Why Britain will be spared the hurricane’s tail
WHAT is the chance of Hurricane Matthew, with its 120mph winds wreaking such devastation in the Caribbean and Florida, heading over the Atlantic and pounding our shores?
Well, no need to batten down the hatches. Much more likely is that this destructive monster will burn out its fury in the western Atlantic.
For today’s weather, and much of the week ahead, we need instead to turn our eyes eastwards, towards Scandinavia and northern Poland. A high pressure system firmly lodged there is generating cooler winds that will bring colder air and a smattering of showers to the east coast and the South East. Temperatures will be down at 55F (13C) in Norwich and a modest 61F (16C) in London.
The best of any bright spells will be in the West and North West, sheltered from that chilling eastern influence.
And that is largely how things will remain for the working week: sunshine in the West, a nip in the air everywhere, and rainy conditions in the East. While the Scandinavian high will continue to dominate, a low pressure system from the near continent will bring heavier rain and even hail and thunderstorms in the South East.
For some weeks the weather heading our way from Europe has been a blessing, making it one of the second warmest Septembers since 1910, with temperatures 2 degrees C above average. This week, however, the jet stream is largely off the scene – hence our insulation from the hurricane. This usually powerful air current, blowing west to east over the Atlantic, is being diverted away to the far north by a warmer bank of air out to our west.