I prefer to think of these beasts as 'sitting' lows.
They sit over the country for 5 days or more, only gradually filling.
Heavy showers 'merging into longer spells of rain,' slowly rotating
around them.

Horrible weather.

Fair enough, but in these situations especially when the lows centre is over
your location, I've seen some beautiful cloud rotation in some of the
heavier showers
and enjoyed watching scud clouds being sucked up into the cloud base.
Beautiful.
Cant rule a few funnel clouds out either.

Patrick Hayes
Reading

"Patrick Hayes" wrote in message
...

Fair enough, but in these situations especially when the lows
centre is over
your location, I've seen some beautiful cloud rotation in some of
the
heavier showers
and enjoyed watching scud clouds being sucked up into the cloud
base.
Beautiful.
Cant rule a few funnel clouds out either.

Can bring unbroken sunshine in winter ... as in early-Dec 1976.

I also remember one which lasted three or four days when I was
doing an offshore stint in the Northeast Shetland Basin ... prob
June or July 1977 ... perfect summer weather in that part of
the world with 2 or 3 okta cumulus, unlimited visibility,
about 17 hours of sunshine during the day, hardly a breath
of wind, and with a temperature around 15ºC it felt really
warm in the sun. Anticyclones, by contrast, usually bring
awful weather in high summer: either fog or low cloud,
sometimes persistent drizzle, and a nagging wind from
whichever direction.

Philip Eden

"Philip Eden" philipATweatherHYPHENukDOTcom wrote in message
.. .
I also remember one which lasted three or four days when I was
doing an offshore stint in the Northeast Shetland Basin ... prob
June or July 1977 ... perfect summer weather in that part of
the world with 2 or 3 okta cumulus, unlimited visibility,
about 17 hours of sunshine during the day, hardly a breath
of wind, and with a temperature around 15ºC it felt really
warm in the sun. Anticyclones, by contrast, usually bring
awful weather in high summer: either fog or low cloud,
sometimes persistent drizzle, and a nagging wind from
whichever direction.

Philip Eden



Yes, these lows can bring lovely weather to west Cornwall as well. All the
convection takes place inland, leaving the coast sunny & warm, often with
great visibility. None of that summer sea mist that anticyclones can bring.
Coastal west Cornwall is largely cloud free now.

--
Graham
Penzance

"Graham Easterling" wrote in message
...

"Philip Eden" philipATweatherHYPHENukDOTcom wrote in message
.. .
I also remember one which lasted three or four days when I was
doing an offshore stint in the Northeast Shetland Basin ... prob
June or July 1977 ... perfect summer weather in that part of
the world with 2 or 3 okta cumulus, unlimited visibility,
about 17 hours of sunshine during the day, hardly a breath
of wind, and with a temperature around 15ºC it felt really
warm in the sun. Anticyclones, by contrast, usually bring
awful weather in high summer: either fog or low cloud,
sometimes persistent drizzle, and a nagging wind from
whichever direction.

Philip Eden



Yes, these lows can bring lovely weather to west Cornwall as well. All the
convection takes place inland, leaving the coast sunny & warm, often with
great visibility. None of that summer sea mist that anticyclones can
bring.
Coastal west Cornwall is largely cloud free now.

--


You've only got to lok at the monthly sunshine totals on the Met Offices
excellent new Climate site (new? well I've only just noticed it so it might
have been there a year) to see the high totals at low lying islands and
promontories Tiree, parts of the outer Hebrides, Barrow in Furness, Spurn
Point) to see the effect.