Simon Lee
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simonleewx.com
Simon Lee
@simonleewx.com
Lecturer in Atmospheric Science, University of St Andrews. Large-scale weather & climate variability, prediction & change. simonleewx.com
Pinned
📣 New paper with Lorenzo Polvani published in @agu.org GRL!

Increasing Frequency and Persistence of the Summertime Greenland High Regime Not Captured by a Seasonal Prediction Model Very Large Ensemble

Open access: doi.org/10.1029/2025...

@earthscista.bsky.social @lamont.columbia.edu
As climate headlines go, this one from BBC News somehow manages to distract from what was still extreme global warmth in 2025, focusing on the interannual variability rather than the bigger picture.

I thought we were doing better than this nowadays.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
January 14, 2026 at 8:20 AM
Who needs social media for disinformation when you have these? Truly wild indeed
Truly wild that the Sun, Daily Mail, Daily Express & Daily Telegraph all covered false claims that net-zero will "cost" £7.6bn – or even £9tn – which assumes we could have free gas, free petrol, free petrol cars & free gas power plants if we scrapped net-zero

More here: bsky.app/profile/drsi...
January 13, 2026 at 10:50 AM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Conference Week brings together the Early Career & Student Conference and the Annual Weather and Climate Conference, offering two complementary pathways for engagement depending on your career stage, interests, and professional goals.

Submit your abstract online: www.rmets.org/news/call-pa...
January 12, 2026 at 11:33 AM
📣 New paper with Lorenzo Polvani published in @agu.org GRL!

Increasing Frequency and Persistence of the Summertime Greenland High Regime Not Captured by a Seasonal Prediction Model Very Large Ensemble

Open access: doi.org/10.1029/2025...

@earthscista.bsky.social @lamont.columbia.edu
January 10, 2026 at 11:47 AM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Just a taste of the almost Nordic-like beauty on offer here on Deeside yesterday. It really doesn't get better than this in Scotland 🙂 Well.....not any more anyway 😉
January 9, 2026 at 10:47 PM
ECMWF IFS stratospheric wave reflection index forecasts now online, just in time for a reflection event! simonleewx.com/ecmwf-ifs-st...

Reflection events tend to precede a transition from PT to AKR regimes and drive an abrupt cooling across large parts of North America doi.org/10.5194/wcd-...
January 9, 2026 at 5:51 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
86 kt (99 mph) at Scilly St Mary's Airport #StormGoretti
January 8, 2026 at 6:03 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Storm Goretti: Epic view of the wrap around/sting tail...
January 8, 2026 at 6:18 PM
Storm Goretti down to 982 hPa at midday, analysed by the Met Office as a Shapiro–Keyser cyclone with a frontal fracture and warm seclusion.

S–K cyclones are those which can produce sting jets. However, the occurrence of strong surface wind gusts does not on its own confirm a sting jet is present.
January 8, 2026 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
EUMETSAT view: Storm Goretti's approach to the UK and Ireland over the last 6 hours to 0910 UTC. Increased storm warnings for Cornwall. @simonleewx.com @kernowweatherteam.bsky.social
January 8, 2026 at 9:36 AM
Reposted by Simon Lee
I'm excited to announce the official Nullschool app is here!

earth.nullschool.net on mobile browsers works fine, but the app is nicer. Full screen display, persistence across sessions, text size that matches device settings. Even landscape works well.

And, like the website: no ads!

Links below ⬇️
January 7, 2026 at 3:12 PM
Updated time series of daily year-round North American weather regimes for 1 Jan 1979 to 31 Dec 2025 just published on Zenodo: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...

I plan to keep this dataset updated annually. Happy regime-ing!
January 7, 2026 at 4:34 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
EUMETSAT view: Europe's weather in motion for past 8 hours; complex systems about to clash. @simonleewx.com
January 7, 2026 at 4:28 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Heavy snowfall events will occur throughout the 21st century, despite global warming ❄️⛄⛷️

Reason is non-intuitive and relates to the existence of an 'optimal' temp for heavy snow that is insensitive to warming (details: www.nature.com/articles/nat...)

#climate #snow

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Ice and snow warning for most of Scotland as hundreds of schools remain closed
The Met Office warning covering all of Scotland apart from Shetland is from 22:00 on Wednesday until noon on Thursday.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 7, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Fancy working somewhere with views like this less than a 10 min walk from your office?

Are you an outstanding scholar of international standing within the field of Earth and environmental sciences?

This could be the job for you: www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk/Vacancies/I/...
January 5, 2026 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Starting 2026 with a bang, our paper is published! 🎉🎉🎉

In it, we explored how polar amplification depends on the underlying climate state, with implications for understanding the past and future evolution of polar climate change!

Enjoy! :)

agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2025GL118423
January 6, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Lunar halo last night — often a sign of wintry precipitation the next day — and a dusting of snow in St Andrews this morning.
January 6, 2026 at 9:58 AM
Fancy working somewhere with views like this less than a 10 min walk from your office?

Are you an outstanding scholar of international standing within the field of Earth and environmental sciences?

This could be the job for you: www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk/Vacancies/I/...
January 5, 2026 at 5:12 PM
Join us in Exeter for the Annual Weather & Climate Conference 2026! 👇

We welcome contributions from all those working in or studying weather and climate, their applications, and related interdisciplinary fields, across academia and the public and private sectors.
Call for Papers: Weather and Climate Conference, 8 - 10 July 2026! Submit your work to share insights and help shape the conversation on weather, climate, and their applications in our rapidly changing world. www.rmets.org/conference/w...
January 5, 2026 at 1:59 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
🚨Professorship at St Andrews🚨

We are recruiting a Professor in Earth Sci (incl atmos, oceans, climate) @earthscista.bsky.social @uniofstandrews.bsky.social

Ideal candidate is a leading researcher with interests in impact/outreach. Deadline 23/3/26!

www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk/Vacancies/I/...
Chair in Earth Sciences - AC2672
Chair in Earth Sciences - AC2672, Earth and Environmental Sciences Salary: Grade 9/Negotiable Start Date: September 2026 , <p style="margin-right: 22.7pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: bl...
www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk
January 5, 2026 at 9:26 AM
Reposted by Simon Lee
2025 goes down as the ~3rd-warmest year on record (based on ERA5).

Like in 2024, every single day this past year was warmer than the average of even the most recent reference period (1991-2020).
January 4, 2026 at 5:38 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
📣 We seek to appoint a Chair (with rank of professor) within the School of Earth & Environmental Sciences. The successful candidate will be an outstanding scholar of international standing in the field.

🗓 Closing Date: 23 March 2026

Full details: www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk/Vacancies/I/...
Chair in Earth Sciences - AC2672
Chair in Earth Sciences - AC2672, Earth and Environmental Sciences Salary: Grade 9/Negotiable Start Date: September 2026 , <p style="margin-right: 22.7pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: bl...
www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk
December 23, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
2025 was the warmest year on record for Central England in a dataset that starts in 1659.

(Daily data available since 1772.)

www.metoffice.gov.uk/hadobs/hadce...
January 1, 2026 at 2:56 PM
Reposted by Simon Lee
Yorkshire Water’s Thruscross Reservoir on 16 September (left) and today (right) — now full and overflowing.

Another situation of a tremendous hydrological swing and another lucky escape from critical drought.

But we won’t always be so lucky…
December 24, 2025 at 1:55 PM