A 'weather bomb' named Doris batters the UK
A large and rapidly intensifying storm struck northern Ireland and the UK on Thursday, plastering some areas with snow and bringing widespread wind gusts approaching or exceeding hurricane force.
The storm, named Doris by the UK Met Office, crossed Ireland as it intensified, before pinwheeling between Scotland and England. According to the Met Office, the storm underwent bombogenesis, which occurs when the central pressure in a storm plummets by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours.
As of Thursday afternoon local time, the center of the storm had emerged over the North Sea, with the backside of the circulation battering London and other parts of southeastern England with strong winds. Some light snow was still flying in Scotland, the Met Office said.
This is a sign of a strengthening storm system, since in general, lower air pressure readings correspond to stronger storms with higher winds, heavier precipitation and greater potential to inflict damage.
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According to the Met Office, which names winter storms, a wind gust of 94 miles per hour was recorded at Capel Curig in Gywnedd, North Wales on Thursday morning.
This exceeded hurricane force, which is 74 miles per hour or higher. A wind gust of 82 miles per hour was recorded on the Isle of Wight, near Portsmouth, England, as well, with widespread damaging winds between 60 and 70 miles per hour.
The storm caused delays at airports due to the strong winds, and created some scary scenes as planes attempted to land in the treacherous conditions.
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Andrew Freedman is Mashable's Senior Editor for Science and Special Projects. Prior to working at Mashable, Freedman was a Senior Science writer for Climate Central. He has also worked as a reporter for Congressional Quarterly and Greenwire/E&E Daily. His writing has also appeared in the Washington Post, online at The Weather Channel, and washingtonpost.com, where he wrote a weekly climate science column for the "Capital Weather Gang" blog. He has provided commentary on climate science and policy for Sky News, CBC Radio, NPR, Al Jazeera, Sirius XM Radio, PBS NewsHour, and other national and international outlets. He holds a Masters in Climate and Society from Columbia University, and a Masters in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University.
