Spring is here.

Springsprung_ · 01-02-2017 9:08am #1

Welcome Spring, goodbye Winter.

Dr Crayfish · 01-02-2017 9:11am

You're a month early. Every bloody year...

Poor Uncle Tom · 01-02-2017 9:14am

What did the tree say to spring?

What a re-leaf.

Captain Chaos · 01-02-2017 9:19am

Winter = December, January, February. End off.

CyrilFiggis · 01-02-2017 9:38am

Spring traditionally starts in Ireland on 1 February. February will never be winter for me

Captain Chaos · 01-02-2017 9:41am

CyrilFiggis wrote: »

Spring traditionally starts in Ireland on 1 February. February will never be winter for me

So is August the start of Autumn then.... it's the old school ways that are wrong.

Summer = June July August
Autumn = September October November

01-02-2017 10:00am

Captain Chaos wrote: »

So is August the start of Autumn then.... it's the old school ways that are wrong.

Summer = June July August
Autumn = September October November

I kind of like how the Irish seasonal calendar is out of sync with the rest of the world. Since Halloween was originally a day to the end of the harvest, it makes sense to me that November should be the start of winter. Also May day was a big thing in ye olde times as it marked the arrival of the summer.

Meteorologists be dammed, February is spring time!

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 10:03am

For Climatological purposes, on the basis of air temperature, seasons are regarded as three - month periods as follows: December to February - winter, March to May - spring, June to August - summer and September to November - autumn. This is a common grouping in the meteorological practice of many countries in the middle and northern latitudes.

Link from Met Eireann

How people can think today is Spring is crazy. Summer is June, July and August.

August is not autumn as so many try to make out.

CyrilFiggis · 01-02-2017 10:06am

murpho999 wrote: »

Link from Met Eireann

How people can think today is Spring is crazy. Summer is June, July and August.

August is not autumn as so many try to make out.

Yeah, like Met Eireann are going to be right for the first time ever over this :P

WesternZulu · 01-02-2017 10:11am

The Irish calendar seems to sync better with the amount of daylight we get so it works better for me.
It's not like there is much of a temperature difference between spring and winter here anyway!

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 10:14am

CyrilFiggis wrote: »

Yeah, like Met Eireann are going to be right for the first time ever over this :P

They actually know a good bit about climate amazing enough.

Also, they are often right about the weather. It's the tabloid media and the likes of Jounal.ie and joe.ie who talk of hurricanes, blizzards and then heatwaves in the summer.

People then believe it and then blame Met Eireann when it doesn't happen.

infogiver · 01-02-2017 10:16am

Springsprung_ wrote: »

Welcome Spring, goodbye Winter.

If only.

infogiver · 01-02-2017 10:16am

CyrilFiggis wrote: »

Spring traditionally starts in Ireland on 1 February. February will never be winter for me

Even though it's often the coldest month of the year?

CyrilFiggis · 01-02-2017 10:20am

infogiver wrote: »

Even though it's often the coldest month of the year?

Yes, even so. The seasons operate under fixed dates. If they were dependent on starting everytime we hit a certain temperature, they would be different every year.

Noveight · 01-02-2017 10:23am

I could never call February winter, not with the amount of day light we're getting in the evenings.

01-02-2017 10:24am

CyrilFiggis wrote: »

Yes, even so. The seasons operate under fixed dates. If they were dependent on starting everytime we hit a certain temperature, they would be different every year.

If it was based on temperatures, I'm not sure Ireland would be entitled to a "summer" at all. :pac:

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 10:32am

Noveight wrote: »

I could never call February winter, not with the amount of day light we're getting in the evenings.

Seasons are not based on light.

Even so still dark in the evening but increasing by about a minute per day.

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 10:33am

Deleted User wrote: »

I kind of like how the Irish seasonal calendar is out of sync with the rest of the world. Since Halloween was originally a day to the end of the harvest, it makes sense to me that November should be the start of winter. Also May day was a big thing in ye olde times as it marked the arrival of the summer.

Meteorologists be dammed, February is spring time!

So following that logic, August, which is peak summer holiday season is Autumn. Makes no sense.

pebbles21 · 01-02-2017 10:36am

There is only two types of weather in this country
Its either raining or its going to rain !

01-02-2017 10:36am

Irish seasons broadly match what is happening in the fields and hedgerows.

Spring has started, growth is creeping back, flowers are pushing their way out of the ground.

It also avoids starting summer on midsummers day.

Autumn coincides with the harvest - September being the middle of the harvest and October being the end of the harvest in Irish.

Sam Kade · 01-02-2017 10:37am

Captain Chaos wrote: »

Winter = December, January, February. End off.

Ends off?

whoopsadoodles · 01-02-2017 10:43am

I bought a very yellow coat at the weekend.

I'm happy for today to be spring so my coat fits in

Sam Kade · 01-02-2017 10:45am

Basil3 wrote: »

If it was based on temperatures, I'm not sure Ireland would be entitled to a "summer" at all. :pac:

If that were the case winter 2015 started the last week of October and didn't end until last week of April.

Elmer Blooker · 01-02-2017 10:52am

St Bridget's day was originally a pre-Christian festival celebrating the return of the light. Nothing to do with seasons or temperatures etc
These ancient people whoever they were had some knowledge of astronomy and this time of year is the halfway point between the winter solstice and the equinox which means that from now on the amount of daylight accelerates rapidly.

Arcade_Tryer · 01-02-2017 11:01am

Just because there are 12 months and 4 seasons does not mean they must be split evenly.

Spring - March, April, May

Summer - June, July, August, September

Autumn - October, November

Winter - December, January, February

Yourself isit · 01-02-2017 11:07am

murpho999 wrote: »

So following that logic, August, which is peak summer holiday season is Autumn. Makes no sense.

It's light vs temperature.

I get both arguments.

lazybones32 · 01-02-2017 11:09am

Yup, Spring is here and there's only 327 days until Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait.

Spring begins when the soil temperatures reach the 6 degree mark and growth begins again.

Yourself isit · 01-02-2017 11:10am

Arcade_Tryer wrote: »

Just because there are 12 months and 4 seasons does not mean they must be split evenly.

Spring - March, April, May

Summer - June, July, August, September

Autumn - October, November

Winter - December, January, February

Good compromise.

Widdershins · 01-02-2017 11:13am

It is Spring to me. Gorse in flower, etc.

Widdershins · 01-02-2017 11:14am

lazybones32 wrote: »

Yup, Spring is here and there's only 327 days until Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait.

Spring begins when the soil temperatures reach the 6 degree mark and growth begins again.

I've observed growth in early January. It's quite advanced now, although not on every tree and plant you look at, of course.

Widdershins · 01-02-2017 11:16am

pebbles21 wrote: »

There is only two types of weather in this country
Its either raining or its going to rain !

I've always felt that's a misconception that we perpetuate because it's funny. Someone will probably come along with a rainfall chart to correct me but I spend a lot of time outdoors and I hear people joking about the Irish weather and can't reconcile that to what I see and feel.

Positively Negative · 01-02-2017 11:17am

Spring starts when my daffodils start flowering. Summer ends when the birds emigrate

topper75 · 01-02-2017 11:20am

May can't be spring. That is a continental European thing where the grip of cold lasts much longer into the year and then they get a blazing summer.

The trees are in leaf in May here on our island and things are well under way. The solstice falls slap bang in the middle of our summer and the winter solstice happens in the middle of our winter.

I think a lot of the internationalisation that has happened in peoples' lives over the last few decades has yielded confusion.

We read foreign press, watch foreign TV, and work in international trade scenarios, EU has us by the short and curlies.

In all that we forget that we are Irish and different.

If it comes to a call between Met Eireann who are around for a hundred odd years and the knowledge passed down by the people through 9 millenia of farming and watching the seasons closely ... forgive me for opting to place more trust in the latter. The four quarters of the Irish calendar aren't made up mumbo jumbo - they match what is actually going on in our land.
Spring is Imbolc to Bealtaine.
Summer is Bealtaine to Lughnasa.
Autumn is Lughnasa to Samhain.
Winter is Samhain to Imbolc.

Rubberlegs · 01-02-2017 11:29am

If today is the start of Spring and given that there are 3 months in a season, that would make August the first month of Autumn. That just seems wrong to me. Also we can have some really nice weather in September, you could be forgiven for thinking it is Summer. I wonder will the defining of seasons eventually fade out, or will they have to be redefined altogether. The weather can be too unpredictable in Ireland though anyway!

Widdershins · 01-02-2017 11:30am

I'm ok with August being Autumn as I associate August and Autumn with harvests and I pick apples in August.

Malari · 01-02-2017 11:32am

I don't think we have to stick with 3 months a season! It feels like Spring now. All the bulbs are starting to show and it's getting brighter in the mornings and evenings.

Hah, no pun intended! :P

01-02-2017 11:34am

February is the start of spring and August is the start of Autumn simple as that. This is the way it's always been and will be.

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 11:34am

topper75 wrote: »

May can't be spring. That is a continental European thing where the grip of cold lasts much longer into the year and then they get a blazing summer.

The trees are in leaf in May here on our island and things are well under way. The solstice falls slap bang in the middle of our summer and the winter solstice happens in the middle of our winter.

I think a lot of the internationalisation that has happened in peoples' lives over the last few decades has yielded confusion.

We read foreign press, watch foreign TV, and work in international trade scenarios, EU has us by the short and curlies.

In all that we forget that we are Irish and different.

If it comes to a call between Met Eireann who are around for a hundred odd years and the knowledge passed down by the people through 9 millenia of farming and watching the seasons closely ... forgive me for opting to place more trust in the latter. The four quarters of the Irish calendar aren't made up mumbo jumbo - they match what is actually going on in our land.
Spring is Imbolc to Bealtaine.
Summer is Bealtaine to Lughnasa.
Autumn is Lughnasa to Samhain.
Winter is Samhain to Imbolc.

Where are you getting this from? What foreign press are Irish people reading in Europe apart from UK stuff, as language is an issue.

What has EU got to do with seasons?

You claim we are Irish but then ignore what the official Irish body on this matter say, and they say that Spring starts in March.

Sam Kade · 01-02-2017 11:39am

Widdershins wrote: »

I've always felt that's a misconception that we perpetuate because it's funny. Someone will probably come along with a rainfall chart to correct me but I spend a lot of time outdoors and I hear people joking about the Irish weather and can't reconcile that to what I see and feel.

It's the gloom and doom concept, like this winter was mild and reasonably dry for the most part. If you say to anyone that we can't complain they will reply with, we will get the winter yet.

Positively Negative · 01-02-2017 11:54am

There doesn't have to be an exact amount of months in a season really, and the season doesn't have to start on the first day of a month.

Seasons are gods or universe made, calendars are human made

biko · 01-02-2017 11:59am

Yay, it's spring!

skankkuvhima · 01-02-2017 12:02pm

murpho999 wrote: »

official Irish body on this matter say, and they say that Spring starts in March.

According to another official Irish body we're supposed to be paying water charges so I don't take much notice of official Irish bodies.

murpho999 · 01-02-2017 12:10pm

skankkuvhima wrote: »

According to another official Irish body we're supposed to be paying water charges so I don't take much notice of official Irish bodies.

Which body is that? As that has been suspended by the government.

Ridiculous argument.

kopite386 · 01-02-2017 12:41pm

For me anyways it has and always will be
Winter: November, December, January
Spring: February, March, April
Summer: May, June, July
Autumn: August, September, October
St Brigid's day is the 1st of February & marks the beginning of spring
As for Met Eireann what they actually say is we define summer as the three warmest months of year which they say is June, July and August technically we get better weather in September than we do in June so if we to go by that it should be July, August and September

FWIW (which I know isn't a lot haha :pac: ) I agree with my quote below that summer solstice is midsummer (June) and the winter solstice midwinter (December) - so if midwinter is December that means winter starts in November
I got this from another similar thread that came up in 2010

People often query the timing of the seasons but rarely question midsummer or midwinter. Midsummer is the summer solstice - the longest day - and midwinter being the winter solstice - the shortest day.

Midwinter is December 21 and Midsummer is Jun 21. Winter then is 6.5 weeks (45 days) each side of midwinter and summer is 6.5 weeks (45 days) either side of midsummer. That would put summer around 7 May to 5 Aug roughly. Winter would be around 5 Nov to 4 February roughly.

So approximating summer to May, June, July and winter to Nov Dec Jan would make sense with midwinter and midsummer falling roughly halfway in both periods. Spring and Autumn are then Feb, Mar, Apr for spring and Aug, Sep, Oct for autumn.

Don't know if many will accept that, but that's how I think we decided on the months for each season.

Arcade_Tryer · 01-02-2017 2:31pm

Arabella Sparse Hemp wrote: »

February is the start of spring and August is the start of Autumn simple as that. This is the way it's always been and will be.

Nonsense. It's 6 degrees celcius with a wind chill right now on the east coast. Spring my backside.

topper75 wrote: »

Spring is Imbolc to Bealtaine.
Summer is Bealtaine to Lughnasa.
Autumn is Lughnasa to Samhain.
Winter is Samhain to Imbolc.

Have no idea what this means.

Alun · 01-02-2017 2:36pm

Arcade_Tryer wrote: »

Nonsense. It's 6 degrees celcius with a wind chill right now on the east coast. Spring my backside.

The temperature reading in my car just now was 10 deg, but when I got out it felt more like -10 with the wind and ice cold rain.

Spring my @rse.

conditioned games · 01-02-2017 2:46pm

One more month of winter left before the 1st of March which is the beginning of Spring. That's not going to change any time soon. The seasons are as follows;

December January February = Winter
March April May = Spring
June July August = Summer
September October November = Autumn

RobertKK · 01-02-2017 2:47pm

It is still winter, now for the science bit based on temperature, this from my weather station.

2016

                  Temperature (&#176;C), Heat Base: 18.3  Cool Base: 18.3
                          Dep.  Heat  Cool                       Max  Max  Min  Min
        Mean  Mean        From  Deg   Deg                        >=   <=   <=   <=
 YR MO  Max   Min   Mean  Norm  Days  Days  Hi  Date  Low  Date 27.0  0.0  0.0 -18.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 16  1   7.6   2.7   5.3   0.0   400     0  12.1  26  -0.8   15    0    0    3    0
 16  2   7.0   1.4   4.2   0.0   407     0  11.4  21  -1.8   24    0    0    7    0
 16  3   9.3   2.2   5.4   0.0   396     0  13.0  13  -0.9    4    0    0    3    0
 16  4  11.0   2.7   6.5   0.0   350     0  16.3  19  -0.9    9    0    0    3    0
 16  5  16.6   7.5  11.7   0.0   205     2  21.9  28   3.4    3    0    0    0    0
 16  6  18.7  10.6  14.1   0.0   133     7  23.5   9   6.5    3    0    0    0    0
 16  7  19.2  11.5  14.8   0.0   118    10  27.8  19   7.2    2    1    0    0    0
 16  8  19.2  11.8  14.9   0.0   111     6  24.7  16   7.7    9    0    0    0    0
 16  9  17.3  10.4  13.5   0.0   148     3  24.7   5   6.4   22    0    0    0    0
 16 10  13.2   7.7  10.0   0.0   255     0  15.9   2   4.9    2    0    0    0    0
 16 11   7.6   2.3   5.0   0.0   418     0  14.4  14  -1.9   20    0    0    9    0
 16 12   8.9   4.3   6.8   0.0   355     0  12.7   7  -0.1   20    0    0    1    0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        13.0   6.3   9.3   0.0  3302    29  27.8 Jul  -1.9  Nov    1    0   26    0

2015

Temperature (&#176;C), Heat Base: 18.3  Cool Base: 18.3
                          Dep.  Heat  Cool                       Max  Max  Min  Min
        Mean  Mean        From  Deg   Deg                        >=   <=   <=   <=
 YR MO  Max   Min   Mean  Norm  Days  Days  Hi  Date  Low  Date 27.0  0.0  0.0 -18.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 15  1   7.0   1.4   4.2   0.0   414     0  14.9   9  -3.2   19    0    0   12    0
 15  2   6.4   1.1   3.6   0.0   403     0  11.2  25  -3.4    4    0    0    8    0
 15  3   9.4   2.1   5.7   0.0   365     0  13.8  22  -1.2    3    0    0    6    0
 15  4  13.8   4.2   8.6   0.0   283     0  18.9   6  -0.2   28    0    0    2    0
 15  5  13.3   5.5   9.3   0.0   273     0  17.2  22   0.0   22    0    0    1    0
 15  6  17.8   8.5  12.9   0.0   159     2  23.1  30   3.3    1    0    0    0    0
 15  7  17.8  10.4  13.6   0.0   144     1  24.8   1   6.4   25    0    0    0    0
 15  8  18.2  10.2  13.7   0.0   145     2  23.1  18   6.8   15    0    0    0    0
 15  9  15.4   8.6  11.5   0.0   202     0  19.2  17   5.8    6    0    0    0    0
 15 10  13.4   7.3  10.1   0.0   255     0  17.4   1   3.6   13    0    0    0    0
 15 11  11.2   5.7   8.5   0.0   285     0  15.1   6  -0.1   23    0    0    1    0
 15 12  10.4   4.8   7.8   0.0   323     0  12.8  18   0.8   31    0    0    0    0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        12.8   5.8   9.1   0.0  3257     7  24.8 Jul  -3.4  Feb    0    0   30    0

2014

Temperature (&#176;C), Heat Base: 18.3  Cool Base: 18.3
                          Dep.  Heat  Cool                       Max  Max  Min  Min
        Mean  Mean        From  Deg   Deg                        >=   <=   <=   <=
 YR MO  Max   Min   Mean  Norm  Days  Days  Hi  Date  Low  Date 27.0  0.0  0.0 -18.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 14  1   7.3   2.4   4.8   0.0   412     0  10.8  24  -0.1   14    0    0    1    0
 14  2   7.5   2.1   4.6   0.0   373     0  10.1  19  -0.4   11    0    0    3    0
 14  3   9.8   3.2   6.2   0.0   365     0  14.1  19  -0.3   22    0    0    1    0
 14  4  13.7   6.1   9.3   0.0   268     0  18.7  29   2.7    8    0    0    0    0
 14  5  14.9   7.7  11.0   0.0   225     0  19.9  31   5.1   12    0    0    0    0
 14  6  18.8  10.0  14.1   0.0   131     7  25.2  18   5.3    5    0    0    0    0
 14  7  21.0  12.4  16.1   0.0    85    19  27.7  25   7.7    6    1    0    0    0
 14  8  17.4  10.1  13.2   0.0   155     1  21.4   7   6.6   23    0    0    0    0
 14  9  18.7  10.4  14.0   0.0   130     3  21.7   4   6.7    8    0    0    0    0
 14 10  12.1   6.2   9.0   0.0   210     0  17.2   2   0.0   17    0    4    5    0
 14 11   9.7   4.7   7.3   0.0   317     0  12.9   1   0.4   23    0    0    0    0
 14 12   7.3   2.7   5.1   0.0   396     0  11.9  21  -2.0   28    0    0    5    0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        13.2   6.5   9.6   0.0  3073    32  27.7 Jul  -2.0  Dec    1    4   15    0

February is one of the coldest months of the year as it is still winter.

subpar · 01-02-2017 2:54pm

The sun gains approximately 10 degrees height in the sky during February and the days lengthen by roughly 4 mins extra daylight each day so winter is truly left behind this month.

LushiousLips · 01-02-2017 2:57pm

conditioned games wrote: »

One more month of winter left before the 1st of March which is the beginning of Spring. That's not going to change any time soon. The seasons are as follows;

December January February = Winter
March April May = Spring
June July August = Summer
September October November = Autumn

What he said

:D

01-02-2017 3:06pm

conditioned games wrote: »

One more month of winter left before the 1st of March which is the beginning of Spring. That's not going to change any time soon. The seasons are as follows;

December January February = Winter
March April May = Spring
June July August = Summer
September October November = Autumn

Wrong I'm afraid.

November, December, January = winter
February, March, April = spring
May, June, July = Summer
August, September, October = Autumn

Spring is here.

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