Category Archives: Weather

Reducing climate change from aviation: could climate-friendly routing play a part?

Posted on May 29, 2017 by Stephen Burt

By Emma Irvine It’s commonly known that burning fossil fuels, like in jet engines, leads to the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) which causes global warming. It is perhaps less well known that, particularly in the case of aviation, carbon … Continue reading →

Posted in Atmospheric chemistry, aviation, Climate, Weather, Weather forecasting | Tagged | Leave a comment

Nice weather, atmospheric blocking and forecasts

Posted on April 11, 2017 by Stephen Burt

By Oscar Martinez-Alvarado With the beginning of spring (either the ‘meteorological’ spring on 1 March or the ‘astronomical’ spring on 20 March, as the Met Office explains here), the UK and indeed the whole Northern Hemisphere start experiencing warmer weather. The … Continue reading →

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Observation uncertainty in data assimilation

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Stephen Burt

By Sarah Dance Approximately 4 million properties in the UK are at risk from surface-water flooding which occurs when heavy rainfall overwhelms the drainage capacity of the local area. Several national weather centres have been developing new numerical forecasting systems … Continue reading →

Posted in data assimilation, earth observation, Numerical modelling, Remote sensing, Weather, Weather forecasting | Leave a comment

UK drought monitoring and forecasting

Posted on August 1, 2016 by Stephen Burt

By Laura Baker After what feels like a pretty wet start to the year, it may seem strange to be talking about drought (although admittedly the warm weather over the last couple of weeks should help!). But in spring 2012, … Continue reading →

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A month’s worth of rain …

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Stephen Burt

By Ben Harvey Phrases like a month’s worth of rain fell in just one day are often seen in media reports of extreme precipitation. But what does this statistic actually mean? How rare is it to see a month’s worth … Continue reading →

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Why does it always rain on me?

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Stephen Burt

By Helen Dacre Last Monday morning I got so wet on my cycle to work that I had to spend 10 minutes under the hand dryer in the toilets to stop myself looking like a drowned rat. Being the keen … Continue reading →

Posted in Measurements and instrumentation, Weather, Weather forecasting | Leave a comment

Understanding Summer Flash Flooding

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Stephen Burt

By Adrian Champion ‘Flash flooding’ is flooding that only lasts between a few hours and a day and typically has very little warning. There are many causes of flash flooding, from the meteorological conditions that lead to the rainfall that … Continue reading →

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Ah, the sweet smell of rain …

Posted on February 29, 2016 by Stephen Burt

By Ellie Highwood Despite all the rain of the past winter, there is something about rain that I have missed – its perfume. As we head towards spring, with daffodils all around us already, I am looking forward to the … Continue reading →

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First snow of winter … brr!

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Stephen Burt

By Tom Frame Following on from Chris Westbrook’s excellent exposition on the beauty of snow flakes, nature has been kind enough to provide many of us with our first snowfall of the winter this weekend – Reading included (if only … Continue reading →

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Snowflakes – not just a pretty picture!

Posted on November 16, 2015 by Stephen Burt

By Chris Westbrook The slow, inexorable approach of Christmas means that Christmas adverts are now increasing in frequency at an incredible rate. Nauseating John Lewis offerings aside, we are going to be seeing a lot of snowflake-based imagery over the … Continue reading →

Posted in Remote sensing, University of Reading, Weather | Tagged | Leave a comment