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Met Office loses BBC contract


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Posted
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
  • Weather Preferences: Varied and not extreme.
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
On 06/02/2018 at 17:06, Summer Sun said:
 

 

 

 

 

Interesting.  Some here had assumed that the 14-day app forecasts were derived directly from the GFS operational.  That said, I wasn't aware that the EPS had a fine enough resolution to generate hourly forecasts for individual postcodes.

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Posted
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: Cold & Snowy, Summer: Just not hot
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
18 minutes ago, reef said:

So basically its not a graphical issue, it just looks worse because it is worse. Less data and less resolution, a backwards step unfortunately.

I'm not 100% sure mind. But the big blob of snow on Helen's forecast perfectly matches the shape I can see on the 3-hourly precip chart.

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Posted
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
  • Weather Preferences: Varied and not extreme.
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
1 hour ago, danm said:

Does anyone else also think the new video graphics overdo the snow? 

For example, the latest video forecast on the website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/0 shows an area of snow moving down from NW England to SE England on Friday morning. However, if you look at the website it shows light rain all morning for London tomorrow. Not even sleet. 

Video forecast: 

image.thumb.png.a7991207500df94e8d0410659b5dc328.png

 

And what does the forecast show? Light rain all morning!

image.thumb.png.1d9def59697308811eebffb5bd5c93a1.png

 

So what can we expect tomorrow morning? Rain, sleet, snow? A mixture of the three? Yes, Helen Willetts says a wintry mix, but what if you were just looking at the graphics?

I noticed that - until she said that it would be wintry rather than mostly snow I was wondering why MeteoGroup thought we were going to have that much snow.

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Posted
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
  • Weather Preferences: Varied and not extreme.
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
1 hour ago, Astral Goat Juice said:

If you listen to the forecast she clearly states (regarding the white patch) - "This is a mixture of rain sleet & snow, and we are not concerned about it".

Why make it appear to be all snow, then?  You and I might realise that such a hefty snowfall isn't forecast, but it's surely going to confuse some viewers.

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Posted
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
  • Weather Preferences: Varied and not extreme.
  • Location: South Norfolk, 44 m ASL.
30 minutes ago, reef said:

So basically its not a graphical issue, it just looks worse because it is worse. Less data and less resolution, a backwards step unfortunately.

I think I'll use the Met Office video forecast, the FAX charts and the 72 hour model thread here!:D

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Posted
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: cold and snowy. Summer: hot and sunny
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
1 hour ago, Nick L said:

After a bit more digging, it seems that MG are using EC data, which is 3 hourly and 9km resolution, and interpolating between each frame. Met Office used hourly and 1.5km res UKV.

Makes sense now why the resolution looks so poor compared to the old video forecasts. 

That really is a backwards step. 

I’m not sure if it was the same forecast or a different one but they showed a front moving in from the Atlantic ina zoomed out view and literally the whole of Scotland was covered in snow. 

It’s a shame as I always relied on the BBC as providing the most accurate of the TV forecasts. No longer! 

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Posted
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent
  • Weather Preferences: Snow, Thunderstorms,
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent

The BBC are still using Met Office warnings, aren't they?

What if Meteogroup see it happening differently and forecast it differently to the Met Office? Are we going to have a weather warning say for snow across the South-East, but the actual forecast not show snow because Meteogroup don't think it'll happen? I know that's an extreme example but it gets the point across.

The snow forecast above is very misleading, it does look like a band of snow and the general public are going to see that and think "snow is on the way", how many people genuinely pay attention to exactly what the forecaster is saying? Most I'm sure pay more attention to the actual graphics.

I can only see this ending badly :rofl:

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Posted
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: cold and snowy. Summer: hot and sunny
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)

@Daniel Smith the Met Office will still be providing weather warnings to the BBC.

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Posted
  • Location: East Lothian
  • Weather Preferences: Not too hot, excitement of snow, a hoolie
  • Location: East Lothian
On 2/7/2018 at 12:40, Daniel Smith said:

How does this tie into BBC forecasters that are employed by the Met Office? Will some forecasters no longer be presenting forecasts?

Yes, that all happened a few years ago when the contract first got signed. Various movements like Alex Deakin now doing Met Office videos from MO HQ, most becoming BBC staff, some going freelance

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Posted
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: Cold & Snowy, Summer: Just not hot
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
1 hour ago, Daniel Smith said:

The BBC are still using Met Office warnings, aren't they?

What if Meteogroup see it happening differently and forecast it differently to the Met Office? Are we going to have a weather warning say for snow across the South-East, but the actual forecast not show snow because Meteogroup don't think it'll happen? I know that's an extreme example but it gets the point across.

The snow forecast above is very misleading, it does look like a band of snow and the general public are going to see that and think "snow is on the way", how many people genuinely pay attention to exactly what the forecaster is saying? Most I'm sure pay more attention to the actual graphics.

I can only see this ending badly :rofl:

That's a very good point. I work for another private sector firm and we disagree with the warnings from time to time. 

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Posted
  • Location: just south of Doncaster, Sth Yorks
  • Location: just south of Doncaster, Sth Yorks

Quite likely to occur, Meteo I assume will use GFS UK Met will use their own+ECMWF, so differences are there as we all see on here.

 

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Posted
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent
  • Weather Preferences: Snow, Thunderstorms,
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent

I asked Ian on Twitter about the forecasts vs warning thing and this was his response

5a7cd34b21bdc_ScreenShot2018-02-08at22_45_52.thumb.png.a4c51d887d7aca77efa85ecde5b8a383.png

So whatever the forecast graphics show, Met Office warnings will be highlighted and will come first.

Edited by Daniel Smith
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Posted
  • Location: East Devon
  • Location: East Devon

I've noticed the website and TV maps don't show the detailed maps today. I hope that's a temporary issue (though maybe some take that level of detail too literally?)

I also agree, it needs zooming a bit more on the TV.. but then the UK is the wrong shape if we want to include Shetland and the Channel Islands on the same map?
(I think the old forecasts got around that partly due to the tilt, with the disadvantage of Scotland appearing small).

And I also agree that it seems to exaggerate snow on the graphics.

image.thumb.png.38553907db3945d2fe9e074282e79918.png
I mean is that really likely?

I think it may also exaggerate 'hail showers' on the website/app forecasts too. Also, every single day seems X weather and breezy' no matter how breezy it actually is?

I prefer the Met Office video forecast graphics on the whole, much clearer distinction between cloud, clear sky and rain etc. They also seem to get around the zoom issue to an extent with a slight tilt.

Just watched the latest forecasts - aha, they had a coloured temperature map. and showed the north/south separately tomorrow which looked a bit clearer.
I do think with continued tweaks/additions it may end up not too bad though.

Edited by Evening thunder
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Posted
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: Cold & Snowy, Summer: Just not hot
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
54 minutes ago, johnholmes said:

Quite likely to occur, Meteo I assume will use GFS UK Met will use their own+ECMWF, so differences are there as we all see on here.

 

TV forecasts by MeteoGroup are using EC, John. 

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Posted
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: Cold & Snowy, Summer: Just not hot
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
34 minutes ago, mountain shadow said:

Band of snow crossing Ireland right now was completely absent from Meteogroups BBC NI graphics a short while ok.

Appalling.

 That's interesting. This morning's EC didn't have it. But this evening's did, so the TV forecasts hadn't been updated with the new run... perhaps?

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Posted
  • Location: Dorset
  • Weather Preferences: warehamwx.co.uk
  • Location: Dorset

I've ditched the BBC Android weather app. The temperature forecasts have been awful. Not only that, it has had me down for a few hours of drizzle this evening/tonight, yet it is absolutely piddling down!

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Posted
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: cold and snowy. Summer: hot and sunny
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)

Ian Fergusson wouldn’t confirm the resolution. Need to ask BBC Weather directly:

 

B68538D4-6A6E-4DA1-BF6F-16A25FAB3066.png

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Posted
  • Location: Welwyn Herts 115m ASL
  • Weather Preferences: Surprises
  • Location: Welwyn Herts 115m ASL

Met office app is understandable

The BBC TV and Web new fangled thing is not.. and i bet the BBC presenters on TV hate it too... bad green-screen, shxxty graphics, suspect modelled clouds/rainfall et al...

Pitty )-:

Edited by Pixel
spwellin
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Posted
  • Location: Derry, NW Ireland, 20 to 30m ASL
  • Location: Derry, NW Ireland, 20 to 30m ASL

This is a diagram which explains everything:

kHEkQXu.png

Look at how relatively high res it is when they zoom it in and talk about regional areas (this is the whole UK TV forecast)

 

 

iEEp13m.png

Now look when they turn back out to create a whole image of the UK. This is literally the same time, only an hour ahead of the zoomed in version above.

 

 

Its as if they deliberately made everything low-res.

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Posted
  • Location: Reading
  • Location: Reading

It seems that the predicted minima on cold nights have gone way down since the new app was released. BBC/MetO have historically had a tendency to underestimate the diurnal variation here in Reading (both day and night time temperatures) but the night time predictions have now suddenly swung the other way. For example, on Wednesday night they predicted a low of -5 here, corrected that evening to -4 but it didn't go below -2, even at the university, which is usually colder than the town centre. -3 is predicted for tonight but I wouldn't be surprised if we don't even have an air frost. Has anyone else noticed this?

Edited by Stargazer
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Posted
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: cold and snowy. Summer: hot and sunny
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)

BBC’s Head of Weather Liz Howell responding to criticism of the new graphics here: 

 

Edited by danm
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Posted
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: cold and snowy. Summer: hot and sunny
  • Location: Home: Chingford, London (NE). Work: London (C)
4 hours ago, parrotingfantasist said:

This is a diagram which explains everything:

Look at how relatively high res it is when they zoom it in and talk about regional areas (this is the whole UK TV forecast)

Now look when they turn back out to create a whole image of the UK. This is literally the same time, only an hour ahead of the zoomed in version above.

 

 

Its as if they deliberately made everything low-res.

 

Completey agree. When they zoom out to the whole UK view the resolution is a lot poorer, and I think the reason is the way they’ve now proportioned the map. There isn’t enough space to show high resolution on the zoomed out view. It’s a real step down unfortunately but hopefully something they can change. 

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Posted
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent
  • Weather Preferences: Snow, Thunderstorms,
  • Location: Gillingham, Kent
1 hour ago, danm said:

BBC’s Head of Weather Liz Howell responding to criticism of the new graphics here: 

That interview felt like she was just reading a script, there was no "yes we're going to change that", just PR fed answers. The labels are a big problem, if you live underneath them you literally cannot see what the weather is going to be.

The cloud contrast is difficult to see, it's just difficult to make out. Overall I like the graphics but there are some pretty big problems with it, it almost feels unfinished.

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