Metlink International 2000

Bedales, Petersfield, UK

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Students
There are 62 fourth-year (year 10) students involved in the data collection 
which will be repeated in April/May to provide a comparative set of data 
for use in their GCSE Geography coursework. 
Too many to name &endash; unfair to name just some!
 
Latitude and longitude
51 degrees 2 minutes north 
0 degrees 55 minutes west
100 metres AMSL (the contour runs through the Geography department!)
 
Location
Bedales lies just north of the town of Petersfield (population c. 12,000) 
in the village of Steep (population c. 1000). It is a semi-rural area. 
The school itself is a working farm. The Petersfield area is at the very 
western edge of the Weald and in all directions but east there are shallow 
hills (Chalk downlands locally known as "hangars"). This can produce some 
peculiar meteorological effects including frost hollowing and lee wave winds. 
It is not uncommon for Petersfield to be in cloud when just a few miles south, 
over Butser Hill, the weather is fine.
 
Local time of observations 
11:30 am GMT
 
Location of recordings
In a field adjacent to the Geography building where there is a purpose built 
compound. Meets Met. Office requirements to ensure readings are unaffected by 
buildings etc.
 
Instruments
There is no Stevenson screen but the min/max thermometers are "shaded" and 
all other data are recorded by hand with portable instruments.
 
Typical weather in late January/early February.
Cool, temperate, western, maritime climate therefore quite variable with 
the passage of depressions bringing much rain (occasionally snow) and wind 
but mild conditions interspersed with usually brief anticyclonic intervals 
with bright, cold but calm conditions with frosty mornings and occasional 
radiation fog. Unspectacular, dim, short days &endash; numerous sufferers from 
Seasonal Affective Disorder!