South East & East Anglia Regional Weather Discussion 21/01/14

[Jason T]

Week by week map of rainfall totals starting from December till date. Ridiculous

 

 

 

 

WOW LOOK AT THIS LIGHTNING BURST...

 

https://vine.co/v/MuBJPWUtmV3

Edited January 25, 2014 by Jason T

[chrisbell-nottheweatherman]

hi chris

 

its a dieing front

 

decaying slowly as it heads east

Cheers John.

[alexisj9]

Came straight onto this thread after returning from my parents in the west country to find out if there have been any tornado reports; looks like there have been. Around 4pm, I couldn't work out if it was an incredibly strong squall or possibly tornado-type conditions whipping around my parents house in Radstock as my father tied down the gazebo roof (75 and recovering from his most recent hospitalised flare-up of lung problems, yet didn't want any help!) and things rattled all over the place. No snapped trees but it was a close run thing for some of them, and the lights flickered a couple of times. Generally it was calm and just somewhat windy as we crossed Salisbury Plain for the journey home, with one lightning flash in the distance; a few puddles remain in Surbiton. Anyway, I knew if there was anything to know, you chaps/esses would know it... and you did:)

 

Edit: just saw that Artdemole posted in the south west thread a tweet from Ian F describing this afternoon's events as a 'Frontogenetic Front'; Mullender, just down the road from my parents, lost power for several hours, so we were lucky to get just the lights flicker.

Just looked up what a frontogenitic front is, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontogenesis

 

Not sure I'm any the wiser till I look up the other things lol.

[chrisbell-nottheweatherman]

Just looked up what a frontogenitic front is, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontogenesis

 

Not sure I'm any the wiser till I look up the other things lol.

I may be wrong, but I think that article deals with the development of ordinary fronts in the process known as frontogenesis.  I suspect that there's been a misnaming here - "a frontogenic front" sounds a bit of a tautology to me.

[legrandefromage]

'Hi, Peter Griffin here. I understood only 3 of those words. Oh and 'testicles'. Carry on''

 

[alexisj9]

I may be wrong, but I think that article deals with the development of ordinary fronts in the process known as frontogenesis.  I suspect that there's been a misnaming here - "a frontogenic front" sounds a bit of a tautology to me.

I took it to mean, the temp difference caused the front to bomb. Probably wrong though lol.

[chrisbell-nottheweatherman]

I took it to mean, the temp difference caused the front to bomb. Probably wrong though lol.

 

That's certainly my interpretation of what happened.  It felt noticeably colder after the front had passed, so I'm going with that explanation.

[NorthNorfolkWeather]

What's the first occlusion, John - I notice it's marked differently to the one to the immediate west of it?

As John said, it's a dying front, called an "Upper Front" as all the rain bearing air has been cut off from the ground.  Much more common to see an upper Warm or an upper cold front as they are then different air masses producing rain while not in contact with the surface.  An occlusion is always a dying front as it has the rain squeezed out ( the warm air being forced further aloft and depositing rain), so th eonly reason I could think here is that there is another airmass (the cold front) giving rain, but the occlusion stil has some activity.

[john pike]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gust_front

 

i think this is what caused this earlier

 

just my thoughts at present

[chrisbell-nottheweatherman]

As John said, it's a dying front, called an "Upper Front" as all the rain bearing air has been cut off from the ground.  Much more common to see an upper Warm or an upper cold front as they are then different air masses producing rain while not in contact with the surface.  An occlusion is always a dying front as it has the rain squeezed out ( the warm air being forced further aloft and depositing rain), so th eonly reason I could think here is that there is another airmass (the cold front) giving rain, but the occlusion stil has some activity.

 

That does seem confusing, as I agree that an occlusion by definition has to be an upper front.

[alexisj9]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gust_front

 

i think this is what caused this earlier

 

just my thoughts at present

It was already dark when it came over here, would have liked to see the structure at the front of the storm if it was that. Never mind may be next time.

[Andy H]

More reports coming in http://www.yourharlow.com/2014/01/25/familes-homeless-as-roofs-ripped-off-in-pear-tree-mead/

[john pike]

hi alexis

 

was just about light enough to see this incoming earlier

 

it was very angry looking and very dark

 

the wind was so powerful while at work it looked like the windows were bending in

 

t tried opening one of the doors to look outside

 

the wind was that strong i could not force it open

 

then saw the lightning which looked pretty close

 

would prefer not to see that happen too often

Edited January 25, 2014 by john pike

[ZONE 51]

Damage from the severe squall.Reported to me from a very reliable witness to the weather.

 

Esher/Hersham area (Surrey)

 

They were driving at the time, violent rain, damaging gusts and streak lightning (as most of us experienced) but marble size hail the larger marble size (estimated)

Several trees down, one on west end lane, another on the Esher hill at Portsmouth rd was explained as exploded like damage, inside of trees scattered around the road. Reported trees down at other locations on their journey, the Byfleet area think said Byfleet rd trees down. Traffic was solid. 

 

Said of my experience and ppl's reports on the forums with the storms, I was indoors, but for those out driving in it must have been scary!! (as mentioned too!!)

 

Ive not been out today are let you know if find any damage tmw, although the severe gales risk could cause problems tmw anyway...

Edited January 25, 2014 by ElectricSnowStorm

[chrisbell-nottheweatherman]

From doing a bit of research, it seems that the upper occlusion is a British term for the Canadian TROWAL (TRough Of Warm air ALoft), which is the point at which the warm sector comes closest to the ground (as a front occludes, the cold air behind the cold front catches-up with the warm front, lifting the warm sector away from the ground).  As this usually occurs ahead of the ground-level part of the occlusion, it is shown to the east of it.  Presumably, this had been producing precipitation but, as it was now occluded, it was weakening, hence John's explanation.

[alexisj9]

Se,Nw split in the pub run tonight, may be some dry weather at last. I agree JP I was scared cause I was almost home but not quite when I saw the first the lightening strike. But the rain was light and it wasn't windy yet. I managed to get home before the heavy rain and wind kicked in. So it doesn't sound like a gust front. May be they are not always right at the front?

[totalhysteria]

Was out driving when the squall hit. Torrential sideways rain and very strong gusts. Car was being hit small bits of tree being tossed around. Quite scary!

[yamkin]

The recent squally shower has caused some disruption in the Croydon area. There have been a number of calls for fallen trees and a crane has fallen down on Whitehorse Road and some unsafe scaffolding on Lower Addiscombe Road

[ZONE 51]

I took it to mean, the temp difference caused the front to bomb. Probably wrong though lol.

Correct to some degree! imagine the Atlantic Jet, cold north, warm south, middle=heavy weight power storms>>>>driven at 200mph to our shores....  imagine the feature today cold/trough front cold air rushing behind it, milder air ahead clash bang====violent atmospheric disturbances>>>>winds mixed change direction... boom explosive energized squall line......

 

That was very much more widespread and explosive than expected... the speed of this feature meant rain totals would not expectedly meet warning criteria, for the winds? 60-70mph reported on the data around our regions (others too) maybe these were not expected to be so violent. 

[john pike]

hi yamks

 

traffic in croydon when i cam home at 5.30 was gridlocked

 

 

remember earlier i said the low on the 144 chart from ukmo could go any way

 

now tonight watch what it does on gfs 18z

 

 

 

it goes north

 

so as i said before take fi as 120 now and even that i think is pushing it

[JennyJane1]

Considering some of the reports coming in of severe damage over huge swathes of the UK, why is the media more concerned with Francoise Hollande's girlfriend?I would have thought this would be big news.

[Steve C]

Have just walked home from the pub. 

 

A fabulously clear sky to behold - looking south and high up, in (or near) the Constellation of Gemini, we have Jupiter. I don't need to refer to star charts, it is obvious and beautiful. Further south Sirius, shines in its glory as our brightest star, after the Sun.

 

I'm absolutely not one of the 'street light' brigade. Imho we miss so much of nature by being drowned by artificial light. I'm hoping for my locality's street lights being turned off between midnight and 5 a.m. soon. I have a torch 'app' on my phone (of which I've had something similar for at least five years) I use it if I think it's too dark and have a chance of tripping. 

 

(a downer though, I'm home to hear my thick and chavvy neighbours through my semi detatched wall, effing and blinding! )

[SteveCoops]

I made a comment on our local Facebook page about seeing the night sky in its glory once our lights turn off and I was just moaned at... think it might be tonight they start turning off actually.

[Canalboy]

Considering some of the reports coming in of severe damage over huge swathes of the UK, why is the media more concerned with Francoise Hollande's girlfriend?I would have thought this would be big news.

Because we live in a dumbed down celebrity culture of Simon Cowells (never the first to know its raining is he, at least I'm keeping a vague grip on the meteorological wheel.)  Sad but true JennyJane.  Religion is no longer the opium of the people, it's the Kardashians and the likes of Graham Norton earning multi milionaire salaries. God help us all.  And I'm an empirical agnostic.

[fluid dynamic]

hi yamks

 

traffic in croydon when i cam home at 5.30 was gridlocked

 

 

remember earlier i said the low on the 144 chart from ukmo could go any way

 

now tonight watch what it does on gfs 18z

 

 

 

it goes north

 

so as i said before take fi as 120 now and even that i think is pushing it

Yes i can see that change to the low going North. But that's a long way off in time given the complexity as you say. Surely there will be more changes.

 

I think that's the polite way of what's being said in the 'Computer Games with Teenagers' Thread as well. But its difficult to say