It seem airport operator BAA has realized that Global warming has really dumped on them the last two years and rather than be caught with their pants down again, they 3x increased their equipment and staff ready to clear snow.
From BBC: Heathrow airport triples snow clearance fleet
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-15105627
Heathrow airport has tripled the number of snow clearance vehicles to tackle severe winter weather.
Operator BAA also has three times as many staff ready to clear snow compared with last year.
Thousands of passengers were left stranded at the airport as 4,000 flights were cancelled over five days for heavy snow before Christmas.
But BAA said it now has 185 snow clearance vehicles and has 468 staff per shift, compared to 117 last year.
The operator said it has invested £32.4m so far to tackle severe weather.
BAA had been criticised following last year’s disruptions and a report accused the operator of a breakdown in communication and lack of “preparedness” for the bad weather.
After the publication of the Winter Resilience Enquiry Report, BAA promised to invest £50m to avoid facing disruptions on a similar scale.
Announcing its “winter resilience programme”, the airports operator said it has introduced a new “reservist” role whereby up to 950 staff will be deployed to the terminals to help passengers during disruption.
h/t to WUWT reader “rg” in France
BAA probably bought the redundant RAF snow clearance equipment who now, without many aircraft or airfields, are selling Sicards and AWD Snowblowers off cheap.
It could hit 30 celcius in london today, a new record (previous was 1985). Thankfully, and amazingly, the met office has stated this is just our mad weather in the UK and not to do with climate chanhge. Bet the econuts on twitter today will be claiming otherwise though.
Clear the snow?? But … but how are the kids going to learn to be “snow tourists” as we were promised so recently?
David Spurgeon @ur momisugly 4.45
November, December and most of January were freezing cold. I was in the Yorkshire Dales in latish January and I were incredibly cold for most of my stay. The last day it began to be milder and the latter part of winter was milder. That does not mean the winter as a whole was warm.
@S Skinner
“The BBC has an article about the current warm Autumn, which it is, but then says this: “In the last year, the UK experienced an incredibly warm winter, ”
Well, you know what happened. Last november the uk had the coldest start to winter in 120 years. The extreme\record cold lasted till christmas day, and then it rapidly went away. Jan, Feb, March & April were warm.
So we had a winter of two halves. Trust the BBC to fiddle their wording around this to promote AGW.
The sun was the culprit, it came back to life in Jan. For me it was the most clear cut correlation between uk weather and solar activity I’ve ever witnessed. Since we are now back up to 2004 levels of solar activity and this is expected to rise further, and since 2004 was a hot year in the uk, and since this year has been quite warm in the uk, I’m predicting a mild winter this year in the uk.
As D Falkner has hinted, if the BBC start saying it’s going to be cold, going to snow etc, it’s just another sign that it won’t be so cold. I’ve been hearing it on the radio this year ‘ cold winter coming ‘. Didn’t hear any of that in the last 3 years, where we did end up with cold winters. But now, with solar activity up to 2004 levels, the radio has started saying it’ll be cold this winter. – Another sign it won’t be cold.
I live in the southern part of England. We had a freezing cold early winter, which killed plants that had withstood the previous cold winter, a warm early spring, a largely lousy dull summer, and the ‘Indian’ summer we are now experiencing in early autumn (I remember this sort of weather in the autumn, often in October…these sort of memories abound when one is older). The fruits and berries have been amazing this year; most really like a good freeze over the winter. Whether this is a portent for another cold winter remains to be seen; I put the good fruit and berry crop down to the last one.
Is the sun waking up again? There seem to be more sun spots showing.
IPCC WG1 published 2007
Quote
11.3.3.7
Snow and Sea Ice The overall warming is very likely to shorten the snow season in all of Europe. Snow depth is also likely to be reduced, at least in most areas, although increases in total winter precipitation may counteract the increased melting and decreased fraction of solid precipitation associated with the warming
This was followed in the uk by:
Winter 2008/9 The coldest since 1996
Winter 2009/10 The coldest since 1976
November/December 2010. The coldest for over 100 years
Later another quote
The Baltic Sea is likely to lose a large part of its seasonal ice cover during this century
followed by
http://www.euronews.net/2010/03/05/ships-stuck-in-baltic-sea-ice/ in 2009/10
http://www.baltic-course.com/eng/transport/?doc=37726 in 2010/11
Timing is everything
And all before the Met Office have given a long range prediction that winter may or may not occur.
Bertram Felden says:
September 29, 2011 at 10:17 pm
David Spurgeon 4:35 am
So winter is now November, December, January, February and March. Doesn’t leave much room for the rest of the seasons, does it?
May I respectfully point out, sir, that the phrase used in the BBC article is: ” … *In the last year, the UK experienced an incredibly warm winter,*” In the past year means 2011, therefore the writer is correct. He is NOT saying the past winter, he is saying the past year (2011). If so he IS correct in his statement for the BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15107243.
As to the months of Winter, I was merely pointing to the months during which we might expect winter weather, not the actual winter months. The fact remains that we did not have a severe winter for the first three months of 2011 (the year that so far has passed)!
Annie says:
September 30, 2011 at 2:41 am
David Spurgeon @ur momisugly 4.45
November, December and most of January were freezing cold. I was in the Yorkshire Dales in latish January and I were incredibly cold for most of my stay. The last day it began to be milder and the latter part of winter was milder. That does not mean the winter as a whole was warm.
….and he doesn’t say that the winter as a whole was warm – he says the past year’s winter weather [2011] was warmer than expected, which it was, especially after the very severe weather in Nov/Dec 2010.
meemoe_uk says:
September 30, 2011 at 2:54 am
@S Skinner
“The BBC has an article about the current warm Autumn, which it is, but then says this: “In the last year, the UK experienced an incredibly warm winter, ”
Well, you know what happened. Last november the uk had the coldest start to winter in 120 years. The extreme\record cold lasted till christmas day, and then it rapidly went away. Jan, Feb, March & April were warm.
So we had a winter of two halves. Trust the BBC to fiddle their wording around this to promote AGW.
…Yes but he’s not speaking about 2010 – he’s speaking about early 2011.
David Spurgeon
*In the last year, the UK experienced an incredibly warm winter,*” In the past year means 2011, therefore the writer is correct.
In the past year means in the past 12 months, if he meant 2011 he would have said warm winter in 2011.
Stop putting meaning where it does not exist.
sceptical says:
September 29, 2011 at 9:49 pm
It was snark (and trolling) because:
1) You know the answer to the question
2) You were too lazy to offer it
3) You wanted to send Anthony off on a rock fetch to waste his time.
Here’s what you should have said:
CRU says AGW reduces snow. From http://wattsupwiththat.com/2009/12/29/crus-forecast-winter-snowfall-will-become-a-very-rare-and-exciting-event/ is the famously wrong
Snowfalls are now just a thing of the past”. According to Dr David Viner, a senior research scientist at the climatic research unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia, within a few years winter snowfall will become “a very rare and exciting event”.
Why is that? Given England’s relatively warm climate, warming tends to replace snow with rain. It’s cold climates where warming leads to higher dewpoints and more snow.
I think you didn’t answer the question because you knew that is the real answer.
Christopher Simpson says:
September 29, 2011 at 2:36 pm
Ah, but one of the corollaries of Murphy’s Law is “You can’t depend on Murphy’s Law.”
Green Sand says:
September 29, 2011 at 2:48 pm
Perhaps. It could also be the start of the unpromised snow job. 🙂 I have no idea what I mean by that….
David Sturgeon,
Since when does saying ” In the last year ” in September 2011 means that the last year referred to is 2011? Whom are you kidding? Nobody will swallow this nonsense.
As others have said, there is some typical British irony in this annoncement being today, as we are in the middle of the warmest Indian Summer for ages (football commentators reckoned for London it was the warmest September 29th since 1895)- we do often get nice weather in late September, although it rarely extends into October (my wedding anniversary in 1st October, and it is usually cool and damp, start of real Autumn weather in the UK.).
As for the more warming = more snow, that may be a viable hypothesis for places like New York or MInnesota, where winters are always well below freezing (although smacks to me of special pleading), but for the southern half of England whether we get rain or snow is temperature dependent rather than precipitation dependent, because we are usually a few degrees above freezing during winter days. If it gets even slightly warmer, the likelihood of snow settling will decrease, so the fairly significant (by our standards) snow falls of the last couple of years show that we have had at least unusually cold spells in our winters
David Spurgeon @ur momisugly 4.16 am:
As far as I’m concerned, the expression ‘in the last year’ means ‘in the last 12 months’. The BBC is being its usual deliberately misleading self.
In other news, tomorrow is very likely to be the warmest October day on record (at around 30/86) in many parts of England (and today is the warmest Sep 30). The records that are being beaten are mostly about 100 years old. The best runs of warm weather have been in April and September (and into October) here. Everything in between was, well, typically English. I know it’s only weather. Just thought overseas readers might be interested.
Anthony: I had to fight this “global warming increases precipitation, thus more snow” arguement a couple years back.
I’m sorry I’ve misplaced the file. But a simple INTERNET SEARCH will turn up about a dozen papers, over 30 years, which show the same conclusion: “Colder than ‘normal’ Winter, More snow than the ‘average’…
I think this is explained by examing what “consitutes” a “colder than normal” winter. I.e., it isn’t because of having 2 or 3 weeks of “below zero” (F) temps, as we have in Minn almost every year.
It’s because (see, for example, 1990, Minnesota) when the temperatures drop below freezing (0 C for the Brits) EARLY, then it starts snowing early. And, oft times, with that reduced temperature on the front end, you have a slower recovery on the back end. (So, first snow, 1990, Minnesota…was 31″, October 31st. Last snow was first week of April, 1991).
Please note: Yes, indeed, it is UNLIKELY that you have a major snowstorm, during the major “temperature trough” of the winter. However, the early dip and late recovery DOES NOT CORRELATE with a lengthening or intensifying of the “winter trough” (which is typically Jan. 15th to Feb. 10th, one month after the shortest day of the year…i.e., a one month lag on the winter solestis).
Maybe you could find several of those, “Colder than ‘normal’…More snow than ‘normal’ papers and put them together on your reference pages? (IF I FIND MY FILE FOLDER I’LL SEND THEM TO YOU!)
Max
SSam says: @ur momisugly September 29, 2011 at 3:24 pm
Well, if they need road grit they can always break up that decrepit old building full of transients and criminals in New York using debris from the masonry to provide traction on the iced roads.
You can find it at 760 United Nations Plaza, New York City.
________________________________________________________________________
I second that, I second that…. I think they missed and hit the wrong the target on 9/11
In reply to Steveo and sceptical: History is full of examples where people groups keep repeating a falsehood and eventually believe it. In circles where believers in CAGW gather, I see this falsehood consistently repeated: the increased snow over the last few years has been caused by increased water vapor caused by global warming. This claim is contrary to scientific analysis. The snow came because it was cold, not because there was more water vapor. There was not just a lot of snow, there was snow where and when it was uncommon – because it was cold. Meanwhile, the water content of snow where snow is common was quite low. In addition, the ocean source of water vapor for these snowfalls had SSTs below normal, e.g. western Atlantic for eastern United States, Gulf of Mexico for the Midwest. In fact, the western states had a noticeable drought when Pacific SSTs were above normal. I would not claim a causality in these SST observations, but it certainly debunks the claim of higher temperatures leads to higher water vapor leads to more snow.
If CAGW believers want to be listened to by people who are able and willing to do scientific analysis, they should drop this ridiculous claim.
‘Venter says:
September 30, 2011 at 5:48 am
David Sturgeon,
Since when does saying ” In the last year ” in September 2011 means that the last year referred to is 2011? Whom are you kidding? Nobody will swallow this nonsense.’…
My knowledge of English is such that “in the last year” means during this year” – this current year – 2011, where last means [or can mean] latest (or) year ‘going’ or ‘gone by’. Your incorrect use of English in the sentence – ‘Since when does saying ” In the last year ” in September 2011 means that the last year’…etc., I’m afraid points to the fact that you too can make mistakes with the tongue of the immortal bard. [Correctly your sentence should read: ‘Since when does saying ” In the last year ” in September 2011 mean (not means) that the last year…’
. ….and…
Who is David Sturgeon? Fishy that!!
My name is ‘Spurgeon’ – not fishy at all!! 🙂
BBC 22 December 2010
“BAA boss refuses bonus over snow”
BBC 29 September 2011
“Operator BAA also has three times as many staff ready to clear snow compared with last year.”
David Spurgeon,
Apologies for mis-spelling your name.
The issue is not about my making grammatical mistakes. The BBC statement was
QUOTE
*In the last year, the UK experienced an incredibly warm winter,*”
UNQUOTE
When you are in the end of the 3rd quarter of year 2011, the last year does not refer only to the 9 months of 2011, by any stretch of imagination. The typical winter months in UK are December, January and February. December and January were freezing cold, with December one of the coldest ever seen. February was warmer than normal. So by no stretch can the statement by BBC be considered as fair or true.
Gail Combs says September 30, 2011 at 7:54 am …
Okay, I have a question that has been nagging me ever since your reappearance here and frenzied posting since, so here it goes:
“Did you just earn your freedom from a FEMA camp?” 😉 < grin > (ALL in good fun, mods)
.