Weather, climate and jet streams

What is going on with UK weather at the moment.The position of the jet stream is apparently responsibile for our very wet weather.

http://metofficenews.wordpress.com/2012/04/26/sunny-march-wet-april-how-the-jet-stream-is-partly-to-blame/

Are these movements of  the jet stream and the resulting extreme weather one of the results of climate change?

http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/ttv10.sci.ess.jet/

The difference between weather and climate is a measure of time. Weather is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time, and climate is how the atmosphere “behaves” over relatively long periods of time.

When we talk about climate change, we talk about changes in long-term averages of daily weather.Here are some interesting websites that explain more about weather and climate:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/noaa-n/climate/climate_weather.html

http://eo.ucar.edu/basics/

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Wherever you live in the world and whatever your climate or weather, rain is crucial to our survival  – it feeds our crops to provide the food that is the life source that makes our bodies function.

With so much rain falling in the UK at the moment, it would be wise to make sure we capture as much of it as possible. and not it simply disapear down the drains.A staggering 100,000 litres of rainwater fall on the roof of every UK home every year.

Buying a water butt is the simplest way to harvest the rain and use it in your garden.

  • To make the most of your butt, connect it to the downpipe from your guttering. Many water butts come with a simple connection kits and it’s really easy to do.
  • A water butt can be plastic or wooden. Some have a tap at the bottom of the barrel which makes it easy to fill a watering can or fix a hose.
  • If your barrel doesn’t have a tap, you’ll have to scoop water out from the top. A lid of fine mesh will stop leaves and small animals from falling in – you don’t want to feed your garden guests in one place and drown them in another!

Check out these sites for more inspiration:

http://www.waterwise.org.uk/pages/save-water.html

http://www.waterbuttsdirect.co.uk

This post was written by:

- who has written 872 posts on My Climate Change Garden.

I am not an experienced gardener - more of an enthusiastic amateur who learns by trial and error and who is keen to "manage" the effects of shifting weather patterns on my garden. Writing this blog is my passion and it has evolved over 12 years to inspire engagement with climate change outside our back doors, in our personal gardens and green spaces. My mission is to fertilise and expand this platform to grow a community of global gardeners communicating about the effects of climate change on our plants and exploring how each individual can make small changes in our lives to become more sustainable. The future of our gardens and #OurPlanet is in our hands - please plant your own seeds for our collective sustainable future.

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1 Comments For This Post

  1. Neil Says:

    Rainy days are not always very wet, sometimes this season also see some dryness. And which further leads to the drought situation in the area. So, best way to deal with this kind of situation is saving water as much as we can. Rainwater harvesting is the best approach for preserving water. Also, everyone should avoid water wastage at his end completely.