INTRODUCTION: OVERVIEW OF ARCHITECTURE
Architecture is one of human’s most visible and long-term forms of expression. Since the time of the Pyramids in Egypt, to the Pantheon of ancient Greece, buildings have been an expression of our culture. In the last 150 years, a unique form of artistry has developed, changing the way we view the urban environments around us. Today’s people have tried to blend ancient and modern architecture, creating something that inspires people every day. While modern designs energize people, few know the history of architecture & where it started.
The Beginning of Architecture:
Architecture started in Nile valley for the very first time, while second centre of architecture was discovered in valley of Euphrates and Tigris. Ancient architecture had two main functions to consolidate power and security and to amuse the Gods. The wealthier the society, the more essential these functions became.
The Greeks and the Romans:
The art of Euphrates and Tigris blended in art of Greek, though Greek architecture has a very strong origin itself. The Greeks evolve cement in about 200 BC as a building material, in place of such weaker mortars as gypsum plaster or bitumen. The main secret of the newly acquired material was the lime which binds clay, sand and water. A series of aesthetically pleasing architectures came up in the early 15th century in Italy. In the 16th century the Romans developed a base for construction and decoration and from them it spread to the rest of the world.
The Romans used finely ground volcanic lava instead of clay, deriving it mostly from Pozzuoli region. Their cement, popularly known as pozzolanic, was the strongest mortar at that time. When it was blended with small fragments of volcanic rubble, the result was extremely concrete. The Romans set out the principles of their crafts in ten volumes that dealt with all aspects, from the general principles to materials, to stucco work, aqueducts, painting, and machinery. This treatise is one of the most, if not the most influential material in the history of architecture.
The Roman’s Greatest Achievements:
The greatest accomplishments of the Roman architecture lie in the development of the dome, the arch, and the vault. The dome has for years been a familiar concept, but it has not been widely used. The arch has greater capabilities as compared to the lintel, because it can combine a number of smaller units to make a greater whole. The vault is only a remarkably deep arch. The dome is actually a collection of arches all sharing one centre. The Roman achievement in all the forms was aided by their improvement of concrete.
The scale of Romans smartness is superbly seen in the aqueduct at Nîmes, popularly called the bridge of the Gard. Built in AD 20, this bridge is 100% practical. One section of this colossal structure supplies water from Eure River to the Roman town of Nîmes. Water flows smoothly downhill for about 50 km. After the Romans discovered a base for decoration and construction, it spread to the rest of the world. The influence of many of the Roman’s designs spread throughout Europe in 16th century, before losing their taste two centuries later.
The Chinese, Japanese and Indian Achievements:
In 19th century, architecture flourished greatly thanks to the development of resources. Designs influenced by Chinese, Japanese and Indian art and architecture were popular in the early 19th century. The Chinese architecture emphasized more on decorative aspect as compared to the constructive aspect. The Chinese introduced a new art of mosques and palaces of India, Turkey, Persia and Spain to the world. There architecture was based on three fundamental structural principles: lintel, vault, and truss. The adoption of these construction principles actually affected the styles and decoration of structures.
Modern Designs:
The Combination of early and modern architecture took place as years went by. People started incorporating the ancient architecture with the modern architecture to create eye catching buildings. As a result, architecture became a mixture of past and present. In different high profile structures, earlier and modern architecture are well blended. For instance, The Royal Pavilion in Brighton, designed by Henry Holland, is based on a combination of both ancient and modern designs to give it attraction. The Roman and the Indian architecture are superbly seen in this structure. Any building today, regardless of whether it’s a commercial building, temple or a palace, you will observe that ancient architecture in it.
PREHISTORIC ARCHITECTURE
Background of Prehistoric Architecture
The term "prehistory" was coined by French scholars, referring to the time before people recorded history in writing. This is the longest period in the past of modern man (homo sapiens) that lasted about 400,000 years. Prehistory is not associated with a particular place or time. In some areas in the Near East it continued until the 4th millennium BCE, while in Central America it lasted until 500 BCE. In Hawaii, it lasted until January 17, 1779, when Captain James Cook arrived to the coast of Hawaii. Due to lack of written documentation, prehistoric research is based on remains, which are used as evidence.
Today it is customary to present prehistoric timetables based on division into regions - Africa, South America, Central America, North America, Southwest Asia, Central and Eastern Asia, Australia and surroundings, and Europe.
The timetables presented here relate to prehistoric Southwest Asia and Europe, which are relevant to discussing Western architecture. The dates are approximate.
Southwest Asia
10,000 BCE - Man began to grow grain. Agricultural development greatly changed his life. Instead of wandering from place to place, seeking food, he settled in one place, and learnt how to domesticate animals and grow crops. The change of seasons created a routine of sowing and harvesting.
6500 BCE - A permanent settlement has provided man with time to paint vessels that he prepared, make baskets, use copper and obsidian for his needs, and grow olives and vines. Man began to be an active partner with nature, rather than being satisfied with finished products provided by nature.
5000 BCE - Houses divided into rooms were built, and the earth was plowed.
4000 BCE – In pottery making, the use of potter wheel was widely adopted.
3500 BCE - Agricultural villages became cities. Man discovered that copper can be strengthened by melting it with tin, to create bronze, which replaced stone as the main tool for producing vessels. Man developed the plow, and began to specialize in his work. Sailing and trade practice began, along with the development of mathematics and writing.
Europe
10,000 BCE – Man used cereals, fruits and marine resources, found in nature.
6500 BCE - Villages appeared in the southeastern Europe. Man began to grow cereal and domesticate animals.
4500 BCE – Man began to use copper.
4000 BCE – Man began to practice agriculture. In northwestern Europe megaliths appeared for the first time.
3500 BCE - Began the use of plow and carts.
3000 BCE - Began wool production and the domestication of horses.
2300 BCE - Began the use of writing by the Minoans .
2000 BCE - Began the use of bronze.
100 BCE - Urban settlement began in northern Europe.
The buildings that survived from prehistoric times and are considered architectural works were cult structures. Homes were built with less durable materials, such as mud bricks and wood. Religious motives led to significant achievements throughout the history of architecture beginning with prehistory.
Prehistoric buildings
3,500 years BCE , man has developed a form of architecture based on megaliths (megalith - a big rock; literally in Greek: lithos - stone, megas - big) - structures made of rough huge stone blocks, probably intended for burial ritual.
During prehistoric times, as well as throughout history, stones and rocks were associated with divinity. Examples to this can be found in different cultures: Persian god Mithras was considered as having been born from a rock, marrying a rock and whose father was a rock, Moses struck the rock to get water, the meaning of the word "Petra" in Greek is a stone, hence the name of St. Peter's (Petrus).
Prehistory saw three main types of using megalith stones known to us: menhir, dolmen, and stones arranged in a circle.
Menhirs
Menhir (literally in Brittany French: a long stone; men-stone, hir-long) is a huge stone standing vertically in the ground. Such stones are usually standing in the middle of a field or arranged in rows, which shows that they were transferred to where they are. The piece of stone stuck in the ground is often a fifth to a quarter of its overall height. The average height of these stones is nine meters. The highest menhir in Europe is 20 meters tall above the ground, and four meters under the ground. Despite its enormous weight (350 tons), it was transported several kilometers to its place of use. Today it is composed of four fragments lying on the ground where it was found in Carnac (Brittany, France). Researchers believe that it broke shortly after being brought to its place so that its parts would serve as lintels in dolmens (structures with two vertical stones supporting a third stone), a plan which eventually failed. This hypothesis is based on the dolmens in the area, whose lintels were made of similar blocks of stones.
The number of megaliths in Carnac is the largest in the world. More than 3,000 are found there, dating to the period between about 5000 to 1000 BCE. The word Carnac probably originates in the word Cairn or Carn - a medieval English term, meaning a pile of stones used as a landmark or as a memorial site.
In some menhirs, there is a natural opening, which was probably why they were selected and brought to their place. Some are decorated with decorative patterns - the most common are spiral patterns, concentric circles, and U-shaped and zigzag forms. According to researchers' hypothesis, these patterns are associated with worship of the sun and other heavenly elements.
There are researchers who find a connection between the spiral and concentric circles patterns, and the cult of the Great Goddess - the Universal Mother worshiped in the Mediterranean region as life giver. The researchers interpret the patterns as abstract description of woman's belly, from which life emerges, and as a symbol of the earth's navel. This hypothesis is inspired by the meaning ascribed to the spiral as symbol of Mother Earth among the Indians in North America.
Apart from menhirs engraved with abstract forms, there were menhirs with low reliefs of human figures. Such menhirs were found in Italy, Corsica, and France. In Haut Languedoc region (France) the most common motifs incised on them are a face with two eyes, two arms and two legs. Nose, mouth and ears are absent from most of the reliefs. The height of these stones, dating to 2600-1800 BCE, ranges from 0.80 meters to 4.5 meters, and their weight ranges from hundreds of kilograms to 14 tons.
The best preserved anthropomorphic menhirs are found in museums in France, including: Museum of Natural History in Nîmes, Montpellier Archaeological Society Museum, and Musée Fenaille in Rodez. Scholars believe that these menhirs represent gods or goddesses whose duty was to protect the living or the dead.
One fascinating fact regarding megalithic monuments is their orientation. Menhirs fields are arranged in parallel lines from east to west ending in cromlech - a circle of stones. The menhirs seem as if arranged according to astronomical map. They are laid out on the axis connecting the points of sunrise and sunset on the longest or the shortest day of the year.
The longest day, the shortest day, the spring equinox, and the autumn equinox, divide the year into four seasons. On each of these days were held celebrations to mark the event. Emphasis on orientation may reflect the way God makes his way and the direction from which he is expected to appear. Sun and moon eclipses provided an opportunity for irregular ceremonies marking the return of the sun or the moon, expressing death and resurrection in nature.
The phenomenon of menhirs is not unique to the area of Carnac. Across Europe, there are different types of rows of stones whose number and size vary from place to place, but because most of the stones were damaged during the Middle Ages by builders who reused them, it is difficult to assess how they originally looked. Most of the rows of stones are made of menhirs, which are approximately one meter tall. The number of rows in such a site ranges from two to six, and they run along about 50 meters. In Carnac the stones' height ranges from half a meter to four meters. In each of the rows of stones, the largest stone is located at the western end. Each such row must have ended with a circle of stones.
The rows of stones and stone circles were used as a place of gathering and ceremonies. Some researchers are trying to decipher the menhirs phenomenon. The phallic appearance of most of them brings some researchers to the conclusion that they are associated with fertility cult. Some associate them with sun or moon worship. Others speculate that the menhirs were designated to specify special events or to serve as a sundial. The motive for carrying them was probably religious, because this kind of motive is strong enough to bring people to make such an effort.
Dolmens
The word dolmen originates from the expression taol maen, which means "stone table" in Brittany. The first builders used stones that were within their reach. They built dolmens - sort of structures in a form of a "table", consisting of two huge standing stones supporting a horizontal giant stone. Each of the stones weighs several tons, but those huge stone blocks are laid one upon the other without mortar. There were also low dolmens only about 1.5 meters tall. Originally, the dolmens were covered with more stones and earth, but as time went on, only the megalithic structures remained.
We find dolmens throughout Western Europe, from Italy to the northwest of Ireland, from southern Spain and Portugal to Denmark and southern Sweden. In Israel, hundreds of them are found in the Golan Heights and many others near Kibbutz Shamir.
The dolmen probably served as a grave or as an altar, a table of the gods who were conceived of as giants. There were also found dolmens laid out one after another, in sequence in a form reminiscent of a corridor. "Corridor" type dolmens appeared in western France in the 5th millennium BCE.
When dolmens are standing in a long line (like those in Carnac), they are probably associated with the cult of death. Some of the "corridor" type dolmens served as collective graves, which is why some interpret them as tombstones.
Unlike the menhirs, around which many people gathered, the corridor type of dolmens allowed access only to a limited number of people, being structures with limited space. Findings from recent years indicate the overlap between the time of menhirs lines, menhirs circles and grave structures. These three elements were probably part of one religious system.
Apart from the corridor type of dolmens there was another form of structure - a room with a corbel vault created by a series of horizontal rows of stones, each placed above the other. There are also structures that integrate these two forms of construction, such as a corbel vault over a corridor type of dolmen.
Construction method depended on the type of stones found nearby. Often reliefs adorned the burial chambers with patterns such as zigzag, curved line, axe, and more.
Megalithic monuments have always ignited man's imagination. They provided plenty of legends and superstitions. The French phrase Grotte de Fée (literally in French: Tomb of the goddess of fate) is used in France as the name of many dolmens. The word Fée is the French form of the Latin Fata, meaning goddess of fate. One of the beliefs associated with dolmens was that the fate goddesses carried the huge stones on their heads and in their aprons as they were weaving. Other legends connected dolmens with giants, among them Gargantua, the hero of the book by Rabelais from the 16th century, which was a legendary hero known for a long time before Rabelais wrote his story. Some dolmens are associated by name with him, including: " Gargantua's Bed", " Gargantua's Chair" and " the Giant's Bed".
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a site in southern England, composed of a group of stones arranged in concentric circles. This array of stones is not a single structure, but a series of structures built and rebuilt over a period of about 1,500 years. Researches distinguish three phases of construction in Stonehenge. The first was completed in c.2900 BCE, the second took place during the years c.2900 – c.2500 BCE and the third - from c.2550 to c.1600 BCE.
This is the best preserved megalithic site in Europe. It included a large external circle of triliths (only in Stonehenge the dolmens are called triliths; trilith, literally in Greek: three stones), two internal circles built in a similar manner, and altar-shaped stone in the center.
Today it is hard to distinguish between the circles because some of the stones were gone and some have fallen out of position. In the heart of the inner circle stood a group of stones arranged in a horseshoe shape. The open side of the horseshoe was exactly directing to the point where the sun rises on the longest day of the year. During sunrise, the rays of the sun shine for several minutes exactly into the central axis of the horseshoe.
The round shapes repeated in Stonehenge are an example of a universal reference to celestial events in prehistoric architecture. Bodies that are visible in the sky are round, and according to many cosmological theories, from earlier times, the sun and the stars emerge from earth and return to earth every day.
According to a hypothesis of archaeologists, Stonehenge was a kind of temple where rituals were held on the dates of the longest and shortest days of the year. The relationship between the form of the structure and the "movement" of the sun in the sky made it easier for priests to identify the times when rituals associated with change of seasons would be held. These dates had a special meaning for the primitive man, who practiced agriculture and depended on climate conditions for his living.
The layout of stones in Stonehenge in its architectural structure anticipates later temples and cathedrals, whose orientation was planned according to the sun's daily east to west "movement"
About 80 stones called "bluestones", were brought from Preseli Mountains in southwest Wales to Stonehenge. The question is how the huge stones were brought into place and how the triliths were built. Researchers speculate that they were brought on barges along the southern coast of England, carried by the river, and finally dragged on the ground in sleds.
Apart from bluestones, there was another kind of huge stones in Stonehenge. These are sandstone rocks called sarsen, which were brought from a distance of 40 kilometers north of Stonehenge. These stones, much larger than the bluestones, were placed in a circle about 33 meters in diameter. Today this circle is called the "sarsen Circle". Over 30 stone pillars were placed with lintels (stone beams) above them forming a continuous ring of sarsen stones. Before being erected, they were fashioned with mortise and tenon joints.
The sarsen circle, due to its planning and design, is considered one of the greatest achievements of Stonehenge. The sophisticated engineering of the structure shows that its builders were experienced in building large wood structures.
Out of the 30 original sarsen pillars, 17 are still standing today, bearing six lintels. The horseshoe-shaped structure is also built from sarsen stones. Five pairs of these huge stones hold the lintels above them.
In February 2003 were published research results, according to which in the construction of Stonehenge was involved a person from the Alps (today Switzerland or Germany) whose tomb dating to c.2000 BCE, is found five kilometers from Stonehenge. The many items found in the tomb, including precious objects such as gold earrings, arrowheads, copper knives, and pottery, indicate that the dead man was a royal family member. Checking the skeleton of the man, known by the researchers as "King of Stonehenge ", identified him as a man from the Alps region.
During medieval times, the Stonehenge stone circle was wrapped with mystery and legends. In England and France, it was called "Hanging Stones". Some ascribe it to the fact that the stones seem suspended. Others assume that the stones were used for hanging criminals. Another possibility is that the source of the name is Hengist, the name of one of two brothers who led the first Saxons' invasion to England in the 5th century CE. Hengist's brother was killed, and Hengist and his son conquered the Kingdom of Kent.
In one of King Arthur's tales, Merlin, Arthur's assistant, tells him that these stones were mysterious and could cure many diseases. According to the same story, ancient giants carried the stones from across Africa, brought them to Ireland, and Merlin moved them to Stonehenge by the power of his word.
EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE
Built during a time when Egypt was one of the richest and most powerful civilizations in the world, the pyramids—especially the Great Pyramids of Giza—are some of the most magnificent man-made structures in history. Their massive scale reflects the unique role that the pharaoh, or king, played in ancient Egyptian society. Though pyramids were built from the beginning of the Old Kingdom to the close of the Ptolemaic period in the fourth century A.D., the peak of pyramid building began with the late third dynasty and continued until roughly the sixth (c. 2325 B.C.). More than 4,000 years later, the Egyptian pyramids still retain much of their majesty, providing a glimpse into the country’s rich and glorious past.
The Pharaoh in Egyptian Society
During the third and fourth dynasties of the Old Kingdom, Egypt enjoyed tremendous economic prosperity and stability. Kings held a unique position in Egyptian society. Somewhere in between human and divine, they were believed to have been chosen by the gods to serve as mediators between them and the people on earth. Because of this, it was in everyone’s interest to keep the king’s majesty intact even after his death, when he was believed to become Osiris, god of the dead. The new pharaoh, in turn, became Horus, the falcon-god who served as protector of the sun-god, Ra.
Did You Know?
The pyramid's smooth, angled sides symbolized the rays of the sun and were designed to help the king's soul ascend to heaven and join the gods, particularly the sun god Ra.
Ancient Egyptians believed that when the king died, part of his spirit (known as “ka”) remained with his body. To properly care for his spirit, the corpse was mummified, and everything the king would need in the afterlife was buried with him, including gold vessels, food, furniture and other offerings. The pyramids became the focus of a cult of the dead king that was supposed to continue well after his death. Their riches would provide not only for him, but also for the relatives, officials and priests who were buried near him.
The Early Pyramids
From the beginning of the Dynastic Era (2950 B.C.), royal tombs were carved into rock and covered with flat-roofed rectangular structures known as “mastabas,” which were precursors to the pyramids. The oldest known pyramid in Egypt was built around 2630 B.C. at Saqqara, for the third dynasty’s King Djoser. Known as the Step Pyramid, it began as a traditional mastaba but grew into something much more ambitious. As the story goes, the pyramid’s architect was Imhotep, a priest and healer who some 1,400 years later would be deified as the patron saint of scribes and physicians. Over the course of Djoser’s nearly 20-year reign, pyramid builders assembled six stepped layers of stone (as opposed to mud-brick, like most earlier tombs) that eventually reached a height of 204 feet (62 meters); it was the tallest building of its time. The Step Pyramid was surrounded by a complex of courtyards, temples and shrines, where Djoser would enjoy his afterlife.
After Djoser, the stepped pyramid became the norm for royal burials, although none of those planned by his dynastic successors were completed (probably due to their relatively short reigns). The earliest tomb constructed as a “true” (smooth-sided, not stepped) pyramid was the Red Pyramid at Dahshur, one of three burial structures built for the first king of the fourth dynasty, Sneferu (2613-2589 B.C.) It was named for the color of the limestone blocks used to construct the pyramid’s core.
The Great Pyramids of Giza
No pyramids are more celebrated than the Great Pyramids of Giza, located on a plateau on the west bank of the Nile River, on the outskirts of modern-day Cairo. The oldest and largest of the three pyramids at Giza, known as the Great Pyramid, is the only surviving structure out of the famed seven wonders of the ancient world. It was built for Khufu (Cheops, in Greek), Sneferu’s successor and the second of the eight kings of the fourth dynasty. Though Khufu reigned for 23 years (2589-2566 B.C.), relatively little is known of his reign beyond the grandeur of his pyramid. The sides of the pyramid’s base average 755.75 feet (230 meters), and its original height was 481.4 feet (147 meters), making it the largest pyramid in the world. Three small pyramids built for Khufu’s queens are lined up next to the Great Pyramid, and a tomb was found nearby containing the empty sarcophagus of his mother, Queen Hetepheres. Like other pyramids, Khufu’s is surrounded by rows of mastabas, where relatives or officials of the king were buried to accompany and support him in the afterlife.
The middle pyramid at Giza was built for Khufu’s son Khafre (2558-2532 B.C). A unique feature built inside Khafre’s pyramid complex was the Great Sphinx, a guardian statue carved in limestone with the head of a man and the body of a lion. It was the largest statue in the ancient world, measuring 240 feet long and 66 feet high. In the 18th dynasty (c. 1500 B.C.) the Great Sphinx would come to be worshiped itself, as the image of a local form of the god Horus. The southernmost pyramid at Giza was built for Khafre’s son Menkaure (2532-2503 B.C.). It is the shortest of the three pyramids (218 feet) and is a precursor of the smaller pyramids that would be constructed during the fifth and sixth dynasties.
Approximately 2.3 million blocks of stone (averaging about 2.5 tons each) had to be cut, transported and assembled to build Khufu’s Great Pyramid. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote that it took 20 years to build and required the labor of 100,000 men, but later archaeological evidence suggests that the workforce might actually have been around 20,000. Though some popular versions of history held that the pyramids were built by slaves or foreigners forced into labor, skeletons excavated from the area show that the workers were probably native Egyptian agricultural laborers who worked on the pyramids during the time of year when the Nile River flooded much of the land nearby.
The End of the Pyramid Era
Pyramids continued to be built throughout the fifth and sixth dynasties, but the general quality and scale of their construction declined over this period, along with the power and wealth of the kings themselves. In the later Old Kingdom pyramids, beginning with that of King Unas (2375-2345 B.C), pyramid builders began to inscribe written accounts of events in the king’s reign on the walls of the burial chamber and the rest of the pyramid’s interior. Known as pyramid texts, these are the earliest significant religious compositions known from ancient Egypt.
The last of the great pyramid builders was Pepy II (2278-2184 B.C.), the second king of the sixth dynasty, who came to power as a young boy and ruled for 94 years. By the time of his rule, Old Kingdom prosperity was dwindling, and the pharaoh had lost some of his quasi-divine status as the power of non-royal administrative officials grew. Pepy II’s pyramid, built at Saqqara and completed some 30 years into his reign, was much shorter (172 feet) than others of the Old Kingdom. With Pepy’s death, the kingdom and strong central government virtually collapsed, and Egypt entered a turbulent phase known as the First Intermediate Period. Later kings, of the 12th dynasty, would return to pyramid building during the so-called Middle Kingdom phase, but it was never on the same scale as the Great Pyramids.
The Pyramids Today
Tomb robbers and other vandals in both ancient and modern times removed most of the bodies and funeral goods from Egypt’s pyramids and plundered their exteriors as well. Stripped of most of their smooth white limestone coverings, the Great Pyramids no longer reach their original heights; Khufu’s, for example, measures only 451 feet high. Nonetheless, millions of people continue to visit the pyramids each year, drawn by their towering grandeur and the enduring allure of Egypt’s rich and glorious past.
lunedì 17 aprile 2017
sabato 15 aprile 2017
CLIMATE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
CLIMATE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
The United Kingdom straddles the geographic higher mid-latitudes between 49 and 61 N. It is on the western seaboard of Afro-Eurasia, the world's largest land mass. These conditions allow convergence between moist maritime air and dry continental air. In this area, the large temperature variation creates atmospheric instability and this is a major factor that influences the often unsettled weather the country experiences, where many types of weather can be experienced in a single day. In general the climate of the UK is cool and often cloudy, and hot temperatures are infrequent.
The climate in the United Kingdom is defined as a temperate oceanic climate, or Cfb on the Köppen climate classification system, a classification it shares with most of northwest Europe.[1] Regional climates are influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and latitude. Northern Ireland, Wales and western parts of England and Scotland, being closest to the Atlantic Ocean, are generally the mildest, wettest and windiest regions of the UK, and temperature ranges here are seldom extreme. Eastern areas are drier, cooler, less windy and also experience the greatest daily and seasonal temperature variations. Northern areas are generally cooler, wetter and have slightly larger temperature ranges than southern areas.
Though the UK is mostly under the influence of the maritime tropical air mass from the south-west, different regions are more susceptible than others when different air masses affect the country: Northern Ireland and the west of Scotland are the most exposed to the maritime polar air mass which brings cool moist air; the east of Scotland and north-east England are more exposed to the continental polar air mass which brings cold dry air; the south and south-east of England are more exposed to the continental tropical air mass which brings warm dry air (and consequently most of the time the warmest summer temperatures); and Wales and the south-west of England are the most exposed to the maritime tropical air mass which brings warm moist air.
If the air masses are strong enough in their respective areas during the summer, there can sometimes be a large difference in temperature between the far north of Scotland (including the Islands) and south-east of England – often a difference of 10–15 °C (18-27 °F) but sometimes of as much as 20 °C (36 °F) or more. An example of this could be that in the height of summer the Northern Isles could have temperatures around 15 °C (59 °F) and areas around London could reach 30 °C (86 °F).
SEASONS
SPRING
Spring is the period from March to May. Spring is generally a calm, cool and dry season, particularly because the Atlantic has lost much of its heat throughout the autumn and winter. However, as the sun rises higher in the sky and the days get longer, temperatures can rise relatively high, but often tend to drop off again at night due to the cool oceans and the warm weather dependent solely on the sun. Thunderstorms and heavy showers can develop occasionally particularly towards the end of the season.
There is a fair chance of snow earlier in the season when temperatures are colder - indeed, snow falling in the first half of March is quite common. Often, there is no significant drop in either snowfall or freezing temperatures between February & March, when the surrounding Atlantic is at its coldest. Some of the country's heaviest snowfalls of recent years have happened in the first half of March and snow showers can occur infrequently until mid-April. They have been known to develop as late as mid-May over some areas of the country, such as in 2013 when snow was recorded on 14 May over parts of Staffordshire, Herefordshire and Wales. Snow was also recorded at lower levels in early June 1975.
Early spring can be quite cold, and occasionally the lowest temperatures of the year can occur in March, as it did at Heathrow Airport on 5 March 2001, 4 March 2006 & 8 March 2011. Temperatures below freezing are not unusual in March, even in the south of the UK. On the other hand, high temperatures above 30 °C are generally rare but can occur on occasion, the most recent instance occurring on 25 May 2012. It was even hotter on 27 May 2005, where 31.9 °C was recorded in London. Rarely, the hottest day of the year can be in spring. As stated below May 27 was the hottest day of the year in 2012 in most parts of the UK.
Mean temperatures in Spring are markedly influenced by latitude. Most of Scotland and the mountains of Wales and northern England are the coolest areas of the UK, with average temperatures ranging from −0.6 to 5.8 °C . The southern half of England experiences the warmest spring temperatures of between 8.8 and 10.3 °C.
SUMMER
Summer lasts from June to August and is the warmest and usually the sunniest season. Rainfall totals can have a wide local variation due to localised thunderstorms. These thunderstorms mainly occur in southern, eastern, and central England and are less frequent and severe in the north and west.[18] North Atlantic depressions are not as severe in summer but increase both in severity and frequency towards the end of the season. Summer can see high pressure systems from the Azores High.
Climatic differences at this time of year are more influenced by latitude and temperatures are highest in southern and central areas and lowest in the north. Summer temperatures rarely exceed 35 °C (95 °F), but when this does occur it happens more frequently in London and the South East than other parts of the country. Scotland and northern England have the coolest summers (average means: 12.2 to 14.8 °C (54.0 to 58.6 °F)), while Wales and the south-west of England have warmer summers (average means: 14.9 to 15.4 °C (58.8 to 59.7 °F)) and the south and south-east of England have the warmest summers (average means: 15.5 to 17.7 °C (59.9 to 63.9 °F)).[19] The record maximum is 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) recorded in Faversham, Kent on 10 August 2003.
It is worth noting that a disputed temperature of 39.0 °C (102.2 °F) was recorded at an airfield near Wisley, Surrey on 18 July 2006, during a prolonged heatwave which surprised many meteorologists for not breaking the temperature record set in August 2003, despite being the hottest month ever recorded. Similarly, a disputed temperature of 38.0 °C (100.4 °F) was recorded in Luton on 1 August 1995, which whilst would now have been exceeded, would have held the record until August 2003. It is speculated that higher temperatures may have been recorded in the hot summers of 1908, 1911, 1948, 1955, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1990, 1995 and 2006 (and indeed 2003 itself), which would at least break their own highest temperatures, if not this official figure.
In recent years, some very high temperatures have been recorded only briefly - when warm air is dragged over the country from the south for a day or two. Many meteorologists nickname this a 'flashbang' heatwave, and it is not unusual for it to set off or be followed by intense thundery downpours, or to drag weather fronts with it. It is in these conditions that the highest temperatures in both 2014 - on 17 & 18 July - and 2015 - on 30 June & 1 July - have been recorded. High temperatures can return after thundery conditions or weather fronts pass, as it did between 22 & 24 July 2014. Patterns like this have also occurred further in the past - for example, on 18 & 19 June 2000 and on 28 & 29 July 2002, which is quite notable for severe thunderstorms.
Summers in the 21st century have been a mixed bag, with some long, hot summers (2003, 2006 & 2013), and others which will be remembered solely for flooding caused by downpours (2002, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2012 and 2015). The summer of 2012 was so appalling that March is humorously considered to have been the height of summer, being the only drier than average month throughout the year in many places. For some places in 2012, 27 May was the hottest day of the year.[20] This follows on from an indifferent summer in 2011, in which in Aberdaron, 21 April was the hottest day of the year.[21] Summer 2015 was particularly mixed, with a flash-bang heatwave in the south-east breaking the July temperature with 36.7 °C (98.1 °F) recorded on 1 July, whilst the rest of the country experienced a poor summer, with August in particular being very wet. Despite the mixed summers the UK experiences, somewhere in the UK on at least one occasion has recorded 30 °C or above since 1993. At Heathrow Airport, the last summer in which temperatures did not reach 30 °C was 2007.
AUTUMN
Autumn in the United Kingdom lasts from September to November.[22] The season is notorious for being unsettled—as cool polar air moves southwards following the sun, it meets the warm air of the tropics and produces an area of great disturbance along which the country lies. This combined with the warm ocean due to heating throughout the spring and summer, produces the unsettled weather of autumn. In addition, when the air is particularly cold temperatures on land may be colder than the ocean, resulting in significant amounts of condensation and clouds which bring rain to the country.
Atlantic depressions during this time can become intense and winds of hurricane force (greater than 119 km/h or 74 mph) can be recorded. Western areas, being closest to the Atlantic, experience these severe conditions to a significantly greater extent than eastern areas. As such, autumn, particularly the latter part, is often the stormiest time of the year. One particularly intense depression was the Great Storm of 1987. A very severe storm affected the UK on 27 October 2002, and the autumn of 2013 was also littered with severe storms, including the St. Jude's Storm on 28 October 2013.
Autumn can also be a cold season at times - in recent years, very low temperatures and heavy snowfall have been recorded during November 1985, November 1993 & November 2010, which set a new record low of -18.0 °C in Wales on 28 November 2010. Snow also fell rather widely across the UK on 28 & 29 October 2008, causing traffic problems where it settled on the M4. Even further south, low temperatures can be recorded, with temperatures well below freezing as far south as Heathrow Airport between 29 & 31 October 1997 - for context, the low of 30 October 1997 recorded was lower than any recorded at this station in March, November or December 1997 and even the following January, 1998 - only the low temperatures on 2 & 4 February 1998 prevented it from being the lowest temperature of the winter at this station. The first frosts of the winter are usually recorded between October & December, but they are quite unusual in September except on high ground when the surrounding ocean is at or near its warmest. It is not particularly unusual for September to be warmer than June, as it was in 1999.[23]
However, the United Kingdom sometimes experiences an 'Indian Summer', where temperatures particularly by night can be very mild and rarely fall below 10 °C (50 °F). Such events are aided by the surrounding Atlantic Ocean and seas being at their warmest, keeping the country in warm air, despite the relatively weak sun. Examples of this were in 1985, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2011[24] and 2016 where September and October even more so, saw above average temperatures which felt more like a continuation of summer than autumn. Autumns since 2000 have been very mild with notable extremes of precipitation; the UK has seen some of its wettest and driest autumns since the millennium. In fact, 2011 and 2016 were notable as many areas of the country recorded their highest temperatures of the year in September and October (for example, 28.2 °C at Hawarden on 1 October, 26.3 °C at St. Athan on 2 October 2011 and the UK's highest temperature of 2016 on 13 September with 34.4 °C at Gravesend).[25]
Coastal areas in the southern half of England have on average the warmest autumns, with mean temperatures of 10.7 to 13.0 °C (51.3 to 55.4 °F).[26] Mountainous areas of Wales and northern England, and almost all of Scotland, experience mean temperatures between 1.7 and 7.5 °C (35.1 and 45.5 °F).[26]
WINTER
Winter in the UK is defined as lasting from December to February. The season is generally cool, wet and windy. Temperatures at night rarely drop below −10 °C (14 °F) and in the day rarely rise above 15 °C (59 °F). Precipitation is plentiful throughout the season, though snow is relatively infrequent despite the country's high latitude: The only areas with significant snowfall are the Scottish highlands and the Pennines, where at higher elevations a colder climate determines the vegetation, mainly temperate coniferous forest, although deforestation has severely decreased forest area. For a majority of the landmass snow is possible but not frequent, apart from the higher altitudes, where snow can lie 1–5 months or even beyond 6 months.
Towards the later part of the season the weather usually stabilises with less wind, less precipitation and lower temperatures. This change is particularly pronounced near the coasts mainly because the Atlantic ocean is often at its coldest during this time after being cooled throughout the autumn and the winter. The early part of winter however is often unsettled and stormy; often the wettest and windiest time of the year.
Snow cover on The Saddle in the Scottish Highlands
Snow falls intermittently and mainly affects northern and eastern areas, high ground in Wales and especially the mountains of Scotland where the amount of lying snow is frequently high enough to permit skiing at one of the five Scottish ski resorts. These resorts usually operate between December and April depending on the snowfall each winter. Frequently in the mountains potent depressions may move in from the north in the form of 'polar lows', introducing heavy snow and often blizzard-like conditions to parts of the United Kingdom, particularly Scotland. During periods of light winds and high pressure frost and fog can become a problem and can pose a major hazard for drivers on the roads.
Mean winter temperatures in the UK are most influenced by proximity to the sea. The coldest areas are the mountains of Wales and northern England, and inland areas of Scotland, averaging −3.6 to 2.3 °C (25.5 to 36.1 °F).[27] Coastal areas, particularly those in the south and west, experience the mildest winters, on average 5 to 8.7 °C (41.0 to 47.7 °F).[27] Hardiness zones in the UK are high, ranging from zone 7 in the Scottish Highlands, the Pennines and Snowdonia, to zone 10 on the Isles of Scilly. Most of the UK lies in zones 8 or 9.[28] In zone 7, the average lowest temperature each year is between −17.7 and −12.3 °C (0.1 and 9.9 °F), and in zone 10, this figure is between −1.1 and 4.4 °C (30.0 and 39.9 °F).[29]
Snow in the UK falls almost every year but in small quantities. The UK can suffer extreme winters like 1684, 1740, 1795 (when London received its record lowest temperature of −21.1 °C (−6.0 °F)), 1947 and 1963. In 1963 it snowed on Boxing Day in the UK and snow lasted in most areas until 6 March with blizzards through February, which had significant and documented effects on the FA Cup - Wrexham were forced to play on sand for one tie. In modern times snow has generally become rarer but the UK can still get heavy falls, such as in 1978/79, 1981/82, 1986/87 and 1990/91. The winter of 2008/09 produced the heaviest snowfall since 1991, and the winter of 2009-10 was even more severe, with many parts of the United Kingdom experiencing the coldest and snowiest winters since 1978/79; temperatures plummeted to −22.3 °C (−8.1 °F) at Altnaharra, Sutherland – close to the −22.9 °C (−9.2 °F) recorded at the southernmost part of the globe at the same period. The record for the lowest temperature ever recorded in the UK still remains −27.2 °C (−17.0 °F) which was recorded on 10 January 1982 and 11 February 1895 in Braemar, Scotland and on 30 December 1995 in Altnaharra, Scotland. December 2010 was the coldest December in 120 years; the CET (Central England Temperature) was -0.7 °C, meaning it was the coldest month since February 1986, and the coldest December since 1890. Many places experienced heavy snowfall and extreme cold, temperatures regularly fell below −10.0 °C (14.0 °F)) across many areas. However, the cold subsided after Christmas Day, 2010. It is worth also noting that November 2010 saw an extremely severe cold snap, with lows of −18.0 °C (−0.4 °F)) in Llysdinam on 28 November. The month saw temperatures below average, despite what was actually a very mild first half. Spring 2013 was also notoriously cold - March 2013 was the coldest month of the winter (and indeed 2013 as a whole), which is quite striking given that December 2012, January and February 2013 were all also below average in terms of temperature. The following winter was the opposite - in many places, only on 11 & 12 January was any snow recorded, and the entire country was battered by a series of severe depressions and storms. The St. Jude's day storm first affected the UK on 26 October 2013, and many places saw no respite until a high swept across the country on 2 March 2014. Parts of the Somerset levels remained underwater for most of the winter and well into spring. Record-equalling gusts of 142 mph were recorded off the north coast of Scotland on 5 December 2013, with notably severe storms also recorded on 2 November 2013, 24 December 2013, 3 January 2014 & 14 February 2014.
In the 1990s and 2000s, most of the winters were milder and usually wetter than average with daytime temperatures going below freezing a rare occurrence. In fact, the winter of 1995/1996 was the only one which was defined as below average in terms of the UK as a whole, although February 1991 saw heavy snowfall & January 1997 was cold in the South. The winters of 2008/09, 2009/10 and 2010/11 have however seen a different pattern with these three winters being defined as below or well below average with large snowfall amounts widespread and very low temperatures; this was the first time three consecutive cold winters in the UK have occurred since the 1960s. Since the winter of 2012/2013, winters have been mild (exceptionally so in 2013/2014 and 2015/2016), although exceptionally wet. The winter of 2014/2015 was an oddity, in that it was generally quiet and sunny.
December 2015 became the wettest calendar month ever recorded in the United Kingdom, with January 2016 becoming the second wettest. In these months, some northern and western parts had 2 to 4 times as much rainfall as normal.[30] December 2015 was also the warmest December averaged over the whole UK, and had the highest positive anomaly for any month in the Central England temperature series which began in 1659 (CET was 9.7 °C, this is warmer than even any March[31]). Most areas of southern England had average monthly temperatures 5-6 °C above normal. Some plants flowered that would normally do so in the Spring or even Summer.[32] Hardly any stations in Wales and Southern England recorded any air frosts and temperatures were often comparable to those of April or May. The maximum recorded temperature was 17.2 °C at Teignmouth in Devon and Plockton and Achnagart in the highlands of Scotland on 16th. The lowest daily mean temperature during December 2015 at Heathrow Airport was still 8.2 °C on 9 December, comparable to the average daily high for the calendar month. Remarkably, December 2015 did not break any national records for high temperatures, just failing to reach the maximum England temperature of 17.7 °C recorded on 2 December 1985 in Chivenor, Devon and on 11 December 1994 in Penkridge, Staffordshire.[33] Despite the warmth, it was the dullest December since 1989.[34]
SUNSHINE AND CLOUD
A sunny spring day
The average total annual sunshine in the United Kingdom is 1339.7 hours, which is just under 30% of the maximum possible.[35] (The maximum hours of sunshine possible in one year is approximately 4476 hours.) The south coast of England often has the clearest skies because cumulus cloud formation generally takes place over land, and prevailing winds from the south-west keep this cloud from forming overhead. The counties of Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent are the sunniest areas, which have annual average totals of around 1,750 hours of sunshine per year,[36] and many South coastal areas of England receive more than 2000 hours of sunshine on regular years. On the other hand, Northern, western and mountainous areas are generally the cloudiest areas of the UK, with some mountainous areas receiving fewer than 1,000 hours of sunshine a year.[36]
An overcast day in Plymouth, south-west England
Valley areas such as the South Wales Valleys, due to their north-south orientation, receive less sunshine than lowland areas because the mountains on either side of the valley obscure the sun in the early morning and late evening. This is noticeable in winter where there are only a few hours of sunshine. The mountains of Wales, northern England and Scotland can be especially cloudy with extensive mist and fog. Near the coast, sea fog may develop in the spring and early summer. Radiation fog may develop over inland areas of Great Britain and can persist for hours or even days in the winter and can pose a major hazard for drivers and aircraft.
On occasions blocking anticyclones (high pressure systems) may move over the United Kingdom, which can persist for weeks or even months. The subsided, dry air often results in clear skies and few clouds, bringing frosty nights in winter and hot days in the summer, when some coastal areas can achieve almost maximum possible sunshine for periods of weeks.
Average hours of sunshine in winter range from 38–108 hours in some mountainous areas and western Scotland, up to 217 hours in the south and east of England;[37] while average hours of sunshine in summer range from 294–420 hours in northern Scotland and Northern Ireland, to 600–760 hours in southern English coastal counties.[38] The most sunshine recorded in one month was 383.9 hours at Eastbourne (East Sussex) in July 1911.[36]
The Atlantic Ocean
One of the greatest influences on the climate of the UK is the Atlantic Ocean and especially the North Atlantic Current, which brings warm waters from the Gulf of Mexico to the waters around the country by means of thermohaline circulation. This has a powerful moderating and warming effect on the country's climate—the North Atlantic Drift warms the climate to such a great extent that if the current did not exist then temperatures in winter would be about 10 °C (18 °F) lower than they are today. The current allows England to have vineyards at the same latitude that Canada has polar bears. A good example of the effects of the North Atlantic Drift is Tresco Abbey Gardens, on the Isles of Scilly, 48 kilometres (30 mi) west of Cornwall, where Canary Island date palm trees grow - possibly the nearest of their kind to the Arctic Circle, at 50° latitude north. These warm ocean currents also bring substantial amounts of humidity which contributes to the notoriously wet climate that western parts of the UK experience.
The extent of the Gulf Stream's contribution to the actual temperature differential between North America and western Europe is a matter of dispute.[39][40] It has been argued that atmospheric waves that bring subtropical air northwards contribute to a much greater extent to the temperature differential than thermohaline circulation.[39]
Winds
Further information: List of atmospheric pressure records in Europe
The high latitude and proximity to a large ocean to the west means that the United Kingdom experiences strong winds. The prevailing wind is from the south-west, but it may blow from any direction for sustained periods of time. Winds are strongest near westerly facing coasts and exposed headlands.
The United Kingdom straddles the geographic higher mid-latitudes between 49 and 61 N. It is on the western seaboard of Afro-Eurasia, the world's largest land mass. These conditions allow convergence between moist maritime air and dry continental air. In this area, the large temperature variation creates atmospheric instability and this is a major factor that influences the often unsettled weather the country experiences, where many types of weather can be experienced in a single day. In general the climate of the UK is cool and often cloudy, and hot temperatures are infrequent.
The climate in the United Kingdom is defined as a temperate oceanic climate, or Cfb on the Köppen climate classification system, a classification it shares with most of northwest Europe.[1] Regional climates are influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and latitude. Northern Ireland, Wales and western parts of England and Scotland, being closest to the Atlantic Ocean, are generally the mildest, wettest and windiest regions of the UK, and temperature ranges here are seldom extreme. Eastern areas are drier, cooler, less windy and also experience the greatest daily and seasonal temperature variations. Northern areas are generally cooler, wetter and have slightly larger temperature ranges than southern areas.
Though the UK is mostly under the influence of the maritime tropical air mass from the south-west, different regions are more susceptible than others when different air masses affect the country: Northern Ireland and the west of Scotland are the most exposed to the maritime polar air mass which brings cool moist air; the east of Scotland and north-east England are more exposed to the continental polar air mass which brings cold dry air; the south and south-east of England are more exposed to the continental tropical air mass which brings warm dry air (and consequently most of the time the warmest summer temperatures); and Wales and the south-west of England are the most exposed to the maritime tropical air mass which brings warm moist air.
If the air masses are strong enough in their respective areas during the summer, there can sometimes be a large difference in temperature between the far north of Scotland (including the Islands) and south-east of England – often a difference of 10–15 °C (18-27 °F) but sometimes of as much as 20 °C (36 °F) or more. An example of this could be that in the height of summer the Northern Isles could have temperatures around 15 °C (59 °F) and areas around London could reach 30 °C (86 °F).
SEASONS
SPRING
Spring is the period from March to May. Spring is generally a calm, cool and dry season, particularly because the Atlantic has lost much of its heat throughout the autumn and winter. However, as the sun rises higher in the sky and the days get longer, temperatures can rise relatively high, but often tend to drop off again at night due to the cool oceans and the warm weather dependent solely on the sun. Thunderstorms and heavy showers can develop occasionally particularly towards the end of the season.
There is a fair chance of snow earlier in the season when temperatures are colder - indeed, snow falling in the first half of March is quite common. Often, there is no significant drop in either snowfall or freezing temperatures between February & March, when the surrounding Atlantic is at its coldest. Some of the country's heaviest snowfalls of recent years have happened in the first half of March and snow showers can occur infrequently until mid-April. They have been known to develop as late as mid-May over some areas of the country, such as in 2013 when snow was recorded on 14 May over parts of Staffordshire, Herefordshire and Wales. Snow was also recorded at lower levels in early June 1975.
Early spring can be quite cold, and occasionally the lowest temperatures of the year can occur in March, as it did at Heathrow Airport on 5 March 2001, 4 March 2006 & 8 March 2011. Temperatures below freezing are not unusual in March, even in the south of the UK. On the other hand, high temperatures above 30 °C are generally rare but can occur on occasion, the most recent instance occurring on 25 May 2012. It was even hotter on 27 May 2005, where 31.9 °C was recorded in London. Rarely, the hottest day of the year can be in spring. As stated below May 27 was the hottest day of the year in 2012 in most parts of the UK.
Mean temperatures in Spring are markedly influenced by latitude. Most of Scotland and the mountains of Wales and northern England are the coolest areas of the UK, with average temperatures ranging from −0.6 to 5.8 °C . The southern half of England experiences the warmest spring temperatures of between 8.8 and 10.3 °C.
SUMMER
Summer lasts from June to August and is the warmest and usually the sunniest season. Rainfall totals can have a wide local variation due to localised thunderstorms. These thunderstorms mainly occur in southern, eastern, and central England and are less frequent and severe in the north and west.[18] North Atlantic depressions are not as severe in summer but increase both in severity and frequency towards the end of the season. Summer can see high pressure systems from the Azores High.
Climatic differences at this time of year are more influenced by latitude and temperatures are highest in southern and central areas and lowest in the north. Summer temperatures rarely exceed 35 °C (95 °F), but when this does occur it happens more frequently in London and the South East than other parts of the country. Scotland and northern England have the coolest summers (average means: 12.2 to 14.8 °C (54.0 to 58.6 °F)), while Wales and the south-west of England have warmer summers (average means: 14.9 to 15.4 °C (58.8 to 59.7 °F)) and the south and south-east of England have the warmest summers (average means: 15.5 to 17.7 °C (59.9 to 63.9 °F)).[19] The record maximum is 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) recorded in Faversham, Kent on 10 August 2003.
It is worth noting that a disputed temperature of 39.0 °C (102.2 °F) was recorded at an airfield near Wisley, Surrey on 18 July 2006, during a prolonged heatwave which surprised many meteorologists for not breaking the temperature record set in August 2003, despite being the hottest month ever recorded. Similarly, a disputed temperature of 38.0 °C (100.4 °F) was recorded in Luton on 1 August 1995, which whilst would now have been exceeded, would have held the record until August 2003. It is speculated that higher temperatures may have been recorded in the hot summers of 1908, 1911, 1948, 1955, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1990, 1995 and 2006 (and indeed 2003 itself), which would at least break their own highest temperatures, if not this official figure.
In recent years, some very high temperatures have been recorded only briefly - when warm air is dragged over the country from the south for a day or two. Many meteorologists nickname this a 'flashbang' heatwave, and it is not unusual for it to set off or be followed by intense thundery downpours, or to drag weather fronts with it. It is in these conditions that the highest temperatures in both 2014 - on 17 & 18 July - and 2015 - on 30 June & 1 July - have been recorded. High temperatures can return after thundery conditions or weather fronts pass, as it did between 22 & 24 July 2014. Patterns like this have also occurred further in the past - for example, on 18 & 19 June 2000 and on 28 & 29 July 2002, which is quite notable for severe thunderstorms.
Summers in the 21st century have been a mixed bag, with some long, hot summers (2003, 2006 & 2013), and others which will be remembered solely for flooding caused by downpours (2002, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2012 and 2015). The summer of 2012 was so appalling that March is humorously considered to have been the height of summer, being the only drier than average month throughout the year in many places. For some places in 2012, 27 May was the hottest day of the year.[20] This follows on from an indifferent summer in 2011, in which in Aberdaron, 21 April was the hottest day of the year.[21] Summer 2015 was particularly mixed, with a flash-bang heatwave in the south-east breaking the July temperature with 36.7 °C (98.1 °F) recorded on 1 July, whilst the rest of the country experienced a poor summer, with August in particular being very wet. Despite the mixed summers the UK experiences, somewhere in the UK on at least one occasion has recorded 30 °C or above since 1993. At Heathrow Airport, the last summer in which temperatures did not reach 30 °C was 2007.
AUTUMN
Autumn in the United Kingdom lasts from September to November.[22] The season is notorious for being unsettled—as cool polar air moves southwards following the sun, it meets the warm air of the tropics and produces an area of great disturbance along which the country lies. This combined with the warm ocean due to heating throughout the spring and summer, produces the unsettled weather of autumn. In addition, when the air is particularly cold temperatures on land may be colder than the ocean, resulting in significant amounts of condensation and clouds which bring rain to the country.
Atlantic depressions during this time can become intense and winds of hurricane force (greater than 119 km/h or 74 mph) can be recorded. Western areas, being closest to the Atlantic, experience these severe conditions to a significantly greater extent than eastern areas. As such, autumn, particularly the latter part, is often the stormiest time of the year. One particularly intense depression was the Great Storm of 1987. A very severe storm affected the UK on 27 October 2002, and the autumn of 2013 was also littered with severe storms, including the St. Jude's Storm on 28 October 2013.
Autumn can also be a cold season at times - in recent years, very low temperatures and heavy snowfall have been recorded during November 1985, November 1993 & November 2010, which set a new record low of -18.0 °C in Wales on 28 November 2010. Snow also fell rather widely across the UK on 28 & 29 October 2008, causing traffic problems where it settled on the M4. Even further south, low temperatures can be recorded, with temperatures well below freezing as far south as Heathrow Airport between 29 & 31 October 1997 - for context, the low of 30 October 1997 recorded was lower than any recorded at this station in March, November or December 1997 and even the following January, 1998 - only the low temperatures on 2 & 4 February 1998 prevented it from being the lowest temperature of the winter at this station. The first frosts of the winter are usually recorded between October & December, but they are quite unusual in September except on high ground when the surrounding ocean is at or near its warmest. It is not particularly unusual for September to be warmer than June, as it was in 1999.[23]
However, the United Kingdom sometimes experiences an 'Indian Summer', where temperatures particularly by night can be very mild and rarely fall below 10 °C (50 °F). Such events are aided by the surrounding Atlantic Ocean and seas being at their warmest, keeping the country in warm air, despite the relatively weak sun. Examples of this were in 1985, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2011[24] and 2016 where September and October even more so, saw above average temperatures which felt more like a continuation of summer than autumn. Autumns since 2000 have been very mild with notable extremes of precipitation; the UK has seen some of its wettest and driest autumns since the millennium. In fact, 2011 and 2016 were notable as many areas of the country recorded their highest temperatures of the year in September and October (for example, 28.2 °C at Hawarden on 1 October, 26.3 °C at St. Athan on 2 October 2011 and the UK's highest temperature of 2016 on 13 September with 34.4 °C at Gravesend).[25]
Coastal areas in the southern half of England have on average the warmest autumns, with mean temperatures of 10.7 to 13.0 °C (51.3 to 55.4 °F).[26] Mountainous areas of Wales and northern England, and almost all of Scotland, experience mean temperatures between 1.7 and 7.5 °C (35.1 and 45.5 °F).[26]
WINTER
Winter in the UK is defined as lasting from December to February. The season is generally cool, wet and windy. Temperatures at night rarely drop below −10 °C (14 °F) and in the day rarely rise above 15 °C (59 °F). Precipitation is plentiful throughout the season, though snow is relatively infrequent despite the country's high latitude: The only areas with significant snowfall are the Scottish highlands and the Pennines, where at higher elevations a colder climate determines the vegetation, mainly temperate coniferous forest, although deforestation has severely decreased forest area. For a majority of the landmass snow is possible but not frequent, apart from the higher altitudes, where snow can lie 1–5 months or even beyond 6 months.
Towards the later part of the season the weather usually stabilises with less wind, less precipitation and lower temperatures. This change is particularly pronounced near the coasts mainly because the Atlantic ocean is often at its coldest during this time after being cooled throughout the autumn and the winter. The early part of winter however is often unsettled and stormy; often the wettest and windiest time of the year.
Snow cover on The Saddle in the Scottish Highlands
Snow falls intermittently and mainly affects northern and eastern areas, high ground in Wales and especially the mountains of Scotland where the amount of lying snow is frequently high enough to permit skiing at one of the five Scottish ski resorts. These resorts usually operate between December and April depending on the snowfall each winter. Frequently in the mountains potent depressions may move in from the north in the form of 'polar lows', introducing heavy snow and often blizzard-like conditions to parts of the United Kingdom, particularly Scotland. During periods of light winds and high pressure frost and fog can become a problem and can pose a major hazard for drivers on the roads.
Mean winter temperatures in the UK are most influenced by proximity to the sea. The coldest areas are the mountains of Wales and northern England, and inland areas of Scotland, averaging −3.6 to 2.3 °C (25.5 to 36.1 °F).[27] Coastal areas, particularly those in the south and west, experience the mildest winters, on average 5 to 8.7 °C (41.0 to 47.7 °F).[27] Hardiness zones in the UK are high, ranging from zone 7 in the Scottish Highlands, the Pennines and Snowdonia, to zone 10 on the Isles of Scilly. Most of the UK lies in zones 8 or 9.[28] In zone 7, the average lowest temperature each year is between −17.7 and −12.3 °C (0.1 and 9.9 °F), and in zone 10, this figure is between −1.1 and 4.4 °C (30.0 and 39.9 °F).[29]
Snow in the UK falls almost every year but in small quantities. The UK can suffer extreme winters like 1684, 1740, 1795 (when London received its record lowest temperature of −21.1 °C (−6.0 °F)), 1947 and 1963. In 1963 it snowed on Boxing Day in the UK and snow lasted in most areas until 6 March with blizzards through February, which had significant and documented effects on the FA Cup - Wrexham were forced to play on sand for one tie. In modern times snow has generally become rarer but the UK can still get heavy falls, such as in 1978/79, 1981/82, 1986/87 and 1990/91. The winter of 2008/09 produced the heaviest snowfall since 1991, and the winter of 2009-10 was even more severe, with many parts of the United Kingdom experiencing the coldest and snowiest winters since 1978/79; temperatures plummeted to −22.3 °C (−8.1 °F) at Altnaharra, Sutherland – close to the −22.9 °C (−9.2 °F) recorded at the southernmost part of the globe at the same period. The record for the lowest temperature ever recorded in the UK still remains −27.2 °C (−17.0 °F) which was recorded on 10 January 1982 and 11 February 1895 in Braemar, Scotland and on 30 December 1995 in Altnaharra, Scotland. December 2010 was the coldest December in 120 years; the CET (Central England Temperature) was -0.7 °C, meaning it was the coldest month since February 1986, and the coldest December since 1890. Many places experienced heavy snowfall and extreme cold, temperatures regularly fell below −10.0 °C (14.0 °F)) across many areas. However, the cold subsided after Christmas Day, 2010. It is worth also noting that November 2010 saw an extremely severe cold snap, with lows of −18.0 °C (−0.4 °F)) in Llysdinam on 28 November. The month saw temperatures below average, despite what was actually a very mild first half. Spring 2013 was also notoriously cold - March 2013 was the coldest month of the winter (and indeed 2013 as a whole), which is quite striking given that December 2012, January and February 2013 were all also below average in terms of temperature. The following winter was the opposite - in many places, only on 11 & 12 January was any snow recorded, and the entire country was battered by a series of severe depressions and storms. The St. Jude's day storm first affected the UK on 26 October 2013, and many places saw no respite until a high swept across the country on 2 March 2014. Parts of the Somerset levels remained underwater for most of the winter and well into spring. Record-equalling gusts of 142 mph were recorded off the north coast of Scotland on 5 December 2013, with notably severe storms also recorded on 2 November 2013, 24 December 2013, 3 January 2014 & 14 February 2014.
In the 1990s and 2000s, most of the winters were milder and usually wetter than average with daytime temperatures going below freezing a rare occurrence. In fact, the winter of 1995/1996 was the only one which was defined as below average in terms of the UK as a whole, although February 1991 saw heavy snowfall & January 1997 was cold in the South. The winters of 2008/09, 2009/10 and 2010/11 have however seen a different pattern with these three winters being defined as below or well below average with large snowfall amounts widespread and very low temperatures; this was the first time three consecutive cold winters in the UK have occurred since the 1960s. Since the winter of 2012/2013, winters have been mild (exceptionally so in 2013/2014 and 2015/2016), although exceptionally wet. The winter of 2014/2015 was an oddity, in that it was generally quiet and sunny.
December 2015 became the wettest calendar month ever recorded in the United Kingdom, with January 2016 becoming the second wettest. In these months, some northern and western parts had 2 to 4 times as much rainfall as normal.[30] December 2015 was also the warmest December averaged over the whole UK, and had the highest positive anomaly for any month in the Central England temperature series which began in 1659 (CET was 9.7 °C, this is warmer than even any March[31]). Most areas of southern England had average monthly temperatures 5-6 °C above normal. Some plants flowered that would normally do so in the Spring or even Summer.[32] Hardly any stations in Wales and Southern England recorded any air frosts and temperatures were often comparable to those of April or May. The maximum recorded temperature was 17.2 °C at Teignmouth in Devon and Plockton and Achnagart in the highlands of Scotland on 16th. The lowest daily mean temperature during December 2015 at Heathrow Airport was still 8.2 °C on 9 December, comparable to the average daily high for the calendar month. Remarkably, December 2015 did not break any national records for high temperatures, just failing to reach the maximum England temperature of 17.7 °C recorded on 2 December 1985 in Chivenor, Devon and on 11 December 1994 in Penkridge, Staffordshire.[33] Despite the warmth, it was the dullest December since 1989.[34]
SUNSHINE AND CLOUD
A sunny spring day
The average total annual sunshine in the United Kingdom is 1339.7 hours, which is just under 30% of the maximum possible.[35] (The maximum hours of sunshine possible in one year is approximately 4476 hours.) The south coast of England often has the clearest skies because cumulus cloud formation generally takes place over land, and prevailing winds from the south-west keep this cloud from forming overhead. The counties of Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent are the sunniest areas, which have annual average totals of around 1,750 hours of sunshine per year,[36] and many South coastal areas of England receive more than 2000 hours of sunshine on regular years. On the other hand, Northern, western and mountainous areas are generally the cloudiest areas of the UK, with some mountainous areas receiving fewer than 1,000 hours of sunshine a year.[36]
An overcast day in Plymouth, south-west England
Valley areas such as the South Wales Valleys, due to their north-south orientation, receive less sunshine than lowland areas because the mountains on either side of the valley obscure the sun in the early morning and late evening. This is noticeable in winter where there are only a few hours of sunshine. The mountains of Wales, northern England and Scotland can be especially cloudy with extensive mist and fog. Near the coast, sea fog may develop in the spring and early summer. Radiation fog may develop over inland areas of Great Britain and can persist for hours or even days in the winter and can pose a major hazard for drivers and aircraft.
On occasions blocking anticyclones (high pressure systems) may move over the United Kingdom, which can persist for weeks or even months. The subsided, dry air often results in clear skies and few clouds, bringing frosty nights in winter and hot days in the summer, when some coastal areas can achieve almost maximum possible sunshine for periods of weeks.
Average hours of sunshine in winter range from 38–108 hours in some mountainous areas and western Scotland, up to 217 hours in the south and east of England;[37] while average hours of sunshine in summer range from 294–420 hours in northern Scotland and Northern Ireland, to 600–760 hours in southern English coastal counties.[38] The most sunshine recorded in one month was 383.9 hours at Eastbourne (East Sussex) in July 1911.[36]
The Atlantic Ocean
One of the greatest influences on the climate of the UK is the Atlantic Ocean and especially the North Atlantic Current, which brings warm waters from the Gulf of Mexico to the waters around the country by means of thermohaline circulation. This has a powerful moderating and warming effect on the country's climate—the North Atlantic Drift warms the climate to such a great extent that if the current did not exist then temperatures in winter would be about 10 °C (18 °F) lower than they are today. The current allows England to have vineyards at the same latitude that Canada has polar bears. A good example of the effects of the North Atlantic Drift is Tresco Abbey Gardens, on the Isles of Scilly, 48 kilometres (30 mi) west of Cornwall, where Canary Island date palm trees grow - possibly the nearest of their kind to the Arctic Circle, at 50° latitude north. These warm ocean currents also bring substantial amounts of humidity which contributes to the notoriously wet climate that western parts of the UK experience.
The extent of the Gulf Stream's contribution to the actual temperature differential between North America and western Europe is a matter of dispute.[39][40] It has been argued that atmospheric waves that bring subtropical air northwards contribute to a much greater extent to the temperature differential than thermohaline circulation.[39]
Winds
Further information: List of atmospheric pressure records in Europe
The high latitude and proximity to a large ocean to the west means that the United Kingdom experiences strong winds. The prevailing wind is from the south-west, but it may blow from any direction for sustained periods of time. Winds are strongest near westerly facing coasts and exposed headlands.
domenica 9 aprile 2017
CAT ENGLISH PLUS
WINDSOR CASTLE
Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is notable for its long association with the English and later British royal family and for its architecture. The original castle was built in the 11th century after the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I, it has been used by the reigning monarch and is the longest-occupied palace in Europe. The castle's lavish early 19th-century State Apartments were described by the art historian Hugh Roberts as "a superb and unrivalled sequence of rooms widely regarded as the finest and most complete expression of later Georgian taste".[1] Inside the castle walls is the 15th-century St George's Chapel, considered by the historian John Martin Robinson to be "one of the supreme achievements of English Perpendicular Gothic" design.[2]
Originally designed to protect Norman dominance around the outskirts of London and oversee a strategically important part of the River Thames, Windsor Castle was built as a motte-and-bailey, with three wards surrounding a central mound. Gradually replaced with stone fortifications, the castle withstood a prolonged siege during the First Barons' War at the start of the 13th century. Henry III built a luxurious royal palace within the castle during the middle of the century, and Edward III went further, rebuilding the palace to make an even grander set of buildings in what would become "the most expensive secular building project of the entire Middle Ages in England".[3] Edward's core design lasted through the Tudor period, during which Henry VIII and Elizabeth I made increasing use of the castle as a royal court and centre for diplomatic entertainment.
Windsor Castle survived the tumultuous period of the English Civil War, when it was used as a military headquarters for Parliamentary forces and a prison for Charles I. At the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles II rebuilt much of Windsor Castle with the help of the architect Hugh May, creating a set of extravagant Baroque interiors that are still admired. After a period of neglect during the 18th century, George III and George IV renovated and rebuilt Charles II's palace at colossal expense, producing the current design of the State Apartments, full of Rococo, Gothic and Baroque furnishings. Queen Victoria made a few minor changes to the castle, which became the centre for royal entertainment for much of her reign. Windsor Castle was used as a refuge for the royal family during the Luftwaffe bombing campaigns of the Second World War and survived a fire in 1992. It is a popular tourist attraction, a venue for hosting state visits, and the preferred weekend home of Elizabeth II. Today, more than 500 people live and work in Windsor Castle, making it the largest inhabited castle in the world.
HAMPTON COURT PALACE
Hampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the town of Hampton, Richmond upon Thames, Greater London, England, 11.7 miles (18.8 kilometres) south west and upstream of central London on the River Thames. Redevelopment began to be carried out in 1515 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, a favourite of King Henry VIII. In 1529, as Wolsey fell from favour, the King seized the palace for himself and later enlarged it. Along with St James's Palace, it is one of only two surviving palaces out of the many owned by King Henry VIII.
In the following century, King William III's massive rebuilding and expansion project, which destroyed much of the Tudor palace, was intended to rival Versailles.[2] Work ceased in 1694, leaving the palace in two distinct contrasting architectural styles, domestic Tudor and Baroque. While the palace's styles are an accident of fate, a unity exists due to the use of pink bricks and a symmetrical, if vague, balancing of successive low wings.[3] King George II was the last monarch to reside in the palace.
Today, the palace is open to the public and is a major tourist attraction, easily reached by train from Waterloo station in central London and served by Hampton Court railway station in East Molesey, in Transport for London's Zone 6. In addition, London Buses routes 111, 216, 411 and R68 stop outside the palace gates. The structure and grounds are cared for by an independent charity, Historic Royal Palaces, which receives no funding from the Government or the Crown.[4] In addition the palace continues to display a large number of works of art from the Royal Collection.
Apart from the Palace itself and its gardens, other points of interest for visitors include the celebrated maze, the historic real tennis court (see below), and the huge grape vine, the largest in the world as of 2005.
The palace's Home Park is the site of the annual Hampton Court Palace Festival and Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.
ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the mother church of the Diocese of London. It sits on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grade 1 listed building. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604.[1] The present church, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed in Wren's lifetime, was part of a major rebuilding programme in the City after the Great Fire of London.[2]
The cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London. Its dome, framed by the spires of Wren's City churches, dominated the skyline for 300 years.[3] At 365 feet (111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1967. The dome is among the highest in the world. St Paul's is the second-largest church building in area in the United Kingdom after Liverpool Cathedral.
St Paul's Cathedral occupies a significant place in the national identity.[4] It is the central subject of much promotional material, as well as of images of the dome surrounded by the smoke and fire of the Blitz.[4] Services held at St Paul's have included: the funerals of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill, and Margaret Thatcher; jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria; peace services marking the end of the First and Second World Wars; the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer, the launch of the Festival of Britain and the thanksgiving services for the Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees and the 80th and 90th birthdays of Elizabeth II.
St Paul's Cathedral is a working church with hourly prayer and daily services.
WHITE TOWER OF LONDON
The White Tower is a central tower, the old keep, at the Tower of London. It was built by William the Conqueror during the early 1080s, and subsequently extended. The White Tower was the castle's strongest point militarily, and provided accommodation for the king and his representatives, as well as a chapel. Henry III ordered that the tower be whitewashed in 1240.
Architecture
The White Tower is a keep (also known as a donjon), which was often the strongest structure in a medieval castle, and contained lodgings suitable for the lord—in this case the king or his representative.[34] According to military historian Allen Brown, "The great tower [White Tower] was also, by virtue of its strength, majesty and lordly accommodation, the donjon par excellence".[35] One of the largest keeps in the Christian world,[4] the White Tower has been described as "the most complete eleventh-century palace in Europe".[36] The influences on the White Tower's design are unclear. Magnates in northern France had been building stone keeps since the mid-9th century so the general design was well-established. More specifically the keep of Château d'Ivry-la-Bataille, built around 1000, may have been a particularly prominent influence as it included a semi-circular projection in one corner.[37] Allen Brown and P. Curnow suggested that the design may have been based on the now vanished 10th-century keep of Château de Rouen, which belonged to the Dukes of Normandy.[38]
At the western corners are square towers, while to the north-east a round tower houses a spiral staircase. At the south-east corner is a larger semi-circular projection which accommodates the apse of the chapel.[36] Excluding its projecting corner towers, the keep measures 36 by 32 metres (118 by 105 ft) at the base, and rises to a height of and is 27 m (90 ft) high at the southern battlements where the ground is lower. The structure was originally three storeys high, comprising a basement floor, an entrance level, and an upper floor. The entrance, as is usual in Norman keeps, was above ground (in this case on the south face) and accessed via a wooden staircase which could be removed in the event of an attack. The forebuilding added in the 12th century no longer survives.[6] As the building was intended to be a comfortable residence as well as a stronghold, latrines were built into the walls, and four fireplaces provided warmth.[36]
The main building material is Kentish rag-stone, though some local mudstone was also used. Although little of it survives, Caen stone was imported from northern France to provide details in the Tower's facing, much of it replaced by Portland stone in the 17th and 18th centuries under the direction of architect Inigo Jones. As most of the Tower's windows were enlarged in the 18th century, only two original – albeit restored – examples remain, in the south wall at gallery level.[39] The White Tower was terraced into the side of a mound, so the northern side of the basement is partially below ground level.[40]
OPERA HOUSES - GENERAL INFORMATION
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building. While some venues are constructed specifically for operas, other opera houses are part of larger performing arts centers.
History
The first public opera house came into existence in 1637 as the Teatro San Cassiano in Venice, Italy, in a country where opera has been popular through the centuries among ordinary people as well as wealthy patrons; it still has a large number of working opera houses.[1] In contrast, there was no opera house in London when Henry Purcell was composing and the first opera house in Germany was built in Hamburg in 1678. Early United States opera houses served a variety of functions in towns and cities, hosting community dances, fairs, plays, and vaudeville shows as well as operas and other musical events.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, opera houses were often financed by rulers, nobles, and wealthy people who used patronage of the arts to endorse their political ambitions and social positions or prestige. With the rise of bourgeois and capitalist social forms in the 19th century, European culture moved away from its patronage system to a publicly supported system. In the 2000s, most opera and theatre companies raise funds from a combination of government and institutional grants, ticket sales, and private donations.
SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney, Australia. It is one of the 20th century's most famous and distinctive buildings.[3]
Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, the building was formally opened on 20 October 1973[4] after a gestation beginning with Utzon's 1957 selection as winner of an international design competition. The government of New South Wales, led by the premier, Joseph Cahill, authorised work to begin in 1958 with Utzon directing construction. The government's decision to build Utzon's design is often overshadowed by circumstances that followed, including cost and scheduling overruns as well as the architect's ultimate resignation.[5]
The building and its surrounds occupy the whole of Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour, between Sydney Cove and Farm Cove, adjacent to the Sydney central business district and the Royal Botanic Gardens, and close by the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Though its name suggests a single venue, the building comprises multiple performance venues which together are among the busiest[citation needed] performing arts centres – hosting well over 1,500 performances annually, attended by more than 1.2 million people.[6] Performances are presented by numerous performing artists, including four resident companies: Opera Australia, The Australian Ballet, the Sydney Theatre Company and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. As one of the most popular visitor attractions in Australia, more than eight million people visit the site annually, and approximately 350,000 visitors take a guided tour of the building each year.[7] The building is managed by the Sydney Opera House Trust, an agency of the New South Wales State Government.
On 28 June 2007, the Sydney Opera House became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[8]
STORY OF THE ARCHITECT OF THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
In 1957, Utzon unexpectedly won the competition to design the Sydney Opera House. His submission was one of 233 designs from 32 countries, many of them from the most famous architects of the day.[6] Although he had won six other architectural competitions previously, the Opera House was his first non-domestic project. One of the judges, Eero Saarinen, described it as "genius" and declared he could not endorse any other choice.[7]
The designs Utzon submitted were little more than preliminary drawings. Concerned that delays would lead to lack of public support, the Cahill government of New South Wales nonetheless gave the go-ahead for work to begin in 1958. The British engineering consultancy Ove Arup and Partners put out tenders without adequate working drawings and construction work began on 2 March 1959. As a result, the podium columns were not strong enough to support the roof and had to be rebuilt. The situation was complicated by Cahill's death in October 1959.[9][12]
The extraordinary structure of the shells themselves represented a puzzle for the engineers. This was not resolved until 1961, when Utzon himself finally came up with the solution. He replaced the original elliptical shells with a design based on complex sections of a sphere. Utzon says his design was inspired by the simple act of peeling an orange: the 14 shells of the building, if combined, would form a perfect sphere.[6] Although Utzon had spectacular, innovative plans for the interior of these halls, he was unable to realise this part of his design. In mid-1965, the New South Wales Liberal government of Robert Askin was elected. Askin had been a 'vocal critic of the project prior to gaining office.'[13] His new Minister for Public Works, Davis Hughes, was even less sympathetic. Elizabeth Farrelly, Australian architecture critic has written that at an election night dinner party in Mosman, Hughes's daughter Sue Burgoyne boasted that her father would soon sack Utzon. Hughes had no interest in art, architecture or aesthetics. A fraud, as well as a philistine, he had been exposed before Parliament and dumped as Country Party leader for 19 years of falsely claiming a university degree. The Opera House gave Hughes a second chance. For him, as for Utzon, it was all about control; about the triumph of homegrown mediocrity over foreign genius.[13]
Utzon soon found himself in conflict with the new Minister. Attempting to rein in the escalating cost of the project, Hughes began questioning Utzon's capability, his designs, schedules and cost estimates, refusing to pay running costs. In 1966, after a final request from Utzon that plywood manufacturer Ralph Symonds should be one of the suppliers for the roof structure was refused, he resigned from the job, closed his Sydney office and vowed never to return to Australia.[9] When Utzon left, the shells were almost complete, and costs amounted to only $22.9 million. Following major changes to the original plans for the interiors, costs finally rose to $103 million.[6]
The Opera House was finally completed, and opened in 1973 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. The architect was not invited to the ceremony, nor was his name even mentioned during any of the speeches.[14] He was, however, to be recognised later when he was asked to design updates to the interior of the opera house. The Utzon Room, overlooking Sydney Harbour, was officially dedicated in October 2004. In a statement at the time Utzon wrote: "The fact that I'm mentioned in such a marvellous way, it gives me the greatest pleasure and satisfaction. I don't think you can give me more joy as the architect. It supersedes any medal of any kind that I could get and have got." Furthermore, Frank Gehry, one of the Pritzker Prize judges, commented: "Utzon made a building well ahead of its time, far ahead of available technology, and he persevered through extraordinarily malicious publicity and negative criticism to build a building that changed the image of an entire country.»[15]
RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 14th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance architecture followed Gothic architecture and was succeeded by Baroque architecture. Developed first in Florence, with Filippo Brunelleschi as one of its innovators, the Renaissance style quickly spread to other Italian cities. The style was carried to France, Germany, England, Russia and other parts of Europe at different dates and with varying degrees of impact.
Renaissance style places emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry and the regularity of parts as they are demonstrated in the architecture of classical antiquity and in particular ancient Roman architecture, of which many examples remained. Orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters and lintels, as well as the use of semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicules replaced the more complex proportional systems and irregular profiles of medieval buildings.
GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished in Europe during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture. Originating in 12th-century France and lasting into the 16th century, Gothic architecture was known during the period as Opus Francigenum ("French work") with the term Gothic first appearing during the later part of the Renaissance. Its characteristics include the pointed arch, the ribbed vault (which evolved from the joint vaulting of romanesque architecture) and the flying buttress. Gothic architecture is most familiar as the architecture of many of the great cathedrals, abbeys and churches of Europe. It is also the architecture of many castles, palaces, town halls, guild halls, universities and to a less prominent extent, private dwellings, such as dorms and rooms.
It is in the great churches and cathedrals and in a number of civic buildings that the Gothic style was expressed most powerfully, its characteristics lending themselves to appeals to the emotions, whether springing from faith or from civic pride. A great number of ecclesiastical buildings remain from this period, of which even the smallest are often structures of architectural distinction while many of the larger churches are considered priceless works of art and are listed with UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. For this reason a study of Gothic architecture is largely a study of cathedrals and churches.
A series of Gothic revivals began in mid-18th-century England, spread through 19th-century Europe and continued, largely for ecclesiastical and university structures, into the 20th century.
NORMAN ARCHITECTURE
The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is traditionally used for English Romanesque architecture. The Normans introduced large numbers of castles and fortifications including Norman keeps, and at the same time monasteries, abbeys, churches and cathedrals, in a style characterised by the usual Romanesque rounded arches (particularly over windows and doorways) and especially massive proportions compared to other regional variations of the style.
Norman architecture, term applied to the buildings erected by the Normans in all lands that fell under their dominion. It is used not only in England and N France, but also in S Italy (Apulia) and in Sicily. The Norman buildings in England and France were largely Romanesque, chiefly based upon the Romanesque architecture of Lombardy in Italy. Churches, abbeys, and castles, the principal works, showed massive proportions, sparsely adorned masonry, and a frequent use of the round arch. The development of the style was confined chiefly to the period from 1066 to 1154, a period of tremendous building activity. Arising in Normandy, the style was quickly introduced into England, superseding the Saxon. It first appeared at Westminster Abbey, where only the foundations remain. In England and Normandy there was a closely parallel development. The great French works include the ruined abbey of Jumièges, near Rouen, the beginnings of the great fortified abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel, and the two abbeys at Caen that were founded by William the Conqueror, all belonging to the middle and late 11th cent. The greatest activity, however, was in England, where after 1070 the Normans built hundreds of parish churches and commenced most of the great cathedrals. All underwent later restorations; the only intact early Norman design is the small St. John's Chapel (c.1087), built by William the Conqueror, in the Tower of London. In both England and Normandy church plans were cruciform. Over the crossing of nave and transepts was a prominent square tower, one of the most effective Norman features. Blind arcades, sometimes with interlacing arches, were the common adornment for walls. Moldings carved with the beakhead, zigzag, or chevron, or alternating lozenges are especially identified with the style. Increased skill and the adoption of the chisel resulted in grotesque sculptured animal forms and in the sculptured reliefs of the tympanums over doorways. Certain elements of Anglo-Norman construction pointed toward the development of Gothic architecture. Whereas in early Norman buildings wooden roofs prevailed, the cathedral at Durham (commenced 1093) was the first to employ a ribbed vault system with pointed arches (the nave was finished c.1133). Other great English cathedrals tended away from the early massiveness of wall construction and showed an increasing verticality, including those at Winchester (begun 1079), Ely (1083–1109), and Peterborough (begun 1118). The austere grandeur of the English and French Norman style was modified in S Italy and especially in Sicily by the mingling of Byzantine and Arabic elements.
HALF-TIMBERED HOUSES
Half-timbered houses, their blackened oak beams showing the fissures and cracks of great age, the floors tilting crazily askew, these images are a part of the charm of medieval and Tudor England for visitors. But what was half-timbering, and why were the buildings we marvel at today built this way?
Until the 17th century England was blessed with an abundant supply of oak, which was the most common material used for timber framing.
Oak is hard and durable, which in part explains why so many medieval half-timbered buildings have survived.
The term "half-timbering" refers to the fact that the logs were halved, or a least cut down to a square inner section. In other areas of Europe, such as Romania and Hungary, there was no comparable hard wood available, houses were more frequently constructed using whole logs.
Unlike modern framed buildings where the walls are installed outside and inside the frame, in half-timbered buildings the walls are filled in between the structural timbers.
Stokesay Castle gatehouse, Shropshire
Most commonly this infill was wattle-and-daub (upright branches interwoven by smaller branches and covered by a thick coat of clay mud), laths and plaster, or bricks.
A perimiter footing of an impervious material like stone or brick was built first, then a sill beam laid on the footing. Upright beams were mortised into the sill beam and tenoned at the top into another horizontal member. Timber framed houses are essentially big boxes, with upper "boxes" (stories) set upon lower ones.
Often the upper floors project out over the lower ones. There are several conjectures as to the reasons for this. One is that houses in cities were taxed on the width of street frontage they used. So a high, narrow house saved the owner money, yet to maximize interior space the non-taxed upper floors were lengthened. Also, the projecting upper floors helped protect the lower house from rain and snow in the days before gutters and down-pipes.
By the 15th and 16th century timber framing began to be exploited for its decorative qualities. Timbers which had minimal structural importance were added to the frame, to enhance the decorative effect of dark wood set into whitewashed walls. The Jacobean period saw this use carried to extremes.
The construction methods used in half-timbering allow buildings to be easily dis-assembled and put up again elsewhere. This has helped salvage houses which would otherwise have been destroyed to make way for new development. Many medieval timber-framed houses have been re-erected at open air museums such as the Weald and Downland Museum at Singleton, West Sussex, and the Avoncroft Museum of Buildings at Bromsgrove, Worcestershire.
By the Jacobean period wood for timber framing was in short supply in England. For too many years wood had been used for building, heating, and for making charcoal.
Feathers Inn, Ledbury, Herefordshire
Feathers Inn, Ledbury, Herefordshire
Also, the great expansion of the British merchant fleet after the medieval period used up large quantities of wood. Finally, the introduction of cheap, easily availble bricks after the Tudor period provided an attractive alternative to half-timbering.
By the way, the sloping, slanting, floors we see today in half-timbered buildings are not due to sloppy building practises, but a result of the natural warping of the wood as it aged. Also, the blackening of timbers was a natural aging effect. They were not treated or painted when built. It is only a desire of modern builders to provide a romanticised version of half-timbering that has produced imitation or black painted timbers.
Aside from the museums mentioned above, some of the best examples of half-timbered houses that visitors can see today are in the town of Lavenham, Suffolk, Little Moreton Hall in Cheshire, and Lower Brockhampton manor in Herefordshire. A personal favourite is Baddesley Clinton, near Solihull, West Midlands.
ROAD CONSTRUCTION - PHASES
Road construction is a lengthy process that can take more than 10 years, depending on the size of the future pathway. It involves several construction crews and plant machinery and requires careful planning and various evaluations, including environmental and structural assessments. Once construction has begun, there are several stages before the road can be used by vehicles.
Clearing and Excavation
The area on which the road is going to be built on must be cleared of all vegetation, which requires the removal of trees, shrubs and bushes. Excavation vehicles will also dig up and remove rocks and stones from the future road's pathway. To prevent the cleared land from erosion, control devices, including fences, ditches and basins are installed.
Mounting
The road takes shape as diggers, excavation plant machinery and bulldozers mount dirt and soil over the area where the future pathway will run. The surface is then leveled and smoothed by graders. Culverts and drains, consisting of large concrete pipes, are laid to prevent the road from flooding by leading away groundwater, sewage or stormwater.
Fine Grading
Fine grading requires construction workers to prepare the surface by leveling it according to plans provided by structural engineers. Fine grading requires manual labour and digging as well as grading plant machinery, also called graders. To make the grading last, it is stabilized with limestone or concrete.
Aggregate Base
After another grading of the surface, the aggregate base course is laid. Aggregate base is made of crushed stone or gravel, and it is placed evenly on the road surface. If the road is in a town or city, a curb for the pavement and the gutter will be constructed straight after the gravel is placed on the surface. The road is then fine graded again.
Asphalt Paving
Once the gravel has been distributed evenly, the asphalt can be poured. Asphalt is a mixture of a petroleum byproduct, an aggregate base material and a sticky, gluelike substance called bitumen. Depending on the expected traffic on the road, up to four layers of asphalt can be placed on top of each other. The asphalt usually is produced and mixed in large plants after the engineer's specifications. The hot asphalt is filled into trucks that transport the material to the construction site where it will be poured immediately. Before the last layer of asphalt is poured, the sidewalks and gutters have to be finished. The construction work is concluded by placing the appropriate road signs at the places specified by planners and the application of road markings.
lunedì 3 aprile 2017
FROM WIKIPEDIA - INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840. This transition included going from hand production methods to machines, new chemical manufacturing and iron production processes, improved efficiency of water power, the increasing use of steam power, the development of machine tools and the rise of the factory system. Textiles were the dominant industry of the Industrial Revolution in terms of employment, value of output and capital invested; the textile industry was also the first to use modern production methods.
The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain and most of the important technological innovations were British. Whereas absolutism stayed the normal form of power execution through most parts of Europe, institutions ensured property rights and political safety to the people in the UK after the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Aided by these legal and cultural foundations, an entrepreneurial spirit and consumer revolution drove industrialisation in Britain, which would be emulated in countries around the world.A change in marrying patterns to getting married later made people able to accumulate more human capital during their youth, thereby encouraging economic development.
The Industrial Revolution marks a major turning point in history; almost every aspect of daily life was influenced in some way. In particular, average income and population began to exhibit unprecedented sustained growth. Some economists say that the major impact of the Industrial Revolution was that the standard of living for the general population began to increase consistently for the first time in history, although others have said that it did not begin to meaningfully improve until the late 19th and 20th centuries. At approximately the same time the Industrial Revolution was occurring, Britain was undergoing an agricultural revolution, which also helped to improve living standards and provided surplus labour available for industry.
Mechanised textile production spread from Great Britain to continental Europe in the early 19th century, with important centres of textiles, iron and coal emerging in Belgium, and later in France. Since then industrialisation has spread throughout much of the world. The precise start and end of the Industrial Revolution is still debated among historians, as is the pace of economic and social changes. GDP per capita was broadly stable before the Industrial Revolution and the emergence of the modern capitalist economy, while the Industrial Revolution began an era of per-capita economic growth in capitalist economies. Economic historians are in agreement that the onset of the Industrial Revolution is the most important event in the history of humanity since the domestication of animals and plants.
The First Industrial Revolution evolved into the Second Industrial Revolution in the transition years between 1840 and 1870, when technological and economic progress continued with the increasing adoption of steam transport (steam-powered railways, boats and ships), the large-scale manufacture of machine tools and the increasing use of machinery in steam-powered factories.
REMEMBER:
The application of steam power to the industrial processes of printing supported a massive expansion of newspaper and popular book publishing, which reinforced rising literacy and demands for mass political participation.
During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically. The percentage of the children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730–1749 to 31.8% in 1810–1829.[109]
The growth of modern industry since the late 18th century led to massive urbanisation and the rise of new great cities, first in Europe and then in other regions, as new opportunities brought huge numbers of migrants from rural communities into urban areas. In 1800, only 3% of the world's population lived in cities,[123] compared to nearly 50% today (the beginning of the 21st century).[124] Manchester had a population of 10,000 in 1717, but by 1911 it had burgeoned to 2.3 million.[125]
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840. This transition included going from hand production methods to machines, new chemical manufacturing and iron production processes, improved efficiency of water power, the increasing use of steam power, the development of machine tools and the rise of the factory system. Textiles were the dominant industry of the Industrial Revolution in terms of employment, value of output and capital invested; the textile industry was also the first to use modern production methods.
The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain and most of the important technological innovations were British. Whereas absolutism stayed the normal form of power execution through most parts of Europe, institutions ensured property rights and political safety to the people in the UK after the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Aided by these legal and cultural foundations, an entrepreneurial spirit and consumer revolution drove industrialisation in Britain, which would be emulated in countries around the world.A change in marrying patterns to getting married later made people able to accumulate more human capital during their youth, thereby encouraging economic development.
The Industrial Revolution marks a major turning point in history; almost every aspect of daily life was influenced in some way. In particular, average income and population began to exhibit unprecedented sustained growth. Some economists say that the major impact of the Industrial Revolution was that the standard of living for the general population began to increase consistently for the first time in history, although others have said that it did not begin to meaningfully improve until the late 19th and 20th centuries. At approximately the same time the Industrial Revolution was occurring, Britain was undergoing an agricultural revolution, which also helped to improve living standards and provided surplus labour available for industry.
Mechanised textile production spread from Great Britain to continental Europe in the early 19th century, with important centres of textiles, iron and coal emerging in Belgium, and later in France. Since then industrialisation has spread throughout much of the world. The precise start and end of the Industrial Revolution is still debated among historians, as is the pace of economic and social changes. GDP per capita was broadly stable before the Industrial Revolution and the emergence of the modern capitalist economy, while the Industrial Revolution began an era of per-capita economic growth in capitalist economies. Economic historians are in agreement that the onset of the Industrial Revolution is the most important event in the history of humanity since the domestication of animals and plants.
The First Industrial Revolution evolved into the Second Industrial Revolution in the transition years between 1840 and 1870, when technological and economic progress continued with the increasing adoption of steam transport (steam-powered railways, boats and ships), the large-scale manufacture of machine tools and the increasing use of machinery in steam-powered factories.
REMEMBER:
The application of steam power to the industrial processes of printing supported a massive expansion of newspaper and popular book publishing, which reinforced rising literacy and demands for mass political participation.
During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically. The percentage of the children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730–1749 to 31.8% in 1810–1829.[109]
The growth of modern industry since the late 18th century led to massive urbanisation and the rise of new great cities, first in Europe and then in other regions, as new opportunities brought huge numbers of migrants from rural communities into urban areas. In 1800, only 3% of the world's population lived in cities,[123] compared to nearly 50% today (the beginning of the 21st century).[124] Manchester had a population of 10,000 in 1717, but by 1911 it had burgeoned to 2.3 million.[125]
domenica 2 aprile 2017
permission and offers
PERMISSION AND OFFERS
When you ask for permission to use something that belongs to someone else you have to do your best to be polite. It is desirable to use the word "please."
Asking for Permission:
Can I go out, please?
May I open the window, please?
Please, can I have a look at your photo album?
Please, may I taste that hot spicy couscous dish?
Do you mind if I smoke?
Would you mind if I asked you something?
Is it okay if I sit here?
Would it be all right if I borrowed your mobile Phone?
Giving Permission:
Yes, please do.
Sure, go ahead.
Sure.
No problem.
Please feel free.
Refusing to give permission:
No, please don’t.
I’m sorry, but that’s not possible.
I'm afraid you can't.
How to make offers in English
It is common that English speakers make offers in conversations in order to be polite and helpful. When they do so they use these expressions:
Can I… ?
Shall I… ?
Would you like … ?
How about ...?
English learner must be able to make offers as well as accept or reject them. The following are useful expressions to do so.
Making offers:
Can I help you?
Shall get you some juice?
Would you like a glass of water ?
How about some pizza?
Examples:
"Can I help you?"
"Shall I open the window for you?"
"Would you like another cup of coffee?"
"Would you like me to clean the board?"
"How about a juice? "
Remember:
Shall, can and will are followed by the verb without to.
Example:
"Can I help you?"
"Shall I bring you the mobile phone?
Shall is more formal than can.
Would you like… is followed either by a noun, or by the verb with to.
Example:
"Would you like some tea ?"
"Would you like to drink some coffee?
Examples:
"Can I help you?"
"No thanks, I'm just having a look." (With a shop assistant.)
"Can I help you?"
"Do you know where the post office is."
"Shall I help you with your maths problem?"
"Yes, please. That would be very nice of you."
"Would you like a cup of tea?"
"No thanks." Or, "No thank you."
"Would you like another piece of cake?"
"Yes please, that would be nice ."
"Yes please, I'd love one."
"Would you like me to do the the ironing for you?"
"If you wouldn't mind."
"If you could."
"I'll do the washing, if you like."
"It's OK, I can do it."
"Don't worry, I'll do it."
"Thank you, that would be great."
When you ask for permission to use something that belongs to someone else you have to do your best to be polite. It is desirable to use the word "please."
Asking for Permission:
Can I go out, please?
May I open the window, please?
Please, can I have a look at your photo album?
Please, may I taste that hot spicy couscous dish?
Do you mind if I smoke?
Would you mind if I asked you something?
Is it okay if I sit here?
Would it be all right if I borrowed your mobile Phone?
Giving Permission:
Yes, please do.
Sure, go ahead.
Sure.
No problem.
Please feel free.
Refusing to give permission:
No, please don’t.
I’m sorry, but that’s not possible.
I'm afraid you can't.
How to make offers in English
It is common that English speakers make offers in conversations in order to be polite and helpful. When they do so they use these expressions:
Can I… ?
Shall I… ?
Would you like … ?
How about ...?
English learner must be able to make offers as well as accept or reject them. The following are useful expressions to do so.
Making offers:
Can I help you?
Shall get you some juice?
Would you like a glass of water ?
How about some pizza?
Examples:
"Can I help you?"
"Shall I open the window for you?"
"Would you like another cup of coffee?"
"Would you like me to clean the board?"
"How about a juice? "
Remember:
Shall, can and will are followed by the verb without to.
Example:
"Can I help you?"
"Shall I bring you the mobile phone?
Shall is more formal than can.
Would you like… is followed either by a noun, or by the verb with to.
Example:
"Would you like some tea ?"
"Would you like to drink some coffee?
Examples:
"Can I help you?"
"No thanks, I'm just having a look." (With a shop assistant.)
"Can I help you?"
"Do you know where the post office is."
"Shall I help you with your maths problem?"
"Yes, please. That would be very nice of you."
"Would you like a cup of tea?"
"No thanks." Or, "No thank you."
"Would you like another piece of cake?"
"Yes please, that would be nice ."
"Yes please, I'd love one."
"Would you like me to do the the ironing for you?"
"If you wouldn't mind."
"If you could."
"I'll do the washing, if you like."
"It's OK, I can do it."
"Don't worry, I'll do it."
"Thank you, that would be great."
WIKIPEDIA HISTORY OF CONSTRUCTION
A COMPLETE HISTORY OF CONSTRUCTION FROM WIKIPEDIA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_construction
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_construction
MODAL VERBS
Modali CAN MAY
Potere Funzione comunicativa
can capacità/abilità
permesso
could capacità/abilità nel passato
permesso più formale
may probabilità
augurio
permesso più formale
might probabilità più remota
permesso molto formale
Modali SHALL MUST
Dovere Funzione comunicativa
shall (I - we) proposte/suggerimenti
offrirsi
chiedere parere formale
should, ought to consigli/suggerimenti
rimproveri
supposizioni
must, mustn't obbligo
necessità
proibizione
probabilità logica
consiglio con insistenza
Modale WILL
Volere Funzione comunicativa
will previsione
intenzione
inviti/richieste/buona volontà
offrire
would inviti/richieste/buona volontà più formale
disponibilità (nel commercio)
abitudine nel passato
Modale NEED / NEEDN'T
Essere necessario Funzione comunicativa
need necessità / mancanza di necessità
I modali:
- non prendono la -s alla 3° persona singolare del presente
- non richiedono gli ausiliari DO/DOES/DID, comportandosi come TO BE
- l'infinito che segue non vuole il TO, eccetto OUGHT TO
- formano le risposte brevi come il verbo TO BE
Potere Funzione comunicativa
can capacità/abilità
permesso
could capacità/abilità nel passato
permesso più formale
may probabilità
augurio
permesso più formale
might probabilità più remota
permesso molto formale
Modali SHALL MUST
Dovere Funzione comunicativa
shall (I - we) proposte/suggerimenti
offrirsi
chiedere parere formale
should, ought to consigli/suggerimenti
rimproveri
supposizioni
must, mustn't obbligo
necessità
proibizione
probabilità logica
consiglio con insistenza
Modale WILL
Volere Funzione comunicativa
will previsione
intenzione
inviti/richieste/buona volontà
offrire
would inviti/richieste/buona volontà più formale
disponibilità (nel commercio)
abitudine nel passato
Modale NEED / NEEDN'T
Essere necessario Funzione comunicativa
need necessità / mancanza di necessità
I modali:
- non prendono la -s alla 3° persona singolare del presente
- non richiedono gli ausiliari DO/DOES/DID, comportandosi come TO BE
- l'infinito che segue non vuole il TO, eccetto OUGHT TO
- formano le risposte brevi come il verbo TO BE
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