A record breaking winter here! 

The minimum recorded was -4.5c on the 13th December - the 'highest' minimum in my 10 years of records

Which says it all really.

Only one snowfall produced more that 24 hours ground cover (it was more like 2 or 3 hours in most cases!) and even that was only ~7cm total cover. So hardly memorable.

Sunshine was rare.

So overall, not a particularly good winter.  But it could have  been worse.

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Winter 12-13. Some nice snowfall in january in Hampshire. Apart from that, it was the coldest winter ....we never had !!!

A record breaking winter here! 

The minimum recorded was -4.5c on the 13th December - the 'highest' minimum in my 10 years of records

Which says it all really.

Only one snowfall produced more that 24 hours ground cover (it was more like 2 or 3 hours in most cases!) and even that was only ~7cm total cover. So hardly memorable.

Sunshine was rare.

So overall, not a particularly good winter.  But it could have  been worse.

Yep, I can echo those thoughts entirely. Whilst my recorded lowest overnight minimum was -7.5, the snowfall was at times pathetic. We struggled to 5 to 6 cm coverings a couple of times, but memorable it was not.

In fact, what was memorable was the jam stains on the carpet phantom Easterlies that were continuously progged but never arrived.  Perhaps they reached legendary proportions...............

Manchester Winter Indices

1978-79: 262
2009-10: 197
1985-86: 159
1981-82: 149
1976-77: 141
1984-85: 140
1995-96: 135
1990-91: 126
2010-11: 119
2008-09: 105
2012-13: 102
1986-87: 100
1977-78: 90
1980-81: 90
1982-83: 85
1983-84: 82
1993-94: 78
2000-01: 77
1996-97: 72
1979-80: 66
2005-06: 59
2001-02: 50
2003-04: 50
2004-05: 47
2011-12: 47
1994-95: 45
2002-03: 44
1992-93: 43
1999-00: 42
1975-76: 41
1991-92: 40
1987-88: 37
2007-08: 37
1973-74: 30
1974-75: 26
1997-98: 25
2006-07: 21
1988-89: 20

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Not a great Winter here, but certainly I would put it in the "good" category for my location.  Total snow accumulation was about 9 inches, which makes Winter 2013 the 10th snowiest here since 1979.   Deepest snow was 10cm on Jan 21st.

 Where I think this Winter has been much better than the norm, is the fact that there have been many more "frontal snow" events than the average UK Winter.   There were 7 individual frontal snow events here,  probably more in some other areas.  That's something that's been missing from many Winters over the last 20 years, in fact it's been more like a Winter from the late 70's to mid 80's.  

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A winter that will be remembered here for all the 'potential' which never actually delivered. We seemed to be perpetually on the wrong side of marginal - the much-maligned (in these parts) easterly/south-easterly lived up to its reputation. And yet if I lived inland from here at a bit of altitude it certainly would be regarded as a snowy winter. Here on the coast the most disappointing of my 8 winters in this location (and that includes three winters with no snow):

11 air frosts all winter (even here that is notably few - there were 18 last winter)
Minimum temperature -1.9c (mean temps were close to average but very few frosts and suppressed daytime highs)
3 mornings with snow lying but total accumulating snow for the winter about 2 cm of wet slop. 

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Winter 12/13 was very much along the lines of an average winter.The work H.H Lamb in "The English Climate" identified certain singularities in an average year.The cold spells identified were

December Continental Anticyclones 17-24th.In Dec 2012 the cold spell was somewhat earlier ie 10th -21st

January Continental Antcyclones  19-25th In January the cold spell was earlier and longer ie 10th -23rd.

February Anticyclones 7-22nd  This Feb was from around 16th - 28th

Because we got used to  warm winters in the late 80's, 1990's and early 2000;s we have forgotten that a normal winter includes a mixture of warm and cold spells.

In 12/3 the cold spells were a bit longer than the norm and so we have finshed up with a below average winter CET making 4 out of the last 5 winters below average.The last time that happened was the 1960's

There is a cooling trend(maybe short term)but I beleeve that one of the he drivers is low sunspot activity(Feb was just 38)As  solar activity drops way to the next solar minimum around 2020 we will experienced  the weakest cycle since 1901-1912 which peaked at 64.Other low cycles  were 1878-88,and the thrre cylces from 1798-1832.I  am therefore reasonably confident that the next 10 years will see a preponderence of cold winters particularly in the years around the solar minimum.

As far as the specifics of this winter are concerned thre were three cold spells lasting a couple of weeks each.The best for me in Winchester was the January one with snow lying for 6 days -very difficult to achieve in the Solent area.

Nationally I havn't seen the snow lying/ snow falling stats but i guess that 12/13 was overall quite a snowy winter.The disapointment was the cloudiness that accompanied the cold spells and thus even when there was lying snow overnight minimas did not tumble as in December 2010.And finallyyalthough the model outputs threw up an umber of snowmaggeddons,we didnt really have any serious blizzard conditions in lower lying areas.

 

 

 

 

Now we've started March, it's time for me to comment:

Was it a good/bad winter?  Well, that depends on what you're looking for.... For me, it was all about whether we had a spell that was cold and snowy enough for me to go sledging with my 4-year old son....  

Well, we definitely had that in January when, after a snowfall on the 14th which left a thin cover after some melting straight after the snow, we had two day-long (18th and 20th) powdery snowfalls that left a total of ~ 6 inches as part of six consecutive ice days, with the cold continuing, and another inch fall on the 23rd with the snow staying in tact with little thawing until the 25th.  OK, no super low temps (though it did get down to -5 one eve, and sub -3 for most of the 18th), but to me this clearly would have been the best wintry spell in the 1992-2008 'modern winter' era (had it occured in that period). 

We also had the rain to snow event of 10/11th which left another 3 inches here which, despite being icy remained pretty much in tact (with little drip-drip and it remaining on trees boughs etc) for 3 days. (Even this would have been a top five, actually probably top three, snow event in the 1992-2008 period!).

Oh, and we also had lying snow for one day in December... (i.e. a "top event" in a typical 1992-2008" year)

So, all in all, we never had extreme cold (though a -3 max with snow in a breeze really isn't bad), and conditions weren't as extreme as 2009 or 2010, but it in my opinion was cold and snowy enough for this to a winter worthy of being in this "post-modern" winter period we now seem be experiencing.

I realise that others may not have had it as snowy or cold as it was here, but there's a lot of "glass half empty" thoughts on here...  

Andrew 

 

 

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Now winter is over I'm going to stick with my assessment from a month or so back; a good winter with one notable snowfall, one small one and plenty of days of snow falling. Also, never had to suffer any really cold temperatures whatsoever

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This winter was far better than last winter. As least we got a small amount of snow

I'd rate the winter as 'good' overall.

The undoubted highlight was this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHLmdPgag4A

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Winter is far from over! Southern areas could get some significant snow on monday & overall mean temperatures could be the coldest of the winter with a couple of days at least sub zero,way colder than the supposed cold snap in january.

Ive a feeling spring will not arrive until well after easter this year.

One of the snowiest I remember. Yet 15 miles away, near zero snow. 62/90 days snow cover. Snow fall on 31. Only 2 years ago was snowier in duration terms. The 2-3 feet that fell in November 2010 took until mid Feb 2011 to clear here, even though most of that winter has no snow fall.
Jan and Feb snow this winter still had not all gone before today's arrived.

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I imagine some areas (N York Moors for instance) have now seen snow in six consecutive months since October. Wonder if there will be any in April to make it seven?

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As more snow is forecast over the next 3 days here and my garden is mantled with snow I must add the March snows to those of December January and February.  A quite remarkable winter for longevity and snow events.  A top 10 winter out of the past 45 in terms of snow cover.  These are facts, not opinions

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Certainly cant argue with the facts,if your going to mark it as a placing compared to your age, assume that's what you mean whether idle by 45 I would give it top 3 out of 40 for longevity/different events 8/40 for any individual event.All the events were average but a few of them and none of them like the more specific events of 79/81/87/91/9/10/12

I think the main memory of this year will always be what could have been if every event/ possible event had met it's full potential Ie yesterday being 100 miles north. 

I'd rate the winter as 'good' overall.

The undoubted highlight was this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHLmdPgag4A

That link just goes to show how unlucky we have been here in South Manchester.

So many cold synoptics, and plenty of snow just a few miles down the road, but just very little here.

I'm definitely treating this winter as a learning curve:-

1) Snow across Greater Manchester can vary greatly. Unfortunately where I am (Didsbury/Withington) is one of the most snowless parts of the county. East Manchester (Medlock Vale Weather's patch) does far better, as does North Manchester, and this winter, West Manchester has done better too.

2) I am now very wary of frontal setups when the wind is from the east/south east. As Tom C explained to me, this setup can often result in a 'rain shadow' effect directly to the west of the Pennines. Occasionally this winter, bands of precipitation have moved in from the east, died a death when it has crossed the Pennines, and reintensified when it has reached the Wigan/Warrington/St Helens area. Saint and co in Merseyside have done much better than Manchester this year.

3) Scandinavian High/easterly setups just aren't that good for this part of the country. Greenland/Icelandic blocking with NW'ly winds are far snowier.

It really has been a very poor winter for snow here. Plenty of snow falling, some of it heavy, but we have barely managed a covering of more than about a cm. Very disappointing indeed.

I'll remember this winter as one that has been consistently cold, with snow in many parts of the UK, but all it delivered here was snizzle. Apparently 1963 was similar.

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I'd rate the winter as 'good' overall.

The undoubted highlight was this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHLmdPgag4A

That link just goes to show how unlucky we have been here in South Manchester.

So many cold synoptics, and plenty of snow just a few miles down the road, but just very little here.

I'm definitely treating this winter as a learning curve:-

1) Snow across Greater Manchester can vary greatly. Unfortunately where I am (Didsbury/Withington) is one of the most snowless parts of the county. East Manchester (Medlock Valley Weather's patch) does far better, as does North Manchester, and this winter, West Manchester has done better too.

2) I am now very wary of frontal setups when the wind is from the east/south east. As Tom C explained to me, this setup can often result in a 'rain shadow' effect directly to the west of the Pennines. Occasionally this winter, bands of precipitation have moved in from the east, died a death when it has crossed the Pennines, and reintensified when it has reached the Wigan/Warrington/St Helens area. Saint and co in Merseyside have done much better than Manchester this year.

3) Scandinavian High/easterly setups just aren't that good for his part of the country. Greenland/Icelandic blocking with NW'ly winds are far snowier.

It really has been a very poor winter for snow here. Plenty of snow falling, some of it heavy, but we have barely managed a covering of more than about a cm. Very disappointing indeed.

I'll remember this winter as one that has been consistently cold, with snow in many parts of the UK, but all it delivered here was snizzle. Apparently 1963 was similar.

Yep south Manc was really in an unlucky spot this winter, as I learnt from my journeys back and forth across the Pennines.

Bring back the illusive polar low running in from the Irish Sea!!!

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I'd rate the winter as 'good' overall.

The undoubted highlight was this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHLmdPgag4A

That link just goes to show how unlucky we have been here in South Manchester.

So many cold synoptics, and plenty of snow just a few miles down the road, but just very little here.

I'm definitely treating this winter as a learning curve:-

1) Snow across Greater Manchester can vary greatly. Unfortunately where I am (Didsbury/Withington) is one of the most snowless parts of the county. East Manchester (Medlock Vale Weather's patch) does far better, as does North Manchester, and this winter, West Manchester has done better too.

2) I am now very wary of frontal setups when the wind is from the east/south east. As Tom C explained to me, this setup can often result in a 'rain shadow' effect directly to the west of the Pennines. Occasionally this winter, bands of precipitation have moved in from the east, died a death when it has crossed the Pennines, and reintensified when it has reached the Wigan/Warrington/St Helens area. Saint and co in Merseyside have done much better than Manchester this year.

3) Scandinavian High/easterly setups just aren't that good for this part of the country. Greenland/Icelandic blocking with NW'ly winds are far snowier.

It really has been a very poor winter for snow here. Plenty of snow falling, some of it heavy, but we have barely managed a covering of more than about a cm. Very disappointing indeed.

I'll remember this winter as one that has been consistently cold, with snow in many parts of the UK, but all it delivered here was snizzle. Apparently 1963 was similar.

 

Yes, convective easterlies are a little better for South Manchester as the showers aren't reduced as much by the Pennines as frontal precipitation. On Monday much more snow would have stayed around if it hadn't been for the very dry air and sublimation between the showers. In 1963 I lived in Chorlton near Southern Cemetery and it was exactly as you describe.

It wasn't really bad luck just Geography, except for that 1 night in February when warm 850s just scrapped south Manchester otherwise there would have been several inches that night.

I'd rate the winter as 'good' overall.

The undoubted highlight was this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHLmdPgag4A

That link just goes to show how unlucky we have been here in South Manchester.

So many cold synoptics, and plenty of snow just a few miles down the road, but just very little here.

I'm definitely treating this winter as a learning curve:-

1) Snow across Greater Manchester can vary greatly. Unfortunately where I am (Didsbury/Withington) is one of the most snowless parts of the county. East Manchester (Medlock Vale Weather's patch) does far better, as does North Manchester, and this winter, West Manchester has done better too.

2) I am now very wary of frontal setups when the wind is from the east/south east. As Tom C explained to me, this setup can often result in a 'rain shadow' effect directly to the west of the Pennines. Occasionally this winter, bands of precipitation have moved in from the east, died a death when it has crossed the Pennines, and reintensified when it has reached the Wigan/Warrington/St Helens area. Saint and co in Merseyside have done much better than Manchester this year.

3) Scandinavian High/easterly setups just aren't that good for this part of the country. Greenland/Icelandic blocking with NW'ly winds are far snowier.

It really has been a very poor winter for snow here. Plenty of snow falling, some of it heavy, but we have barely managed a covering of more than about a cm. Very disappointing indeed.

I'll remember this winter as one that has been consistently cold, with snow in many parts of the UK, but all it delivered here was snizzle. Apparently 1963 was similar.

 

Yes, convective easterlies are a little better for South Manchester as the showers aren't reduced as much by the Pennines as frontal precipitation. On Monday much more snow would have stayed around if it hadn't been for the very dry air and sublimation between the showers. In 1963 I lived in Chorlton near Southern Cemetery and it was exactly as you describe.

It wasn't really bad luck just Geography, except for that 1 night in February when warm 850s just scrapped south Manchester otherwise there would have been several inches that night.

Agh yes. The great Wigan snow storm! :)

That was a bummer.

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