The Ups and Downs of Formula 1 Weather
UBIMET | 3.7.15 | Počasí UBIMET F1
UBIMET F1
So far there have been
eight races, four continents and numerous climate and time zones, and each time
the Formula 1 meteorologists from UBIMET have been onsite. So the Formula 1 teams are always informed about the weather situation. At Silverstone it will
be rainy this weekend, but Sunday will be dry.
Vienna, July 3, 2015: No matter what the weather outlook is, things are never quiet for
the UBIMET team working onsite. After their journey to the circuit - which
often involves a trip to the other side of the world - the meteorologists have
to hit the ground the running: "We usually set up the weather radar on the
Tuesday before the race weekend," explains Steffen Dietz, meteorologist at UBIMET.
"Track sensors and the server follow on Wednesday, at the latest."
All of the equipment then has to be tested on Thursday, as everything must be
functioning optimally for the first practice on Friday.
From Austria to the
United Kingdom
Just a few days after the race at Spielberg,
Austria, the UBIMET team travelled to Silverstone, Great Britain. Like most of
the British Isles, Silverstone experiences a maritime climate, with conditions
often influenced by weather systems moving in from the Atlantic. Extreme
weather events are rare in the area around Silverstone, but not unheard of - a tornado in South Birmingham damaged several houses in July 2005.
What will the weather be
like at the British Grand Prix?
In 2014 the race was dry - just after a few
showers during the Qualifying on Saturday. But, rain returned right after the
race. This is how the weather will be this year: "On Friday, mostly sunny,
with only a few clouds and up to 28 degrees. Timing is everything - there is a chance of heavy showers and thunderstorms on Friday evening, but these will
subside during the morning. We expect Saturday to stay dry, with temperatures
up to 26 degrees. The race on Sunday will also be dry, with only slight cloud
cover and a maximum of 21 to 22 degrees", says Dietz.
Formula 1 weather: What
has happened so far?
After very humid conditions in Sepang, Malaysia
and sandstorms in Sakhir, Bahrain, weather conditions were quieter in
Barcelona, Monaco and Montreal : "In Barcelona it was pleasantly warm and
dry. Conditions were a little cooler in Monaco, with some rain over the race weekend,
but nothing that we were not expecting. In Montreal it was slightly warmer with
almost no precipitation" says Dietz. "Things were a little trickier in
Spielberg, and there were some interesting local effects at play - the global
models indicated continuous rain over the circuit on Friday, but local ‘Foehn'
effects actually kept the track more or less dry, as we indicated in the
forecast. There was some light rain just before the Qualifying on Saturday, but
the track dried quite quickly. On Sunday there were showers in the vicinity,
but there was no rain during the race."
Weather speaks many
languages
"We always have to make some adjustments to
our procedures and forecasting methods as we move to different climate
zones", says Dietz. UBIMET meteorologists in Vienna and Melbourne - who
have experience of weather phenomena all over the world - support the team
onsite.
Actual weather forecasts for every race weekend
can be found here: www.ubimet.com
Forecasts are updated every Thursday before the
race.
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