Postie delivers warning of bitterly cold winter

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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THE country’s most famous amateur weather forecaster claims we’re in for a bitterly cold winter — with heavy snowfall before Christmas.

His prediction comes just as the experts can’t seem to agree on the forecast.

Donegal postman Michael Gallagher, who studies plants and animals to make his predictions, says: “I have never seen as many berries on the trees in the mountains and the birds are singing loudly in recent days.

“The abundance of berries is a sure sign that temperatures are going to plunge in the winter.”

The prophetic postie has a good track record, correctly predicting a white Christmas three years ago.

However, leading climatologist Professor John Sweeney has warned that it is impossible to accurately predict weather more than ten days in advance. He explained: “We have no confidence that we can go more than ten days ahead and anyone who says we can is being quite imaginative.

“Most national meteorological services have given up seasonal forecasting. A few summers back the UK met office had an attempt at a seasonal weather forecast and they forecast a barbecue summer but they got it badly wrong.

“Met Eireann wisely never got into that.” And he cautioned: “Some people will base forecasts on phenomena such as berries on trees.
“There may be some element of truth in it, but in general the natural world responds to what has gone before it, instead of what’s coming.”

Two years ago, Ireland ground to a halt during the coldest winter in decades, with temperatures plunging to a bitter -17.5°C in Mayo on Christmas Day 2010. And despite hopes of a sunny summer, 2012 let us down with day after day of heavy rain.

NUI Maynooth’s Prof Sweeney said the finger of blame lies squarely with a jetstream sitting 10,000 kilometres above us.

He explained: “The recent extremes of winter and summer conditions have been associated with a westerly jetstream that has been more convoluted than normal.”

The jetstream has managed to “block” weather systems in particular places.


And during the cold winter of 2010, the jetstream kept us under high pressure which brought in Siberian air.

This blocking produces extreme weather conditions.

Alarmingly, boffins link the jetstream’s behaviour to the loss of summer sea ice and the warming of the Arctic.

[TeeferTiger]

Already been snowing in Blaenau. But that's not really a surprise.

[steven100]

Well if it snows thats rm up **** creek.