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Two hundred years of thunderstorms in Oxford
Author(s) -
Burt Stephen
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
weather
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.467
H-Index - 40
eISSN - 1477-8696
pISSN - 0043-1656
DOI - 10.1002/wea.3884
Subject(s) - thunderstorm , thunder , historical record , observatory , meteorology , geography , climatology , history , geology , biography , physics , astrophysics , art history
Meteorological records commenced at the Radcliffe Observatory in Oxford in 1772. Detailed records of thunderstorm occurrence are available between 1828 and 1986; since 1986 a reliable private record of thunder frequency from Oxford has been used to extend the record to 2019, forming a record of almost 200 years of thunderstorm frequency for the city – a record probably unique anywhere in the world. This newly digitised record is examined for long‐term (decadal) trends in thunderstorm frequency, and by Lamb Weather Type. Comparisons are made with other long‐period records from West London, around 75km southeast of Oxford. Reasons to account for the marked reduction in thunderstorm frequency in the last decade are suggested.