[Ian Williams]

Well for the third day in a row the UK has been in the wettest in Europe table using the 06 - 06Z time frame. So i guess its about time to do an article from wiki on Plymouth which is where i work and have lived in the past.

Apart from the UK and parts of Italy and Northern Spain most of Europe had a dry day, another very warm one again across Southern Spain.

Plymouth ⁱ/ˈplɪməθ/ is a city and unitary authority area on the south coast of Devon, England, about 190 miles (310 km) south-west of London. It is situated between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound. Since 1967, the City of Plymouth has included the suburbs of Plympton and Plymstock, which are on the east side of the River Plym.

Plymouth's history goes back to the Bronze Age, when its first settlement grew at Mount Batten. This settlement continued to grow as a trading post for the Roman Empire, until the more prosperous village of Sutton, the current Plymouth, surpassed it. In 1620, thePilgrim Fathers left Plymouth for the New World and established Plymouth Colony – the second English settlement in what is now the United States of America. During the English Civil War the town was held by the Parliamentarians and was besieged between 1642 and 1646.

Throughout the Industrial Revolution, Plymouth grew as a major commercial shipping port, handling imports and passengers from the Americas, while the neighbouring town of Devonport grew as an important Royal Naval shipbuilding and dockyard town. In 1914 the three neighbouring and independent towns, viz., the county borough of Plymouth, the county borough of Devonport, and theurban district of East Stonehouse were merged to form a single County Borough. The new, merged town took the name of Plymouth which, in 1928, achieved city status. The city's naval importance later led to its targeting and partial destruction during World War II, an act known as the Plymouth Blitz. After the war the city centre was completely rebuilt.

Today the city is home to around 250,000 people, making it the 19th most populous city in the United Kingdom. It is governed locally by Plymouth City Council and is represented nationally by three MPs. Plymouth's economy is still strongly influenced by shipbuilding, but has become a more service-based economy since the 1990s. It has the ninth largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students, the University of Plymouth, and the largest operational naval base in Western Europe – HMNB Devonport. The city has ferry links to France and Spain.




Geography
See also: List of places in PlymouthNortheastward view of Plymouth Soundfrom Mount Edgcumbe Country Park in Cornwall, with Drake's Island (centre) and, behind it from left to right, the Royal Citadel, the fuel tanks of Cattedown, and Mount Batten; in the background, the hills ofDartmoor.Plymouth lies between the River Plym to the east and the River Tamar to the west; both rivers flow into the natural harbour of Plymouth Sound.^[50] Since 1967, the unitary authority of Plymouth has included the, once independent, towns of Plympton and Plymstock which lie along the east of the River Plym.^[8] The River Tamar forms the county boundary between Devon and Cornwall and its estuary forms the Hamoaze on which is sited Devonport Dockyard.^[50]

The River Plym, which flows off Dartmoor to the north-east, forms a smaller estuary to the east of the city called Cattewater. Plymouth Sound is protected from the sea by the Plymouth Breakwater, in use since 1814.^[51] In the Sound is Drake's Island which is seen from Plymouth Hoe, a flat public area on top of limestone cliffs.^[52] The Unitary Authority of Plymouth is 30.8 square miles (80 km²),^[53] but the city of Plymouth, as cited from Plymouth City Council, is 30.61 square miles (79.3 km²).^[54] The topography rises from sea level to a height, at Roborough, of about 509 feet (155 m) above Ordnance Datum (AOD).^[54]

Geologically, Plymouth has a mixture of limestone, Devonian slate, granite and Middle Devonian limestone.^[55] Plymouth Sound, Shores and Cliffs is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, because of its geology.^[56] The bulk of the city is built upon Upper Devonian slates and shales and the headlands at the entrance to Plymouth Sound are formed of Lower Devonian slates, which can withstand the power of the sea.^[55]

A band of Middle Devonian limestone runs west to east from Cremyll to Plymstock including the Hoe.^[55] Local limestone may be seen in numerous buildings, walls and pavements throughout Plymouth.^[55] To the north and north east of the city is the granite mass of Dartmoor; the granite was mined and exported via Plymouth. Rocks brought down the Tamar from Dartmoor include ores containing tin, copper, tungsten, lead and other minerals.^[55] There is evidence that the middle Devonian limestone belt at the south edge of Plymouth and in Plymstock was quarried at West Hoe, Cattedown and Radford.^[57]

On 27 April 1944 Sir Patrick Abercrombie's Plan for Plymouth to rebuild the city was published; it called for the demolition of the few remaining pre-War buildings in the city centre and their replacement with wide, modern boulevards aligned east–west linked by a north–south avenue (Armada Way) connecting the railway station and Plymouth Hoe.^[31] Prefabs had started to be built by 1946, and over 1,000 permanent council houses were built each year from 1951–57.^[33] By 1964 over 20,000 new homes had been built, more than 13,500 of them permanent council homes and 853 built by the Admiralty.^[33] Plymouth is home to 28 parks with an average size of 45,638 square metres (491,240 sq ft).^[58] Its largest park is Central Park,^[59] with other sizeable green spaces including Victoria Park, Freedom Fields Park, Alexandra Park, Devonport Park and the Hoe.^[58]


[edit]Climate

Plymouth[60]
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D 114 93 92 83 87 104 59 126 61 158 57 1811 55 2013 69 1913 76 1811 95 159 101 116 116 104 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm
[show]Imperial conversion

Along with the rest of South West England, Plymouth has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. This means a wide range of exotic plants can be grown. The annual mean temperature is approximately 11 °C (52 °F). Due to the modifying effect of the sea the seasonal range is less than in most other parts of the UK.^[61] February is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 3 °C (37 °F) and 4 °C (39 °F). Snow is rare, not usually equating to more than a few flakes, but there have been exclusions, namely the European winter storms of 2009-10 which, in early January, covered Plymouth in at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) of snow; more on higher ground. Another period of notable snow occurred from 17–19 December 2010 when up to 8 inches (20 cm) of snow fell through the period – though only 2 inches (5 cm) would lie at any one time due to melt. Over the 1961–1990 period, annual snowfall accumulation averaged less than 7 cm (3 in) per year.^[62] July and August are the warmest months with mean daily maxima over 19 °C (66 °F).^[60]

South West England has a favoured location when the Azores High pressure area extends north-eastwards towards the UK, particularly in summer. Coastal areas have average annual sunshine totals over 1,600 hours.^[61]

Rainfall tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions or with convection. The Atlantic depressions are more vigorous in autumn and winter and most of the rain which falls in those seasons in the south-west is from this source. Average annual rainfall is around 980 millimetres (39 in). November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.^[61]

Typically, the warmest day of the year (1971–2000) will achieve a temperature of 26.6 °C (80 °F),^[63] although in June 1976 the temperature reached 31.6 °C (89 °F),^[64] the site record. On average, 4.25 days^[65] of the year will report a maximum temperature of 25.1 °C (77 °F) or above. During the winter half of the year, the coldest night will typically fall to −4.1 °C (25 °F)^[66] although in January 1979 the temperature fell to −8.8 °C (16 °F).^[67] Typically, 18.6 nights^[68] of the year will register an air frost.

[hide]Climate data for Plymouth, elevation 27m, 1971–2000, extremes 1960–
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	14.4 (57.9)	14.6 (58.3)	18.3 (64.9)	24.1 (75.4)	25.9 (78.6)	31.6 (88.9)	31.0 (87.8)	30.9 (87.6)	26.3 (79.3)	23.0 (73.4)	17.1 (62.8)	16.1 (61.0)	31.6 (88.9)
Average high °C (°F)	8.8 (47.8)	8.7 (47.7)	10.2 (50.4)	12.2 (54.0)	15.2 (59.4)	17.5 (63.5)	19.8 (67.6)	19.8 (67.6)	17.6 (63.7)	14.6 (58.3)	11.5 (52.7)	9.7 (49.5)	13.8 (56.8)
Average low °C (°F)	3.8 (38.8)	3.6 (38.5)	4.6 (40.3)	5.6 (42.1)	8.5 (47.3)	11.0 (51.8)	13.2 (55.8)	13.2 (55.8)	11.3 (52.3)	9.1 (48.4)	6.0 (42.8)	4.9 (40.8)	7.9 (46.2)
Record low °C (°F)	−8.8 (16.2)	−7 (19)	−7 (19)	−2.4 (27.7)	−0.5 (31.1)	2.9 (37.2)	6.1 (43.0)	5.9 (42.6)	1.9 (35.4)	−1 (30)	−3.4 (25.9)	−5.7 (21.7)	−8.8 (16.2)
Precipitation mm (inches)	116 (4.57)	98 (3.86)	83 (3.27)	60 (2.36)	60 (2.36)	60 (2.36)	47 (1.85)	67 (2.64)	82 (3.23)	101 (3.98)	106 (4.17)	125 (4.92)	1,002.9 (39.484)
Mean monthly sunshine hours	59	79	123	185	224	213	220	208	159	113	76	51	1,710
Source #1: MeteoFrance[69]
Source #2: NOAA[70]

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This post has been edited by Ian Williams: 22 December 2012 - 12:00

[Ian Williams]

Here are the extremes for this day in 2011

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