
Hampstead Heath, the sun shone
bright and looked down on the thick
smog spread across London that
appeared like a big, filthy, black
blanket of cotton wool trapped
below by a temperature inversion.
Weather Eye
Paul Simons