© Gaz Lloyd-Owen
Are we in for a bumper 07/08 season?
The Met Office has recently confirmed the "overwhelming likelihood" of the climactic anomaly known as La Niña brewing in the Pacific this summer.
Skiers should take note, because the most powerful versions of this meteorological event have a dramatic effect on snowfall. The last was in 1998-9, which was the winter of killer avalanches in the Alps, and record-breaking blizzards in the Pacific Northwest.
According to the Met Office's Climate Variability specialist, Dr Adam Scaife, "all the models are currently pointing to the development of La Niña in the next few months." What's more, he says "they're currently indicating quite a powerful event" - although he sounds a note of caution because the Met Office's models tend to overestimate the size of such anomalies.
What Dr Scaife is less willing to predict, however, is its impact on the Alps. When asked if we were looking at re-run of 1998-9, he said, "my feeling is 'probably not' ". However, he did say that having run climate models and analysed historical data, there was a high chance of warm, rainy weather developing over northern Europe in January and February. At altitude this could of course means lots and lots of snow!
Expect the Met Office's first official long-range forecast for the winter later this month, with more detail to follow in September.
Source: www.welove2ski.com
Photo credit: Gaz Lloyd-Owen
