New Year 1995 was one of the coldest and snowiest on record here with
15cm of snow and a max of -2C. However since then the only snow during
the first ten days of January has been in 2001 and 2002 (both remnants
of falls at the end of the previous year), 2003 (light dusting on 3rd
and 4th) and 2005 (2cm on 2nd).

The only heavy January snowfalls (over 10cm) there have been here,
since 1987, have been in 1993 (11th), 1995 (1st) and 2004 (28th). There
was just a single snow covered January morning from 1988 to 1992 (in
1991) compared with a total of 66 for the five years from 1959 to 1963.

The last time the mean max was below 5C, in January, was in 1987
whereas this happened in each year from 1977 to 1987 with the exception
of 1981 and 1983. So a cold January is certainly long overdue.

February, on the other hand, has brought plenty of wintry weather in
recent years with the average of 6.6 snow-covered mornings for 2001-05
being the most for a five year period since 1969-73. The average for
1952 to 1956 was, however, as high as 12.6. Lowest 5-year average
(since 1946) was 2.4 for 1981-85.

Richard Slessor,
Aberdeen.