UK Weather and Moon Phase

The Met Office have recently upgraded many of their charts providing a more comprehensive range of weather information than previously available, enabling you to make some relatively useful predictions for your own location.

The General Weather Forecast is just that, but take a few minutes and with one click explore the high resolution visible and infrared satellite pictures of both the British Isles and the wider views over Europe.

Almost all the charts can now be animated over the last 12 periods or so by clicking on the Replay button (> Top Left, with slight delay while all the photos in the group are loaded). Fascinating to watch the 'UK Infrared Satellite' and see the influence on direction of low and high pressure on the changing cloud formations. Don't forget the visible satellite pictures are not available during darkness if your asking it to provide animation.

The Rainfall Radar Animation chart is probably one of the most impressive, from which you can see actual data of both the severity and direction of rain as it tracks across the British Isles. With only a ½hour time delay on the data, you can forecast with some accuracy the arrival of rain in your target area.

Well done the met office, some really excellent data to help us understand what is going on around us.

Caution: Remember that the internet should never be relied upon as the only means to obtain the latest weather forecast and warning information, particularly if you are going sailing, climbing or walking etc. where a sudden change to bad weather could put your life and others in danger.

Access to the service or updates may be interrupted or delayed from time to time for a variety of reasons, and it is the responsibility of those using these links, to always check that the page on your screen is current, and not from your cache. Use the Refresh or Reload button if in any doubt.

The Wirral & District ARC are not responsible for the content of any external websites.

N. W. England - Comprehensive Forecast + up to 15 Day N.W. Summary Forecasts + Seasonal
for Rainfall, Pressure, Temperature, Cloud, Wind and UV.

Pressure chart - Europe surface pressure (inc. 84 hour forecast) produced daily 7.30am UTC.

Rainfall Animation - British Isles rainfall radar animation (½ hour intervals for last six hours).

Mesoscale 48 Hour Forecast * POL data run by Met Office for North West.
Updated every 3 hours:- Temp, Wind, Humidity, Heat Flux, Cloud and Precipitation

Hilbre Island - * "Real time" Weather Station Stats for last 10 minutes / 48 hours / 7 Days.

Hilbre Island - Tide Prediction for 7 days by Admiralty EasyTide in UTC (Standard Local Time)

Today's Tidal Prediction * for Gladstone Lock, Liverpool and all of the United Kingdom.

( * Courtesy of the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Observatory)

Traffic Map - Live traffic information in real-time. Check your route before you leave.

The phases of the moon are caused by the relative positions of the earth, sun, and moon. The moon goes around the earth, on average, in 27 days 7 hours 43 minutes.

The sun always illuminates the half of the moon facing the sun (except during lunar eclipses, when the moon passes through the earth's shadow). When the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth, the moon appears "full" to us, a bright, round disk. When the moon is between the earth and the sun, it appears dark, a "new" moon. In between, the moon's illuminated surface appears to grow (wax) to full, then decreases (wanes) to the next new moon.

The edge of the shadow (the terminator) is always curved, being an oblique view of a circle, giving the moon its familiar crescent shape. Because the "horns" of the moon at the ends of the crescent are always facing away from the setting or rising sun, they always point upward in the sky. It is fun to watch for paintings and pictures which show an "impossible moon" with the horns pointed downwards.

(Moon information courtesy of NASA)