By now, I am sure you are well-versed in the art of “talking about the weather” – a well-loved
pastime of the average Brit, but what about understanding weather forecasts in English?
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And now it’s time for the weather.
Good morning, everyone!
It's Anna Tyrie here, ready to give you the latest weather forecast for the UK.
Today, we're looking at a chilly wintery day,
with temperatures ranging from 0°C to 6°C (degrees Celsius).
There will be a biting wind coming from the north, with gusts of up to
30 mph (miles per hour), so make sure to wrap up warm if you're heading outside.
You can expect a fair amount of cloud cover throughout the day,
with the occasional snow flurry in the afternoon.
The humidity will be low, around 40%, so it might feel a little dryer than usual.
But fear not, we can expect a bit of sunshine peeking through those clouds
towards the end of the day to cheer us all up as we head towards a chilly evening.
Stay warm, and be sure to tune in tomorrow for the latest weather forecast.
Back to the studio.
Thank you, Anna, now let’s explore some of the vocabulary that weather forecasters use.
Temperature. Tem-pera-ture.
This is the degree of hotness or coldness in the air.
Most countries measure the temperature in degrees Celsius,
where 0 is the freezing point of water and 100 is the boiling point.
We used to say Centigrade in Britain – Celsius
and Centigrade are the same but Celsius is preferred these days.
Also, in Britain and America, the Fahrenheit scale is used.
So, 0 Celsius is 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
So, when we have really hot weather it sounds even hotter, when we use Fahrenheit.
Because 38 Celsius is over 100 Fahrenheit!
Do you use Celsius or Fahrenheit in your country?
Let me know!
Humidity. Humidity.
This refers to the amount of moisture in the air.
Humidity is usually expressed as a percentage of the maximum amount of moisture that the air
can hold at a given temperature and pressure, which is known as the "relative humidity".
If there is a lot of water vapour in the air the humidity is high.
So, if you sweat in high humidity,
it can be difficult to cool down as the sweat doesn’t evaporate.
We say that we feel sticky or clammy at this point.
Wind speed - this is the rate at which wind is moving.
There are different describe the wind according to the wind speed.
These range from calm, which is when there is basically no wind;
a light, moderate or strong breeze, with a windspeed of between 4-27km/h (kilometres
per hour); then we have a near gale when we really start to notice difficulty walking.
That was me trying to be blown by the wind. And then there’s a gale or strong gale when we
will have difficulty walking and structural damage might start to occur on buildings.
Above this at speeds of 48km/h (kilometres per hour) and more
we have storms and at 64km/h hurricanes.
This brings us on to…
Direction.
In weather forecasts direction is referring to the direction from which the wind is blowing.
When wind direction is reported it helps us to
visualise the direction of the wind relative to our location.
So, if we say a north wind, we can imagine that the wind is blowing towards us from the north.
This is an intuitive way of describing wind direction that is easy to understand,
especially for people who are not familiar with technical terminology or complex wind patterns.
There are 8 of these directions: North, Northeast, East, Southeast,
South, Southwest, West, and Northwest.
Precipitation. Precipitation is any form of water that falls from the sky and reaches the ground.
This includes rain and snow, but also: sleet,
which begins as snowflakes and partially melts as it falls before refreezing;
hail, which consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice that are produced in strong storms;
and even graupel /ˈɡraʊ.pəl/, snowflakes covered in frozen water droplets.
Precipitation occurs when water vapor in the air condenses into
water droplets or ice crystals, which then become heavy enough to fall to the ground.
Now let's warm things up a bit as and take another look at the weather.
Good morning, everyone!
It's Anna Tyrie here, ready to give you the latest weather forecast for the UK.
Today, it’s going a beautiful summer day,
with temperatures ranging from 20°C to 25°C (degrees Celsius).
There will be a light breeze coming from the south,
so a light jacket may be needed if you're heading to the coast.
You can expect mostly clear skies throughout the day, with a few passing clouds in the afternoon.
The humidity will be moderate, around 60% (per cent), making it feel a bit muggy at times.
But don't worry, we can expect plenty of sunshine throughout the day to brighten things up.
Be warned, there is a cold weather front on the horizon for next week,
so enjoy the warm weather while it lasts. Back to the studio.
Thank you, Anna. Let's get back to our vocabulary.
Sunshine.
Basically, the amount of time the sun is visible in the sky.
In descending order of how sunny a day can be: clear, sunny,
mostly sunny, partly sunny, cloudy, and overcast.
Weather forecasters tell us how many daylight hours we can expect. If you’re
a sun-seeker in the UK then you could head somewhere like Eastbourne on the south
coast where they enjoy on average around 6 hours of sunshine a day.
You won’t be surprised that the least sunny places in the UK are in the north:
Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides gets only around half of that amount of sunshine.
Cloud cover.
This is the amount of the sky that is covered by clouds.
There are many different types of clouds. In the UK we’re quite used to seeing the cumulus,
those fluffy clouds which resemble cotton wool and which in general release only occasional rain,
and the stratocumulus, the epitome of the
cloud cover that produces so many grey days by blocking out the sun.
Cirrus is a lovely cloud, like the brushstrokes of a watercolour artist.
It produces rain, but the main reason for our green and pleasant lands are
the nimbostratus and cumulonimbus clouds, which give us persistent and heavy rain.
Visibility - this is the distance that can be seen ahead in the atmosphere.
Meteorological factors along with rain and snow which can reduce visibility are: fog,
a type of cloud that forms close to the surface of the land; and mist,
which is finer than fog as the water droplets are more scattered.
Smoke, darkness, and finally haze, which is dust or other dry particles hanging suspended
in the air, can reduce visibility, making driving, sailing, and flying hazardous.
Weather forecasts often tell us if we should expect high or low visibility.
Oh, and we must interrupt our usual programming and head straight to the weather.
Attention all residents of Britain, we have a severe weather forecast to report.
An intense storm system is expected to move into the region over the next 24 to 48 hours,
bringing with it the potential for severe weather conditions.
Starting tonight, we're expecting a band of heavy rain to move in from the west,
with some areas experiencing rainfall totals of up to 100mm (millimetres) or more. This heavy rain,
combined with strong winds of up to 60mph (miles per hour),
could lead to localized flooding, downed trees, and power outages.
Travel disruptions are likely, so if you must travel, exercise caution,
and stay informed of road closures and other weather-related issues.
Moving into tomorrow, the storm system is expected to intensify,
with a risk of thunderstorms and hail across much of the country.
In addition, there is a risk of coastal flooding, particularly in areas where high tides coincide
with the strongest winds. Winds could gust up to 80mph (miles per hour) in some areas,
causing significant damage to trees and buildings.
As we head into the latter part of the week,
the storm system is expected to slowly move away from the region,
but we could still see some residual impacts, such as gusty winds and scattered showers.
We advise all residents to stay informed about the latest weather warnings,
and please take any necessary precautions to protect yourself and your family,
and your property from severe weather conditions.
If you encounter flooded roadways, do not attempt to drive through them, as the water may be deeper
than it appears and could sweep your vehicle away. Stay safe, and stay tuned for updates.
Thank you Anna, and thank you to our viewers for supporting today’s lesson.
Let me know in the comments if you have ever experienced any severe weather.
Until next time, take care and goodbye.