New Sudden Stratospheric Warming update

 A new Sudden Stratospheric Warming could be on the way as we head into Spring in Ireland. What does this mean for our weather? We'll it doesn't always mean severe cold but it often will as the cold in the Arctic is shifted South into countries that normally have warmer weather. 

Currently conditions I the Arctic can be seen below and look pretty normal bar a strong plume of Southerlies from the Atlantic side.

 

However forecasts are showing a complete collapse of the polar vortex meaning that all that "purple" will be pushed further to the South bringing Arctic conditions to the continents.

However Ireland may escape in the short term as there is a strong blocking high over us at present and this looks set to remain in place for most of February. 

Dry and Mild February

 This February is now looking very bland and dry for Ireland.  So far Casement has only had 1.1mm of rain for the 1st week! The West has had a bit of drizzle at times. This weather is going to continue for the next couple of weeks with some very Spring like weather likely at times as High Pressure is lodged nearby. Temperatures could very well rise right up to 15c during the month. Next weekend is one of these opportunities. 

So despite previous predictions of cold weather in the midmonth period it now looks as if mainly mild prevails. Of course an odd frost will be possible but nothing like the cold of last month below for memories. 

February Forecast Nightmare

 February is normally a month that is dominated by an Easterly or wet but 2023 is all very knife edge stuff. Some of the forecasting models are predicting quite a mild month while other ones such as the GFS are showing a colder outcome. 

What would seem likely to happen is that it will start off relatively mild and breezy with a little rain but then further into the month things get that bit drier.

Certainly February's weather in Ireland will be dominated by high pressure near or over Ireland but whether it brings mild or cold weather is whats open to question.

At the moment there is quite a low possibility that Ireland goes into the freezer after midmonth but what seems more likely is that the cold weather will be to the East and in Britain and the continent while the temperatures here will likely be 7 to 10c. 

The second half of February looks like being cooler than average and mild weather looks very much off the table. This is due to a Sudden Stratospheric Warming event that happens in the Arctic every couple of years and this year it has just started. It results in the Polar airmass becoming displaced and initially it looks like being displaced over the US and Canada. After this parts of Rusdia and Northern Europe become targets and its then that cold air may seep in from the East over Ireland.

So an interesting month indeed and the cold temperatures could last well into Spring. 

Freezing weather for Ireland begins

 The much heralded cold spell has arrived in Ireland bringing the coldest weather since 2010. Last night temperatures sunk to -7 at Mt Dillon and there was snow in Dublin. This only signals day one of a cold spell that is set to last until at least mid December and may last even longer. Over 60 per cent of weather charts show cold weather while 37 per cent show milder scenarios. 

Lowest temperature -7c 

Most snow 2cm Dublin 16. 

Keep tuned for further updates. 

Heavy Snow for Ireland this week

 There is heavy sleet and snow in the forecast for Ireland this week. There will be very cold Northerly winds as a low pressure system moves down from the Northeast. This will bring some extremely cold weather with temperatures going as low as minus 4 at night with ice and snow by the day. Conditions will be very dangerous on the roads especially after midweek and there are likely to be several weather warnings in place during this time. As we can see from the map the Wintry showers have already arrived in the East. Further updates to follow. 

How to Change Team Name in World Cup Fantasy

 So with the weather cold and unsettled it's time to settle down and watch the world cup. So let's enter the fantasy world Cup on these dark and cold nights. Oops I've signed in. But my username is my own name. How do I change it? 

The 1st thing to do is quit the league you have joined and sign out by pressing leave league. Then get another email address you have and create a new username through this one. If you don't have an email address just create a new one it's pretty simple and the username prompt will come up. Once again create a new name but this time your username will be your team name and voila.

Ok back to the weather. Its staying cool and cat. Actually Qatar.