Weather forecasts these days are hi-tech: satellites orbiting the Earth continually watch the current weather and feed this information into some of the largest supercomputers in the world. But satellites … Continue reading “Launching a weather balloon at the University of Reading”
By Chimene Daleu In the UK, colder winter weather is usually caused by high pressure developing to the north, which allows cold arctic or polar continental air masses to push … Continue reading “Early thoughts on winter 2016-17 …”
By Roger Brugge Maybe the title of this piece may seem rather odd – but then ‘what is a heatwave?’ Perhaps surprisingly, in the UK there is no accepted definition … Continue reading “No heatwave in Reading in July 2016 – but two in December 2015!”
By Roger Brugge Yes, there were frequent thunderstorms, some localised flooding and a lack of very high temperatures – but then is this really unusual for June in Reading (or … Continue reading “Was the weather of June 2016 really that bad?”
By Georgina Glaser, Voice of Young Science member Talking about science when you’re a PhD student seems like it should be an obvious prerequisite and an easy task. For some … Continue reading “GUEST BLOG: Talking sensible science when wondering about the weather”
By Roger Brugge This may seem a strange question, but it was prompted by the sight of flowering daffodils alongside the A4 through Maidenhead on 12 December 2015 (Figure 1). … Continue reading “Not yet Christmas, but has spring sprung?”
By Richard Allan Changing rainfall can have profound societal consequences across Africa where it plays a crucial role in sustaining livelihoods and economic development. Predicting how rainfall patterns will alter … Continue reading “Recent changes in Africa rainfall”
By Roger Brugge “Persistent low cloud, spells of fog, minimal amounts of sunshine and night-time temperatures more suited to September.” Such a description of the weather of the past ten … Continue reading “An unusually dull, but mild, start to November”
By Stephen Burt These were typical newspaper headlines earlier this week. So how did we fare in Reading? We did set one extraordinary record during this short-lived hot spell. We … Continue reading “Phew! What a scorcher!”
By Simone Kotthaus With summer upon us we want to spend more time outdoors. However, as temperatures rise, conditions in cities may become uncomfortable. The urban heat island (UHI) effect, … Continue reading “Complexity of surface temperatures in cities – let’s talk about what we don’t know”