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The OP asked a sensible question, so I will attempt to answer it with the truth rather than with a one liner soundbite nonsense about how there's going to be a new ice age just because we're having a cold snap at the moment.
Derby, like the whole of the UK, experiences a typical "Oceanic" (sometimes referred to as a "Marine West Coast") climate (Cfb under the Koppen climate classification system: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oceanic_climate). Similar climate conditions prevail in most of the rest of northwest Europe, as well as the Pacific northwest of the US and places like New Zealand's South Island and southern Chile – but the UK probably has the most typical example of this climate. It is on the other hand a very different type of climate to the "hot summer, cold winter" climate experienced in Eastern and Central Europe, or across much of the US.
Our type of climate is generally characterised by warm, but not hot summers and cool, but not cold winters, a relatively narrow annual temperature range, and moderate but fairly consistent levels of precipitation all year (ie. no wet or dry seasons).
In the UK, winters are usually around 1-8C, with it often (though not always) dropping below zero at night. Winters are very cloudy and overcast though – generally 4 days out of five will be largely sunless! This combined with the very short daylight hours mean that a British winter can be seriously gloomy and depressing! Heavy snowfalls can occur from any time from December to April but only during cold snaps – the snow will melt after a few days and is an exception rather than the rule.
Summers are mild to warm (but only rarely actually hot). 18C-22C would be normal for somewhere central like Derby. There is generally less cloud cover and more sunshine than in winter but there will still be a fair share of overcast days too, plus – on occasion – heavy rain. If you're lucky however high summer coincides with a prolonged dry spell where Mediterranean-like conditions prevail – but don't count on it.
Autumn and Spring are transitional periods between summer and winter rather than seasons in their own right. They can be more like summer one year, or more a continuation/prelude to winter the next. For example, Spring 2012 often featured gloriously sunny weather and people were on the beach in late March, basking in 20C heat. This year March and April are absolutely Arctic – colder than December and January – because a big blob of high pressure is sitting above Scotland, sucking the cold air down to us from Siberia. Brrr.
Generally speaking the whole climate is characterised by changeability and unpredictability – and each year is often wildly different to the rest. The last two summers have been very cool and wet, and the winters very snowy. Other years will feature near-tropical heatwaves in summer and droughts. Winters can be surprisingly mild and dry. Rainfall has no pattern whatsoever – generally it is fairly evenly distributed, but years we get a bone dry winter and soggy summer – or the other way round.
Personally I find the climate here (that includes Paris) quite depressing, particularly as you cannot seem to rely on any time of year for stable weather. In the last few years it has tended to err on the bad side – summers never come, and it sometimes seem like you don't see the sun for weeks there's just so much cloud and drizzle! However, I know others who relish its changeable nature and get real pleasure from the sudden unexpected sunshine or random snowfalls. Plus there's always cheap flights to Spain or somewhere nice if you get really depressed about it!
It will definitely be a real change from south Florida, that's for sure! Good luck.
The OP asked a sensible question, so I will attempt to answer it with the truth rather than with a one liner soundbite nonsense about how there's going to be a new ice age just because we're having a cold snap at the moment.
Derby, like the whole of the UK, experiences a typical "Oceanic" (sometimes referred to as a "Marine West Coast") climate (Cfb under the Koppen climate classification system: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oceanic_climate). Similar climate conditions prevail in most of the rest of northwest Europe, as well as the Pacific northwest of the US and places like New Zealand's South Island and southern Chile – but the UK probably has the most typical example of this climate. It is on the other hand a very different type of climate to the "hot summer, cold winter" climate experienced in Eastern and Central Europe, or across much of the US.
Our type of climate is generally characterised by warm, but not hot summers and cool, but not cold winters, a relatively narrow annual temperature range, and moderate but fairly consistent levels of precipitation all year (ie. no wet or dry seasons).
In the UK, winters are usually around 1-8C, with it often (though not always) dropping below zero at night. Winters are very cloudy and overcast though – generally 4 days out of five will be largely sunless! This combined with the very short daylight hours mean that a British winter can be seriously gloomy and depressing! Heavy snowfalls can occur from any time from December to April but only during cold snaps – the snow will melt after a few days and is an exception rather than the rule.
Summers are mild to warm (but only rarely actually hot). 18C-22C would be normal for somewhere central like Derby. There is generally less cloud cover and more sunshine than in winter but there will still be a fair share of overcast days too, plus – on occasion – heavy rain. If you're lucky however high summer coincides with a prolonged dry spell where Mediterranean-like conditions prevail – but don't count on it.
Autumn and Spring are transitional periods between summer and winter rather than seasons in their own right. They can be more like summer one year, or more a continuation/prelude to winter the next. For example, Spring 2012 often featured gloriously sunny weather and people were on the beach in late March, basking in 20C heat. This year March and April are absolutely Arctic – colder than December and January – because a big blob of high pressure is sitting above Scotland, sucking the cold air down to us from Siberia. Brrr.
Generally speaking the whole climate is characterised by changeability and unpredictability – and each year is often wildly different to the rest. The last two summers have been very cool and wet, and the winters very snowy. Other years will feature near-tropical heatwaves in summer and droughts. Winters can be surprisingly mild and dry. Rainfall has no pattern whatsoever – generally it is fairly evenly distributed, but years we get a bone dry winter and soggy summer – or the other way round.
Personally I find the climate here (that includes Paris) quite depressing, particularly as you cannot seem to rely on any time of year for stable weather. In the last few years it has tended to err on the bad side – summers never come, and it sometimes seem like you don't see the sun for weeks there's just so much cloud and drizzle! However, I know others who relish its changeable nature and get real pleasure from the sudden unexpected sunshine or random snowfalls. Plus there's always cheap flights to Spain or somewhere nice if you get really depressed about it!
It will definitely be a real change from south Florida, that's for sure! Good luck.
Great post!
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