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There was an unusual run of notably dry Februaries in this time period. February 1929 was a notably dry month with an EWP average of only 31.5mm. It was also a very cold month, part of one of the few genuinely cold winters between 1895 and 1940. It had a C.E.T. of 0.4C. The first eleven days saw high pressure to our east gain a foothold while an increasingly severe cold pool grew over the continent. It wasn't until the 12th when winds veered east and the coldest period of the month began. While we escaped the worst of it, uppers of below -15C were marching in from the east. Your eyes don't decieve you, that is the -25C line to our east! Unsurprisingly for a dry month, the Atlantic never takes hold and we end up with battleground synoptics for the rest of the month, but mostly dry. The Met Office report for February 1929 with all figures and notable weather events (I will be posting these to save time writing): February 1930 would be even dryer with a EWP average of 26.1mm. It was also rather cold with a C.E.T. of 2.5. Unlike the previous year, it came off the back of an extremely wet period. October 1929 through January 1930 was exceptionally wet with November and December in particular being amongst the wettest ever recorded. The winter had also been very mild up to this point (5.8, 5.6), so things changed drastically. A very unsettled start but high pressure built in by the 6th and remained in situ for the rest of the month. Unlike 1929 there were no great cold pools, just one big frosty high. The Met Office report for February 1930: February 1931 would prove to be rather wet but the next one was the driest of the run and is one of the driest months ever recorded. February 1932 has an EWP average of a meagre 8.9mm. To put that into context, that's slightly drier than August 1995 (9.1mm). The winter of 1931/1932 was bizarre in that it had been very mild up until now (5.3, 6.3) but turned colder in February with a C.E.T. of 2.9. It was a very bizarre year overall with March almost 2C colder than January, a cold spring and an indifferent summer with an extreme heat-spike in August reaching 36C (1932 sounds like the long lost cousin of our current era climate!). It was also a year without a winter across NA. The month begins as it means to go on: with high pressure dominating. It's in a mild position at first but then builds into Scandinavia and we get a particularly bitter easterly spell into the 10th. After that, high pressure meanders around the country aimlessly before a second bite of the cherry at months end and while this was also very cold it was more tame than the initial easterly. The Met Office monthly report for February 1932: February 1933 would end up being very wet but the following year would see yet another bone dry February. February 1934 remarkably has an EWP of 11.9mm, just fractionally "wetter" than February 1932. The winter of 1933/1934 was exceptionally dry and came after an extremely dry year (1933 annually only has a EWP of 717.7mm) which also had a very hot summer. 1934 would also go on to be a very dry year with a hot summer of its own, a very intense drought period for the UK. The month starts with a near-miss of a cold spell in which we escape the brunt of the easterlies but still manage -10C uppers. There were some blink-and-you-miss-it-lows at times but most of the time high pressure was bloated over the continent. The month wasn't especially mild (3.8C) due to the north/south divide in temperature. It was exceptionally mild in Scotland but in the south it was rather cold due to cold nights despite mild days. Not too dissimilar to January 2022. The month ended how it began, with a cold spell, though it was a rather weak affair. Lack of cold uppers happened then too, more often that you think! The Met Office monthly report for February 1934: In contrast, the next three Februaries were all wet with February 1937 one of the wettest on record and not too far off February 2024's total.
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February 1978 was a cold and snowy month that featured one of the most intense blizzards in recorded history. The month started with temperatures close to average - westerly winds dominated until the 6th. Gales on the 1st/2nd sent ships adrift. Changes began on the 7th as winds started to blow in from the continent. Freezing fog becamee difficult to clear and temperatures started to plummet. The 9th began a four day streak of temperatures remaining below zero. The C.E.T. from the 8th to the 21st averaged -0.4. Snowfall totals during this period included 15cm across Kent from snow showers on the 9th, 20-25cm at Dundee and Edinburgh by the 12th (the heaviest snowfall there since 1955) and undrifted snowfall totals between 50-80cm in NE England/SE Scotland by the 13th. The largest totals were yet to come - the Atlantic began advancing forward on the 15th allowing weather fronts to track across southern England, instantly turning to snow as they hit the frigid air. Unusually, the cold block held the mild air at bay. It was as the block held the Atlantic low pressure systems at bay when the lowest temperatures occured. Across deep snow cover, the temperature fell to -21degC at Braemar on the 15th; -17degC was also achieved in the city of Edinburgh on the 17th. However, it would get colder. The second advancement of low pressure in the Atlantic lead to perhaps the most intense blizzards in UK history on the 18th/19th. The block allowed low pressure to undercut and draw in gale force easterly winds filled with moisture. This lead to apocalyptic blizzards across the southwest, a place usually sheltered from cold and snow. Level snow accumulated to depths of around 60cm at Dartmoor and Exmoor and 85cm at Nettlecomb in Somerset, though drifts of up to 6 metres were reported widely across Somerset & Dorset. Elsewhere, Cardiff saw 34cm with 8 metre drifts. Many lives were sadly lost in the exceptional blizzard. The coldest temperature came on the final day of the freeze; -22degC at Keith (Grampian Region) on the 20th. Also on the 20th came heavy freezing rain in the south, adding to an already wintry scene. After this the cold relented and the low pressures in the Atlantic could finally pass through. In a complete twist, the rest of February 1978 was very mild and 15degC was recorded in London on the 23rd. The rapid thaw caused a great deal of flooding. However, some remote parts of the SW remained cut off from civilization until the 24th. The rest of the month featured a mixture of mild, cloudy and foggy weather and occaisonal thunderstorms brought in on southerly winds. Overall, February 1978 has a C.E.T. of 2.8, the coldest February since 1969. A very mild final week meant the month wasn't overall that cold in the record books, similar to January 1982. The U.K. wasn't alone this month as a ferocious Nor'easter gave a historic dumping of snow across the east coast of the USA from the 5th to the 7th (similar to the recent Nor'easter across Boston, January 2022); the second in a trio cluster of extremely cold winters across NA from 1976-77 to 1978-1979; you can read about that extensively elsewhere. Share your memories of this month!
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There was a very short-lived but intense cold snap at during the first 6 days of Feb. 1912 Most of the winter had been mild, including the first-half of January, but there were signs of a change by the 15th with a big area of high pressure to our east. By the 18th, cold air across the north gave a foot of snow thanks to a SE wind A week of cold & frosty weather followed, but a very cold NE flow was beggining to establish by the 25th. Temperatures fell rapidly, with -3C daily C.E.T. values by months end. Notice the intense blocking across Iceland & Greenland. Into the first week of February an exceptionally cold pool of air spilled down from the Artic via blocking over Iceland, giving a severe spell of cold weather. On the 4th, -21C was recorded at West Linton in E. Scotland. The first 6 days of February averaged -2.5C. From the 2nd to the 5th, temperatures across the country were widely into minus double digits, even close to -10 as far south as Folkestone & Bexhill. Daytime temperatures struggled well below zero. A foot of snow fell at Durham. I believe the snowfall was more showery in nature, but records show a widespread coving of 4-6 inches across the country. In many places it's said to have been the most severe spell of ice since 1895.. but it wasn't to last. By the 7th the low pressure had blown up, forcing much milder southerly winds, bringing an end to the cold snap. The rest of the month turned exceptionally mild with winds often from the southwest. It also was very low pressure dominated, so a wet month too. The first 6 days averaged -2.5, the 7th to the 28th averaged 7.5C(!). The overall C.E.T. for the month was 5.4. The coldest days 3rd & 4th, at -4.3 & -5, the warmest the 27th & 28th at 11.1 & 10.5. Reminds me a lot of Feb. 2021. Actually a warmer month than 2021 though & 2021 recorded a colder temperature. The rest of the year wouldn't prove to be so great, so will 2021 follow the same path? Time will tell!
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A very cold spell is recorded by Gilbert White in his nature journal covering late February into March 1786. February that year started pretty average with some gales mid-month and it was not until the 21st that an East wind is mentioned. After 4 days of bitter conditions he notes that "ploughs are stopped by the frost" and "men cannot dig in the hop-gardens". A heavy snowfall arrives on the 27th and is described as about 7 inches deep - falling without drifting and lodged on the trees so it appears "very grotesque and picturesque". What happened next is the real surprise for our 'modern expectations'. The east wind gets up again and it becomes even colder so that the lying snow is now drifted "over hedges and gates". The first signs of any thawing are not seen until 10th March and even by 22nd March the lanes have "much snow still lying". Given this is Hampshire and not very far from the South coast it just goes to show how potent a late Winter spell could be back then.