Both mountain rain shadows.

But presumably the mountains are always there, so would be factored into the local averages which this map compares against? Although I suppose if the angle of the winds was different from usual then that could come into play, with different areas being sheltered?

Surely they have been different this winter, with weather relentlessly coming in from S & W; averages would expect to factor in spells of northerly or easterly weather

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Here are a few station totals for the winter so far:

Glasgow Bishopton 629.2mm

Keswick 800.6mm (173% of mean)

Hereford Credenhill 378.6mm (209% of mean)

Odiham 514.2mm (242% of mean)

Bournemouth Hurn 586.8mm (239% of mean)

 

Impressive figure from Hurn there, and not far from my home location, where the total to the end of today (assuming it remains dry for the next 22 minutes) is 560mm.

That's 260% of the average for the entire winter! 

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Here are a few station totals for the winter so far:

Glasgow Bishopton 629.2mm

Keswick 800.6mm (173% of mean)

Hereford Credenhill 378.6mm (209% of mean)

Odiham 514.2mm (242% of mean)

Bournemouth Hurn 586.8mm (239% of mean)

 

I reckon these places have had far more rain than what I've had - these figures are quite amazing.

 

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Impressive figure from Hurn there, and not far from my home location, where the total to the end of today (assuming it remains dry for the next 22 minutes) is 560mm.

That's 260% of the average for the entire winter! 

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
426.8 2013-14 up to 20th February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 426.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
112.1 1904
111.6 2007
109.1 1881
109. 2014 up to 20th February

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
426.8 2013-14 up to 20th February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 426.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
112.1 1904
111.6 2007
109.1 1881
109. 2014 up to 20th February

I wonder where we'll end up for totals - we've crossed the line OK still with 6 days to go.

 

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
427.8 2013-14 up to 21st February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 427.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
112.1 1904
111.6 2007
110. 2014 up to 21st February

---

This has just been tweeted, it shows the really wet area is quite small and large areas (including here) have only been a bit wetter than average.
But because the wet area is in the SE we have heard nothing else for weeks.

Sorry have to disagree with that slightly. There is a significant amount of England, Wales and Scotland that are in the blue shaded area for 130 to 150% of rainfall. I would guess in the next blue shaded area for 150 to 175% of rainfall you have just under half of England, Wales and Scotland. To me that is not just the SE and is noteworthy country wide! Certainly those in Somerset, Worcestershire, Aberystwyth, Cornwall etc. would have something to say about it being perceived as just the SE I would imagine.........

Interesting map and does show that some areas have been only slightly above average, as you point out, but also large swathes more than slightly above average and still 8 days to go!

As the SE has most of the population the original contention is always likely to be the case, but as DP has pointed out, its not just the SE that has suffered the effects of severe flooding

Agreed. I don't think this is an example of London/SE centricity. Which area has been in the news for weeks and weeks now? The Somerset Levels, that's where and last time I checked that was nowhere near London.

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What is striking is that area around the Moray Firth, Lossiemouth? is below average, yet look at that patch on the east coast between Aberdeen and Edinburgh and how wet that is.

That is very strange, not sure what happened there for that to happen for that area of Scotland to be so wet when you consider that this winter has been so Atlantic dominated.

Yes, it is an interesting point that Kevin. I wonder if the southerly tracking Lows which have brought in a lot of rain to parts of the south have dragged in lots of moisture on a SEly flow impacting the eastern parts of Scotland leaving the Moray Firth and Edinburgh more sheltered from the deluges. Sadly we have not been as lucky and E Scotland has also had its wettest winter on record.

Another observation that I find odd given the weather has been Atlantic dominated is the small brown blob over Liverpool...

That's just pollution

Haha, but joking aside it hasn't struck me as having been a particualrly wet winter up here. I don't take rainfall readings but my overall impression is only a little above average (as the map suggests). Much more significant has been the sheer relentlessness of unsettled conditions, rather than a particualrly high total. 

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
427.8 2013-14 up to 21st February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 427.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
112.1 1904
111.6 2007
110. 2014 up to 21st February

It would be interesting if we managed another 20 mm for February. Can't see us getting any more than that. That would put us in the top 10 wettest Februaries on record.

I would guess 20mm is the most we might see this last 5 days.

 

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The rainfall distribution over the South of the UK seems strange. My take on the general pattern is as follows:
We saw a procession of deep lows heading in towards Ireland. On their southern flank relatively low heights which were sourced from the freeze on the eastern seaboard were pulled in quickly by the vigourous circulations. At the same time the cold air was quickly being mixed out. Temperature differentials between SSTs and 850s were generally much greater than normal for a RPM airmass due to the speed of approach of the cold air and the low starting temperatures in America. This caused a lot of convection and minor troughing over the South of the UK. Also this tended to top up the troughs which often got stuck over the South East due to blocking to the east.
The problem is that with the convective factor you would expect there to be an orographic correlation. The west of Dartmoor appears drier than South East Devon for instance and the west of the Brecon beacons and Exmoor show similar oddities.
Any ideas anybody, I think I'm going back to the drawing board!

Impressive figure from Hurn there, and not far from my home location, where the total to the end of today (assuming it remains dry for the next 22 minutes) is 560mm.

That's 260% of the average for the entire winter! 

That's nearly as much as we get here in a year!

Don't have an exact figure, but DJF rainfall so far for me is ~250mm - similar to July 2007.

 

---

This has just been tweeted, it shows the really wet area is quite small and large areas (including here) have only been a bit wetter than average.
But because the wet area is in the SE we have heard nothing else for weeks.

Sorry have to disagree with that slightly. There is a significant amount of England, Wales and Scotland that are in the blue shaded area for 130 to 150% of rainfall. I would guess in the next blue shaded area for 150 to 175% of rainfall you have just under half of England, Wales and Scotland. To me that is not just the SE and is noteworthy country wide! Certainly those in Somerset, Worcestershire, Aberystwyth, Cornwall etc. would have something to say about it being perceived as just the SE I would imagine.........

Interesting map and does show that some areas have been only slightly above average, as you point out, but also large swathes more than slightly above average and still 8 days to go!

As the SE has most of the population the original contention is always likely to be the case, but as DP has pointed out, its not just the SE that has suffered the effects of severe flooding

Agreed. I don't think this is an example of London/SE centricity. Which area has been in the news for weeks and weeks now? The Somerset Levels, that's where and last time I checked that was nowhere near London.

Aye, Aberdeen is nowhere near London

I wonder why it's been so much wetter there than anywhere else in Scotland?   Especially since, in theory, it's in the rain shadow of the Highlands.

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Tight little circulations on a southern trajectory, through the Channel or northern France, giving a high incidence of SE flows into the Aberdeen coast. Would this also be the reason for the drier pattern to the west in the Devon area?

Edit - the areas with the big percentages are normally drier, being in prevailing rain shadow - change from that will show as much greater anomaly than areas that are normally wet in classic W/SW zonality.

This has just been tweeted, it shows the really wet area is quite small and large areas (including here) have only been a bit wetter than average.
But because the wet area is in the SE we have heard nothing else for weeks.

Sorry have to disagree with that slightly. There is a significant amount of England, Wales and Scotland that are in the blue shaded area for 130 to 150% of rainfall. I would guess in the next blue shaded area for 150 to 175% of rainfall you have just under half of England, Wales and Scotland. To me that is not just the SE and is noteworthy country wide! Certainly those in Somerset, Worcestershire, Aberystwyth, Cornwall etc. would have something to say about it being perceived as just the SE I would imagine.........

Interesting map and does show that some areas have been only slightly above average, as you point out, but also large swathes more than slightly above average and still 8 days to go!

As the SE has most of the population the original contention is always likely to be the case, but as DP has pointed out, its not just the SE that has suffered the effects of severe flooding

Agreed. I don't think this is an example of London/SE centricity. Which area has been in the news for weeks and weeks now? The Somerset Levels, that's where and last time I checked that was nowhere near London.

Aye, Aberdeen is nowhere near London

I wonder why it's been so much wetter there than anywhere else in Scotland?   Especially since, in theory, it's in the rain shadow of the Highlands.

It's not in a rain shadow from the Highlands when the wind is coming in from the North Sea 😝

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
428.8 2013-14 up to 21st February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 428.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
112.1 1904
111.6 2007
111. 2014 up to 22nd February

---

Wettest winters on record for England and Wales
430.8 2013-14 up to 23rd February
423.0 1914-15

Wettest seasons on record for England and Wales: W for winter, S for summer, A for autumn
A 502.7 2000
A 455.8 1852
A 438.6 1960
W 430.8 2013-14

Wettest February on record for England and Wales (mm)
158.6 1833
152.7 1923
143.6 1950
143.2 1990
143.2 1977
142.1 1937
132.0 1916
131.7 1900
130.0 1848
129.6 1966
129.1 1768
124.2 1925
123.5 1915
116.0 1918
115.3 1812
115.1 2002
114.9 1995
114.1 1851
114.0 1823
113.5 1776
113. 2014. Up to 23rd February

---

Here's a grim stat, the total from 12th December to now has exceeded the old record of 1914-15. 12th December is when it all started.

12th December to 11th March is going to be an interesting total, this is the same length of time as a meteorological winter except in leap years.

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As Duane posted earlier in the thread, although winter has been wet here, it hasn't been anything unusual and certainly not record breaking.  We've had floods in previous years, but not this year.

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