March Blizzard

Only a few flakes of dandruff blowing in the wind here.

Yeah, There's nothing quite like a semolinael engine... ...but boy are they thirsty!

I very much doubt it! My RX-8 with bald summer tyres won't like it one bit, though!*BTW, in case anyone was thinking about giving Greater Manchester police a tip-off my tyres have the legal tread...just. I'll get new ones soon. Who'd have thought that buying and renovating a house would be so bl**dy expensive?!

Yeah. 6/10. The Boxing Day mega-flakes and the following near ice day and all day frost. The late January fall of around 4 inches and the subsequent lying snowcover through early February. The regular polar maritime wintry showers throughout the winter. They all combined to give a satisfactory winter in my neck of the woods, being realistic about what I should/can typically expect from the season. Enough "wow" moments prevent a lower ranking. The disappointing aspect - no noteable minima yet again. Hard frosts are my favourite weather type, and I'm pining for them to return. The wonderfully cold nights of Jan and Dec 2010, and at times March 2013 seem like a million years ago now. Obviously, it could have been miles better, but all things considered it's been decent in my book. * Looking at the poll result, it's probably not a surprise that most of the "satisfactory" members are in the West/North, with it being a polar maritime dominated winter. Can understand the frustration from those in the east/south, though.

Same here. I'll probably get a centimetre between around 7-9am, causing mayhem on the roads for the morning commute and it will all have melted by midday!

At least you'll be happy mushy, and I will really if it stays clear. Really don't fancy a cloudy high though - they are absolute weather purgatory at this time of year if sourced from a warm place (this one is coming up from the Azores). Persistent cloud, static temperatures of around 12-16C, no wind, rain or variation is my idea of weather hell. It doesn't float my boat, it outright torpedoes it! But hey-ho, gotta take the rough with the smooth, and all that. The models seem quite certain of this now, just the exact location of the high and where in goes after early next week still in question.

Yeah, I mentioned that before. Early/mid March has recently matched the weather singularities that state it's typically a dry and settled time of year. For me personally it's quite frustrating, as I am one to look for cold/snow as long as it's reasonably possible, and that's well into March. By the time we hit April my appetite for cold and snow dwindles, just as the most northerly time of year tends to kick in! It comes in the wrong order, and is a right kick in the teeth. As a result, I reckon this high pressure coming up may last for a week or so, maybe two, but it will probably give way to northerly or north easterly winds just that bit too bloody late. Sod's law. Regardless, it is what it is. HP looks pretty much nailed on, I just hope it's the clear variety and we can eek a few frosts out of it. If it's full of cloud and stupidly mild, I'll be mega cheesed off, truth be told.

Yeah it looked awesome. All that snow, too. Kinda annoyed now that yet another early/mid March seems to be a write off for snow, other than maybe for some over the next few days, due to another bloody high pressure system - sod off, come back in April!

I'd love for this to happen...especially if it meant a March 2013 repeat in 2016! Anyway, 20C looks achievable in a favoured location sometime at the weekend/early next week, going off the current output. As such, I'm going for a very early in the year 20C on Sunday 8th March in Gravesend.

Looks like my worst fear is being realised, with the models suggesting high pressure to set up over northern France/the Channel, from around the 6th/7th, pumping in south westerlies and likely loads of cloud. Net result is mild (potentially very mild) by day and night, and dull. Truly awful. The worst weather imaginable in my book - slightly too cool to be warm, slightly too warm to feel fresh, no sun, no breeze, no precipitation and no frost. Just persistent weather purgatory. It's crazy how often high pressure has influenced our weather in March over the last 4 years.

Don't think that's entirely fair. Most posters who look for cold do usually mention any potential stumbling blocks in it arriving (and in the UK, there's more than on a 110 metre hurdle track!) and actually do base it off what is shown on the models. It's not a case of "cold vs realism", as there are a few who gun for rampant mildness to the same extent as some who constantly expect the ice age to arrive. The difference is that mild weather is far more likely to arrive in this country, so it's probably less of a case of considered insight and more of just backing the form horse, the favourite. Generally I find the mod threats quite civil, with a lot of great insight. People are passionate about their preferences, and sometimes lines can be crossed, but on the whole it ain't too bad.

I'll go for 6.9C.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love that! I'm thinking more about the increasingly strong signal for high pressure to influence our weather in the second week of the month.

If high pressure has to roll in sometime next week I really hope it's situated a bit further north over the UK, rather than to our south. Clear and sunny by day and frosty by night, please. Really can't be a**ed with persistent cloud and mild temperatures. A clear high in March is glorious, a cloudy one is hideous.

Yeah, early February was quite sunny, but December and January seemed quite wet to me overall.

I'm in that little grey blob in the Manchester area, confirming my suspicion that here at least it hasn't been all that sunny. In fact going off those maps it's been less sunny than last winter! The difference between here and just to the east is incredible.

Yeah, it can get quite mild in March, and the mid/high teens (note: not 20C or higher) are probably reached most Marches, but they aren't with any kind of consistency, otherwise the average high temperature for the month would be much higher than it actually is. You can get very mild days here and there in any month, even in sun starved November, December and January. It might hit 17/18/19C in March on one day, but the next will probably only reach 9/10C, or lower. Day after day of very mild maxima is actually rare, even 2012 wasn't uniformly warm in this regard. In fact, it only reached around 4C here on the 15th in 2012 under fog that lasted throughout the day. When people say they are looking for "spring warmth" I get the impression they are looking for more May-like weather - reliable temperatures in the mid/high teens on a consistent daily basis. Yes you can get that in March, but it takes an exceptional spell like 2012 to do so.

You may be right, but the facts don't lie. Climatically, your more likely to see a wintry spell in March than 20C. That was the point I was trying to make.

Or they are just commenting on what the models are showing, which is a potential cold/cooler spell in March? I say bring it on, plenty of time for non-wintry weather in, y'know, the warmer months of the year ie not March. I must point out that the warmth of March 2012 was even rarer than the cold of March 2013, the former was the 4th warmest on record while the latter was "only" the joint 12th coldest. Really don't get why people are seemingly so expectant of almost summer-like warmth in March when it's so unlikely to happen. While 2013 has probably skewed the perception of "coldies", 2012 has almost certainly done the same with the "mildies".

"March sunshine" in...March! Well it sure as hell ain't gunna be July sunshine, is it?!

Still 3 weeks of Astronomical winter to go yet! A trend towards a possible cold/colder spell in March has been popping up over the last few days, let's hope it doesn't disappear in the next few. Would be great to see at least some northern blocking before the end of the "winter season" (Nov thru Mar).

Warm second half? It hasn't even started yet!

Yeah. It is the second coldest season after all. Yes, you can get 20C+ and wall to wall sunshine in April, but you're far more likely to see sunshine and showers and temperatures between around 10-15C. When I think of Spring I want variability, not just warmth, although I wouldn't really enjoy too many cool periods in May.

I hope so. I'm in absolutely no rush for spring, plenty of time for that yet. I agree, it does have that feel of the calm before a storm.

The strength of the sun today is equivalent to...the 1st of November. http://windowseat.ca/sun/