English Weather and smog.

If you don’t mind I’d like to speak on the topic “English weather and smog”.
Weather is not the same as climate. The weather at a place is the state of the atmosphere there at a given time or over a short period. The weather of the British Isles is greatly variable.
The climate of a place or region, on the other hand, represents the average weather conditions over a long period of time.
The climate of any place results from the interaction of a number of determining factors, of which the most important are latitude, distance from the sea, relief and the direction of the prevailing winds.
The geographical position of the British Isles within latitude 50 to 61N is a basic factor in determing the maim characteristics of the climate. Temperature, the most important climate element, depends not only on the angle at which the sun’s rays strike the earth surface, but also on the duration of daylight. The length of day at London ranges from 16 hours 35 minutes on 21 June to 7 hours 50 minutes on 21 December. British latitudes form the temperate nature of the British climate, for the sun is never directly overhead as in the tropical areas.
Britain’s climate is dominated by the influence of the sea. It is much milder than that in any other country at the same latitudes. This is due partly to the presence of the North Atlantic Drift, or the Gulf Stream, and partly to the fact that the northwest Europe lies in a predominantly westerly wind-belt. This means that marine influences warm the land in winter and cool it in summer. This moderating effect of the sea is in fact, the cause of the relatively small seasonal contrasts experienced in Britain.
The moderating effect of the ocean on air temperature is also stronger in winter than in summer. When the surface water is cooler than the air above it – as frequently happens during the summer months – the air tends to lose its hot to the water.
Opposite conditions apply to winter. The air in winter is likely to be cooler than in summer, so that hot passes from water to air.
The prevailing winds of the British Isles are westerlies. They are extremely moist, as a result of their long passage over the warm waters of North Atlantic. Jo their arrival over Britain, the winds are forced upwards, and as a result large-scale condensation takes place, clouds form and precipitation follows, especially over the mountainous areas.
North and northwest winds often bring heavy falls of snow to the North Britain during late October and November, but they are usually short-lived. Continental winds from the east sometimes reach the British Isles in summer as a warm, dry air-stream, but they are more frequently experienced in winter when they cross the North Sea and bring cold, continental-type weather to eastern and inland district of Great Britain.
Relief is the most important factor controlling the distribution of temperature and precipitation within Britain. The actual temperatures experienced in the hilly and mountainous parts are considerably lower than those in the lowlands. The effect of relief on precipitation is even more striking. Average annual rainfall in Britain is about 1,100 mm. But the geographical distribution of rainfall is largely determined by topography. The mountainous areas of the west and north have far more rainfall than the lowlands of the south and east. Some countries in the southwest receive more than 2,000 mm of rainfall each year.
The eastern lowlands, lying in a rain-shadow area, are much drier and usually receive little precipitation. Much of the eastern and southeastern England (including London) receive less than 700 mm each year, and snow falls on only 15 to 18 days on the average.
Rainfall is fairly well distributed throughout the year, although March to June are the driest months and October to January the wettest.
Ireland is in rather a different category, for here the rain-bearing winds have not been deprived of their moisture, and much of the Irish plain receives up to 1,200 mm of rainfall per year, usually in the form of steady and prolonged drizzle.
The annual mean temperature in England and Wales is about 10C, in Scotland and Northern Ireland about 9C. July and August are the warmest months of the year, and January and February the coldest.
The mean winter temperature in the north is 3C, the mean summer temperature 12C. The corresponding figures for the south are 5C and 16C. The mean January temperature for London is 4C, and the mean July temperature 17C.
During a normal summer the temperature may occasionally rise above 30C in the south. Minimum temperatures of –10C may occur on a still clear winter’s night in inland areas.
It is frequently said that Great Britain does not experienced climate, but only weather. This statement suggest that there is such a day-to-day variation in temperature, rainfall, wind direction, wind speed and sunshine that the “average weather conditions” implied by the term climate have little real meaning. However, too much stress should not be laid on these short-term changes.
No place in Britain is more than 120 km from the sea. But although the British are crowded very closely in a very small country, there is one respect in which they are very fortunate. This is their climate.
It is no wonder that, living in such an unreliable climate with so many rules and with still more exceptions, the Englishmen talk a lot about the weather. Because they adore their weather, what ever it may be, and their climate, too.
The most unpleasant aspect of the British weather is fog and smog. This is extremely bad in big cities and especially in London.
The fog spreads everywhere, it is in the streets and it creeps into the houses. Cars move along slowly, but still street accidents are frequently in the fog. People cannot see each other. They creep along the houses touching them with their hands not to lose their way or not to be run over by car.
Smog is very bad for health. In famous London of 1952, about 4,000 people died into two weeks from chest diseases such as bronchitis and pneumonia. In 1956, the British government introduced legislation against air pollution – the Clean Air Act. It became illegal to burn coal or wood in residential areas.