I live in Norway and have lived there most of my life, but I spent a year in UK from 1977 till 1978 - in Exeter, Devon, near the south coast of England.

One thing I noticed as a difference from Norway, was that what I was used to as long evenings with the sun slowly sinking closer to the horizon, was a lot faster and more abrupt there. (I never lived as far north in Norway as to where the sun never reaches down to the horizon in Summer or up to it in Winter, though.) I know in theory (have never been there) that at the Equator it's far more abrupt even than that. But I wasn't prepared that there would be a noticeable difference from Southern Norway to Southern England.

There was also a noticeable difference in the amount of snow. But there are individual differences in that within Norway, too (because it stretches so far from the South to the North). For the last thirty years or so, I've lived in the capital - Oslo - but now I've moved further south to a small town called Halden, and there is less snow again (partly from being a coastal town).

Which I'm very pleased about, as I don't love snow as much as some of you people in this thread do.  

Last Winter was unusual for Halden, with heavy frost (minus 20 C) and lots of snow. This Winter has been more normal. Half a week of snow, then a few days of rain to wash it all away, then a few dry days, and then another batch of snow. We must have had at least five or six such repetitions since December.

At the moment I can't see any snow, the rain yesterday washed it away. There's no rain today, and we're up to plus 5 C. On Sunday it's expected to reach 8, and later next week even up to 9 or 10. It's too early to even think of Summer, but it definitely looks like the beginning of Spring ...  

@jo Unfortunately snow is rare here. This year we had about 2 hours one evening in early January before it changed to rain and was washed away. Although there's still a possibility because we often get a cold spell at the beginning of March and have had snow then more than once. One of my friends once joked that we're more likely to have a white Easter than Christmas but I doubt that this year with Easter being so late  

@coracle That makes sense! My parents lived in New Zealand for 2 years when they first married but returned to the UK before I was born. They considered relocating over there permanently as a family in 2010 but it never happened and sometimes I wonder how different my life would looked if that had taken place. I have friends from the north and they definitely get more snow than the southern coastal regions I'm familiar with. 

@waggawerewolf27 That's very interesting as I wasn't aware of the citizenship issues between the UK and Australia. Yes, I've also been to Scotland in the summer and between the mild temperatures, wind and rain I'd say you definitely would've needed that jacket! 

@varna I'm originally from Southampton so similar climate to Exeter. The sun is an interesting observation because I also know people from the US who are surprised by how much daylight we have, especially in the summer evenings. I like snow in moderation because it's a such a rarity here but can image it would lose it's novelty when you're constantly exposed to it. 

Regarding the current weather in Cardiff, it's been a bit all over the place (not that that's a surprise!). One day it'll be beautifully sunny and feel like spring and the next it's torrential rain where you're soaked through in minutes if you leave the house. Right now the air is still cold because the wind brings a chill when you stop moving but the sun is out and therefore all the Brits are acting as though it's already summer 🤣 I joke but I'm just as guilty because I'm writing from a park on my lunch break and every picnic table I can see is full! Better make the most of the sun because for all I know it could turn back to winter tomorrow. 

Mod note: Thanks for getting back on topic here, everyone! Let's keep it focused on the weather. Any general chatting, interesting as it is, can move to the Town Square in Ditto Town, which is very quiet these days, and needs more conversation.  

Interesting to hear more about your weather in Norway, @Varna!

And fun about the thought of a white Easter, rather than a white Christmas, Moonlit_Centaur. We have had white Easters before, especially, as you say, when the holiday falls in March and not later in April, such as this year.

Posted by: @moonlit_centaur

I like snow in moderation because it's a such a rarity here but can image it would lose it's novelty when you're constantly exposed to it. 

Actually, I'm the opposite. The more snow we get, the more we love it. Truly Canadian, haha. So, this winter for us here has been like the wonderful winters I had growing up (lots of snow, plus cold to keep it there and accumulate ). And, more recently, our kids enjoyed very snowy weather when they were growing up. Our winters have only changed in the past 10-12 years or so. But this year it has been such a pleasure to revel in a good ol' fashioned Ontario winter again. May they continue!  

Our youngest son is going down with friends to New York's Whiteface Mountain for skiing over the next week, and the conditions sound good there. In looking at the forecast, cold weather, with periodic snow, is continuing at Whiteface until mid next week (they're coming home on Tuesday), so yay!  

Posted by: @moonlit_centaur

Australia is very different to the UK! What brought you here of all places? 

Now now, that might imply that nobody should want to live in the UK if they could live in Australia!   I came here because I wanted to see more of the world, and I liked it here, and I ended up staying, that's the short of it.

Getting back on topic, as we've been rightly told to do, I could make the obvious joke that I certainly didn't come here because of the weather... except, actually, that is a factor, if only a small one. I've never liked extremely hot weather, despite having grown up with it (and in the era when only rich people had air conditioning and the rest of us just had to put up with the heat). I can stand it if I have to, but I don't enjoy it at all.

Whereas in Britain, the weather is as wildly variable as in the Melbourne / southern central Victoria region, where I grew up (notorious for "four seasons in one day" weather), but it's a lot cooler overall and much easier to deal with. It hardly ever gets unbearably hot, and yet the winters aren't terrible by world standards either. And if it's sunny, as it is right now in Cheshire East, well, I appreciate it more for the fact that it doesn't happen so often. Also, having much more regular rain means that the grass is greener over here, quite literally. (That especially stands out after having just spent a few weeks in a very dry southern Australian summer.)

It genuinely is a relief to be back home in England and to be looking at the forecast and thinking "ooh, here come another few cold days, better wear one of my warmer jumpers today and fill my hot water bottle tonight" — rather than thinking "oh NO, here comes another spate of really hot weather and it's going to be over 35 for a couple of days..." (And at least in the Melbourne area, as I was saying recently, we have regular cool changes, so it can be in the 30s — or even over 40 — one day and 20 the next. In some parts of Australia, particularly inland, when it gets that hot, it stays that hot for weeks on end. I couldn't live in conditions like that — I would simply wilt. )

The South Pacific and Wales are both places I'd like to visit someday.

@courtenay, your temperature preferences (cool, not hot) seem to be similar to my own.

@varna, you mentioned the variation in day- and twilight-lengths from Norway to the UK. I've not traveled far enough north to really notice it but saw a similar but opposite effect when I traveled to south Texas (latitude 26N compared to my home latitude of 45N).

@jo, your weather sounds like what winter should be, and many snow-dependent businesses around here would love to see some snow. But with March (and the beginning of meteorological spring) just around the corner, those prospects are reduced, though local meteorologists reminded us yesterday of recent years, in which we have received a lot of snow in March and April (over 20 inches/500mm).

Our recent highs have been way above average but not near the records, around 55F/13C, and the only snow remaining is in the piles resulting from clearing away driveways, streets, and parking lots.

Wind is the story today and tomorrow, with gusts around 50mph (80 km/hr) bringing in colder air. But even that cold returns us only to about average for this year (32F/0C). There are some chances of snow next week but it's too early to tell if it will be the accumulating variety. 

The old cliche, "Don't like the weather? Wait five minutes" has been mentioned in this thread.

Today is a great example. We went from that very warm (for spring) weather I mentioned in the previous post, to rain most of the day yesterday, to 8-12 inches (200-300mm) of wet, heavy snow blown around by strong persistent winds. Visibility this morning was limited, even in the city. Many rural areas closed school today with visibilities around zero making driving risky.

Ready for spring? By this weekend most of this new snow should be gone and temperatures may be back around 50F/10C (average is 36F/2C).

So far this week we've had a 29 degree C day (due to Norwest wind system), strong winds, rain, sunny patches, rain again, partly cloudy but but not hot (warm jacket over merino jersey yesterday), and last night a really cool overnight low, down to of 3.8 C at 8 am! Expecting 18 max today, but its sunny so that helps (behind glass it'll be cosy). It's a preview of autumn. 

@coracle: last night a really cool overnight low, down to of 3.8 C at 8 am! Expecting 18 max today, but its sunny so that helps (behind glass it'll be cosy). It's a preview of autumn.

Yes, autumn may or may not have arrived, but the cool change you've noticed might be a harbinger of Cyclone Alfred, due in Brisbane, later today. Australia is due for its next election, so, a cyclone that was supposed to be called Anthony was renamed Alfred, instead. But it has already wreaked havoc in its approach to Brisbane & northern NSW. And if it gets so far south as Sydney, where I live, it could very well start affecting New Zealand's weather as well, or at least the North Island. 

The smell of spring is in the air some days, yet we still hope for a few more snowstorms, which is a very valid possibility here in March. We have had snow in May before, but at that point it usually only lasts one day. Sure is pretty then, though. April is hit and miss. Again, if the white stuff falls in that month, it does not last long. With Easter later this year, I doubt if we will see any that weekend. But you never know.  

The past few days we have had a warm-up, with a fair lot of rain two days ago. We still have a lot of snow, though obviously some melted with the warmer air (10C / 50F and rain. The huge banks sure are lower now. However, Wednesday night a flash freeze came, so everything that was wet, froze, to the cancellation of school buses on Thursday. Then some snow arrived, covering up the ice, making it very slippery underneath.

Today is mostly sunny, with flurries tonight. We have not seen the sun in quite awhile, but the temps remain below freezing until Sunday. Next week (March Break here in Ontario), we have above-freezing temperatures all week, and no precipitation forecast until Thursday (rain).

Although not too far north of us, there were snow squalls this morning, with treacherous road conditions. Those are supposed to ease throughout today, with more returning tonight. If we could, we would totally move north!

The good thing about some clear skies is that I can finally get more stargazing in over the next few days, especially on my evening walks. I am really hoping to spot Mercury to the lower left of bright Venus in the west a bit after sunset, along with Jupiter and Mars high in the SW and S, respectively.  

We're in need of that precipitation, @jo. It's dry around here despite last week's snow. There are red flag (high fire danger) warnings posted for today.

Spring can be a volatile time of year, and this week's forecast bears that out. For reference our average high is 40F/4C. Today's high will be a record 69F/21C, but an Alberta Clipper-style system blows through tonight, with temps dropping to 28F/-2C by tomorrow morning.

By Friday it will be hot again, 72F/22C, but dropping to 18F/-8C by Saturday evening, with snow possible.

Welcome to our weather roller coaster; keep your hands inside the ride at all times!

Autumn weather has varied hugely so far. This is the second day this month when rain has been pretty heavy. Somehow I failed to check the weather forecast last night, and watered my garden!  That's not so bad, but apparently it's going to rain all day, 'easing to showers this evening' ! I leapt out of bed at 7 to put the bucket under the dripping on the garage internal access step. 

@coracle : 

It could be much worse than a bucket collecting indoor leaks, though that leak really needs fixing.   Cyclone Alfred has made quite an impact on the Fraser Coast (near Ka'gari/Fraser Island), Brisbane has had minor flooding, whilst Lismore, on the Richmond River, was flooded again, which is almost becoming like a yearly occurrence. At least this time, they were better prepared, even though there have been a couple of casualties and even more damage. We did get rain as far south as Sydney, but not nearly as bad as the last three years since 2022.

Meanwhile in Britain, it's been what the natives here would call "very mild" for several days — up to about 17 C, which is mild for March here but would be almost downright cold where I grew up — and now suddenly it's dropped down to single digits again and almost down to freezing at night, and I've had to turn the heating up again. However, it's mostly sunny and hasn't rained for some days, which is a lovely change.  

I hope everyone in the eastern half of the US stays safe over the next couple days with the forecasted megastorm.

Where I live we have some pretty high wildfire alerts going on through tomorrow evening due to the wind and dry air as that that storm system is feeding on.

In other weather news, the past few days have been beautiful here. Really enjoying it and been outside a lot!

The mega storm is going to miss us. We might get some wind, but it's supposed to range from 70-90F for the highs mostly around 85F. Spring has definitely set in here. The Texas Bluebonnet should be starting to make an appearance about now. A couple more weeks and I'm heading to find enough to take photos in. 90 in March does not bode well for July and August. We're either getting a larger hurricane or we're getting very high heat (107+) for extended periods with 60-100% humidity.