Clipper 05-06: Surfing The Wind

It will be an interesting few days for the Clipper fleet. Sandwiched between a series of low pressure systems in the western Atlantic, and a large area of high pressure to the east they are almost riding on the edge of a wave of south westerly wind. Ahead lie light and variable breezes and ultimately north easterlies. What they will all be hoping is that the lows continue to push east to provide steady winds in the right direction.

On top of this there is also a warm front lying over the top of them, so whilst most of Europe basks in glorious summer weather their progress will be masked by poor visibility and a serious chance of rain. The picture shows the current conditions as indicated by the grib files on the UKHO ARCs charts, and also the Met office synoptic chart.