Anticyclonic Weather (From Worcester News)

Anticyclonic Weather

10:27am Tuesday 9th June 2009 in

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High pressure or anticyclones are regions of subsiding air, the barometric pressure is high and therefore the weather is settled. It roughly depends where they are positioned to the kind of weather they bring, if they are to the south we pick up moist Tropical Maritime air and plenty of cloud. When they are to the west, the UK picks up a north to north-westerly wind flow bringing sunshine and showers. When the high is to the north winds swing into the east bringing cold wintry weather in the winter months and hot conditions in summer.

The ideal position through the summer months is for the anticyclone to be the east or south-east bringing hot south-south-easterly winds in from the France and Spain, we often name it the Spanish Plume. Sometimes these anticyclones do not move for long periods of time, diverting the normal fowl weather systems, especially those coming in from the west off the Atlantic Ocean, they are know as blocking anticyclones.

Winds blow around high pressure systems in a clockwise direction. Due to the warmer layer as the air descends through the atmosphere (inversion), clouds do not produce any precipitation, they are small and fragmented and in the centre of the high we experience rich clear blue skies.

Next Week: Sky Signs.

Glossary: Anticyclone: A body of air in which the atmospheric pressure is higher than the pressure in the surrounding air. Air is sinking and spilling outwards from its centre. Winds blow clockwise around anticyclones in the Northern Hemisphere and anticyclonic in the Southern Hemisphere.

Weather for coming week Monday 8th June-Friday 12th June.

Low pressure close to the UK bringing very mixed climatic conditions.

Rain or showers at times alternating with some drier, sunnier spells.

Winds moderate sometimes lighter from east, then south/south-east later in week.

Maximum temperature 15-19c 59-66f.
Minimum temperature 8-12c 46-54f.

Last Week's Observations (Monday-Sunday)

Highest day temperature...........27.1c on Tuesday 2nd June.

Lowest night temperature..........5.4c on Sunday 7th June.

Wettest day...............................38.5 mm on Saturday 6th June.