Dawlish wrote:
To update this: from the NSIDC.

http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/index.html

Paul

It's this bit that scares me:

"In 2007 and 2009 all three patterns have been in play. A clue to the cause
of these unusual conditions comes from the wind flow in the middle
atmosphere. Normally winds flow in a counter-clockwise direction around the
central Arctic Ocean, a flow known as the polar vortex. In the summers of
2007 and 2009 the polar vortex shifted to mostly to the Eurasian side of the
Arctic, allowing higher pressures to develop on the Alaskan side. Scientists
are now studying whether this dipole pattern will become more common in the
future and whether the loss of summer sea ice itself is helping to make this
pattern more frequent."

If I understand correctly, scientists are now studying to see if the
pattern, which leads to unsettled summers experienced here are going to
become more common in the future?

I hope not..... Something Philip Eden commented on last year that we might
be seeing a trend towards more unsettled summers.

I remember reading Lamb's 'The English Climate' and he talked of heating
over Alaska causing the polar vortex to shift towards the European side of
the northern hemisphere leading to cool, wet summers in areas like the
British Isles.

Next summer will be a big clue. There was a previous post about unsettled,
wet and cyclonic summers with 3 in a row occurring only very infrequently
and 4 in a row have not occurred in the last 100 years or so.
________________
Nick.
Otter Valley, Devon
83 m amsl
http://www.ottervalley.co.uk