Climate

GB has a generally mild temperate climate, more or less the same as the climate of the northwestern part of Europe. The geographical position of the British Isles within 50º to 61º N is a basic factor in determining the main characteristics of the climate. Temperature depends not only on the angle at which the sun’s rays strike the earth’s surface, but also on the duration of daylight. The length of day in London ranges from 16 hours 35 min. on 21 June, to 7 hours 50 min. on 21 December. The Sun is never overhead as in the tropical area that's why the British climate is of the temperate nature.

Britain’s climate is dominated by the influence of the sea. The warm North Atlantic Current (Gulf Stream) heats the sea water and air as it travels from the Atlantic Ocean across the Shelf. This gives the British Isles a more temperate climate than would otherwise be the case. Edinburgh, # is 56º north of the equator, the same latitude as Moscow, yet its climate is much milder.

Thus, there are no extreme contrasts in temperature anywhere in Britain. In general, British temperature rarely goes above 32°C in the summer or below -10°C in the winter, though there are differences between those of the north and the south. #, the average monthly temperature in the northern Shetlands ranges from 3ºCelsius in winter to 11º in summer. The corresponding temperatures for the Isle of Wight off the southern coast of England are 5º and 16º. The temperature is also modified by altitude, so higher land is colder than the low-lying land. Consequently, much of Scotland, because of its height, is cooler in summer and colder in winter than most of England. Snow is a regular feature of the higher areas only and in low-lying parts there is no snow at all. The winters are in general a bit colder in the east of the country than they are in the west. While in summer the south is slightly warmer then the north.

The prevailing winds are south-westerly, they bring rain from the Atlantic to the hills and mountains of the west. This means that the western parts of Britain are wetter than the east, which is fairly sheltered. Contrary to the popular misconception the British weather is not particularly wet. London is drier than some continental cities such as Hamburg. Rain is fairly well distributed throughout the year, but on the average, February to March tend to be the driest months, September to January - the wettest. Drought conditions are rare.

The British climate has three dominant features: it's mild, humid and changeable. That means that winters are extremely mild, that the growing season is fairly long, and the cattle are kept out in the fields virtually the whole year round.

Though the British are fortunate to have warmer winters than other countries at the same latitude, the changeability of the weather is the main disadvantage. The weather in England has become proverbial (the English often say they have no climate but only weather, or they have three types of weather: rain in the morning, rain in the afternoon or rain in the evening). The unpredictable weather has become almost a national institution in its own right, and a topic of daily conversation among the British.