April Cold/Snowy Spells

[Thundery wintry showers]

It would have been the 7th.  Snow showers developed widely on the 6th May 1997 from a northerly, and then the wind backed to a west to north-westerly direction overnight and brought a stream of snow and hail showers into north-west England.  It then turned less cold from the west with showers predominantly of rain or hail after midday.

Edited April 2, 2017 by Thundery wintry showers

[J10]

I was in Reading in April 2008 and I remember the heavy snow in the morning, but after we came back from the rugby later in, it had pretty much all thawed away.

[I remember Atlantic 252]

19 minutes ago, Thundery wintry showers said:

It would have been the 7th.  Snow showers developed widely on the 6th May 1997 from a northerly, and then the wind backed to a west to north-westerly direction overnight and brought a stream of snow and hail showers into north-west England.  It then turned less cold from the west with showers predominantly of rain or hail after midday.

Even in '97, was not great here, didn't even lie

[Don]

April 5th 1989 and April 6th 2008 are the two snow events for me.  1989 was better because the snow stayed on the ground all day with traces still remaining after 3 days, whereas most of the snow had thawed by early afternoon in 2008.  Have never witnessed a snow event in May.

Edited April 2, 2017 by Don

[Weather-history]

26th April 1950, Camberley, Surrey

[snowray]

Anyone know which years had white Easters?

I remember when I was a kid in the early 70's some very heavy wet snow around London, it was on a Good Friday in April. Also I remember a friend who was visiting Oxford for Easter and telling me that they had thick snow and it looked more like Christmas.

[Snowyowl9]

April 2nd 2018 gave a covering of snow.

April 26th 2017 a sprinkling of snow.

April 2016 9th 16th 26th-30th snow and more snow soft hail.

April 2015... 27th and 28th dustings.

April 2014...29th sleet snow shower

April 2013...Cold spell continued well into april snow lying light snow shower/grains.

April 2012 a blizzard of 9 inches 4th/5th

So last time it didn`t snow in april was back in 2011.

[cheeky_monkey]

Living in Alberta it snows quite a lot every April..would be very unusual not to..snow in May is pretty common also..i have seen snow in June and once in July..never in August yet (although it does happen) and three times i have seen it in Sept..with last year having lots of Sept snow.

[MATTWOLVES 3]

I'm still waiting for it to snow in December, January and February, never mind April! 

[MP-R]

2 hours ago, Snowyowl9 said:

April 2nd 2018 gave a covering of snow.

April 26th 2017 a sprinkling of snow.

April 2016 9th 16th 26th-30th snow and more snow soft hail.

April 2015... 27th and 28th dustings.

April 2014...29th sleet snow shower

April 2013...Cold spell continued well into april snow lying light snow shower/grains.

April 2012 a blizzard of 9 inches 4th/5th

So last time it didn`t snow in april was back in 2011.

You had snow in April 2014?! It was 18C here that day!

[damianslaw]

20 hours ago, snowray said:

Anyone know which years had white Easters?

I remember when I was a kid in the early 70's some very heavy wet snow around London, it was on a Good Friday in April. Also I remember a friend who was visiting Oxford for Easter and telling me that they had thick snow and it looked more like Christmas.

2013 was the last white easter - very early though 23 March I think, it was notably cold, the cold weather lasted into April.

2008 brought a white easter - again very early one that year.

April 30 2016 brought settling snow here at noon with a temp at freezing point... on the back of a fairly average month.

A northerly in April can pack a very snowy punch, thanks to the cold uppers associated with arctic air, high lapse rates and evaporative cooling help drop temps markedly.

Edited March 20, 2019 by damianslaw

[snowray]

On 20/03/2019 at 20:55, damianslaw said:

2013 was the last white easter - very early though 23 March I think, it was notably cold, the cold weather lasted into April.

2008 brought a white easter - again very early one that year.

April 30 2016 brought settling snow here at noon with a temp at freezing point... on the back of a fairly average month.

A northerly in April can pack a very snowy punch, thanks to the cold uppers associated with arctic air, high lapse rates and evaporative cooling help drop temps markedly.

2008 was last white Easter here too. I also remember one in the 80's but it's that heavy snow from the early 70's that sticks in my mind, a good Friday, very heavy wet snow for most of the morning, maybe 72/73?

[Weather-history]

23 minutes ago, snowray said:

2008 was last white Easter here too. I also remember one in the 80's but it's that heavy snow from the early 70's that sticks in my mind, a good Friday, very heavy wet snow for most of the morning, maybe 72/73?

Sounds like 1975 

[Snowyowl9]

On ‎20‎/‎03‎/‎2019 at 15:02, MP-R said:

You had snow in April 2014?! It was 18C here that day!

late hail/sleet flakes of wet snow,still counts as small as it was.

[snowray]

11 hours ago, Weather-history said:

Sounds like 1975 

It was earlier, think I might have found it looking back at the historic charts. Good Friday 1973 was on the 20th April.... but is that chart cold enough for snow in the SE so late in April? It was very wet snow, heavy though with big flakes, settled everywhere producing several wet inches of what I remember as a snowy wet mess.

Edited March 22, 2019 by snowray

[snowray]

Also this chart for Easter Sunday 1973 shows a setup that would have likely produced some snow particularly further north. So a cold Easter that year, even though it was in late April, was it not also 1973 that had the infamous early June snow that stopped the cricket at Buxton?

Edited March 22, 2019 by snowray

[Snowyowl9]

The 2000`s on the other hand was the most snowless decade not just in april which was extremely noticeably after the 90`s but all seasons in it did turn around in 2008 back to form though,and 2013 april was incredible for the snow lasting from that unprecidendent late march record snowfall and severe drifting and record drifts,makes the spring 1990`s look like winter 1988/89.

 

[Weather-history]

9 hours ago, snowray said:

Also this chart for Easter Sunday 1973 shows a setup that would have likely produced some snow particularly further north. So a cold Easter that year, even though it was in late April, was it not also 1973 that had the infamous early June snow that stopped the cricket at Buxton?

Yes, Easter 1973 was chilly. The snow that stopped the cricket match at Buxton was in 1975 though.

I am starting to wonder if the "snow more common at Easter than Christmas" was started  in the 1970s. They were a lot of mild Christmases in that period and a few Easters that were cold with snow. 

 

[Snowyowl9]

Easter is such a strange time of year,you don`t know the actual date changing from year to year doesn`t make any sense to me.

[snowray]

On 23/03/2019 at 08:53, Weather-history said:

Yes, Easter 1973 was chilly. The snow that stopped the cricket match at Buxton was in 1975 though.

I am starting to wonder if the "snow more common at Easter than Christmas" was started  in the 1970s. They were a lot of mild Christmases in that period and a few Easters that were cold with snow. 

 

1983 is another Easter when it snowed around here, an inch or two in the morning but it was all gone by lunch time.

Ensembles are starting to look interesting for the coming April, this is for central England. Could be more snow around than some of us saw all Winter if some of these runs were to verify.

[coldie]

On Friday, March 22, 2019 at 22:20, Snowyowl9 said:

late hail/sleet flakes of wet snow,still counts as small as it was.

That chart is for the 28th you said the 29th, there's absolutely no chance it snowed even if it was "sleet flakes of wet snow" 

Edited April 2, 2019 by coldie

[Snowyowl9]

On ‎03‎/‎04‎/‎2019 at 00:08, coldie said:

That chart is for the 28th you said the 29th, there's absolutely no chance it snowed even if it was "sleet flakes of wet snow" 

Theres may of been a pocket of slightly below 0c air as that chart,theres a good few hours in between.

I`ve seen snowgrains from upper air above 0c with an easterly flow.

Today upper air now -2c and still snowing and its april.

We can certainly add this april to the list now.

Edited April 4, 2019 by Snowyowl9