ABSTRACT
Snow, frost and cold weather occur in most winters, but most frequently constitute a hazard when they occur over protracted periods or during the latter part of the spring when they can severely damage growing crops. Work in the British Meteorological Office has focused attention on the possibility that high sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic off West Africa could have played a major part in maintaining the anomalous atmospheric circulation for more than two months in 1962-3. Information on snowfall and snow cover is provided by a special network of about 190 stations. Many of the most severe blizzards experienced over southern England in the past 100 years have been associated with a depression moving slowly up the English Channel giving very strong easterly or north-easterly winds. Britain was struggling to recover from the shortages and deprivations of wartime in 1947, and fuel supplies in particular were less than adequate when the severe weather struck.
