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Top tips for using Weather

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Sarah Keith-Lucas

Â鶹ԼÅÄ Weather has started working with new weather partner MeteoGroup which means we get new data and forecasting information into some of our digital services.

We have also redesigned our Â鶹ԼÅÄ Weather website and applications on iOS, Android and Kindle so you will see changes over the next few weeks as these are rolled out.

More information about what's changing can be found on the Â鶹ԼÅÄ's Internet Blog, but here are answers to some frequently asked questions about the new site.

Favourites - where have my favourite locations gone?

Your favourite locations do work in a different way on the new site, and we ask you to sign in to add locations because it's the best way to keep them safe and secure.

However, you can find all your recent location searches by tapping on the search field at the top of any Â鶹ԼÅÄ Weather page. And you don't have to sign in/register with the Â鶹ԼÅÄ to see them.

If you do register/sign in, then you can set up your favourites there and keep the same list of places, including your default home location, regardless of what you search for in future. It only takes a few moments and means you can access your stored locations on both computer or tablet, simply by signing in to the Â鶹ԼÅÄ.

Just search for any location and you should see 'Add to my locations' prompt next to the location name. Select this option and you'll be prompted to sign in or register with the Â鶹ԼÅÄ. Once signed in, you can always access your favourite stored locations by clicking on the search field at the top of the page. For more information about locations, visit the 'My locations' in Weather page.

In the near future, we will continue to make improvements which will allow you to see forecast snapshots from all your favourite locations on the homepage when you are signed in.

You can also find out more about how we treat your location data here.

Pressure - where are the pressure maps?

You can find pressure charts on any forecast page. Go to a location, such as Cardiff, scroll down the page to the map. Here, you'll see a 'Pressure' tab.

Alternatively, you can toggle the pressure data layer on/off from the 'full screen' view. You can view pressure charts for your region, country or even globe.

Map - where is the UK map?

Maps can be found on any forecast location page. For example, search for Hull and then go to the Hull forecast page. Then just scroll down the page until you can see a map.

This shows you our new interactive map for the region around the location you've selected. Select the 'Full screen' button to open the interactive map, zoom or scroll to see weather affecting the whole UK or different parts of the world.

We hope you like this new addition to the site. We have worked hard to allow you to manipulate the different data fields by turning them on and off as you feel is helpful to planning your day (using the key and options box on the left) . You can also easily see weather right across the globe.

Precipitation - what is it and how is it calculated?

We will endeavour to add more information about precipitation and how it is calculated on the site. In the meantime, here is an explanation about what we mean by precipitation, i.e. rain, snow, hail, and so on.

All aspects of predicting the weather are a culmination of determining the most likely state of the weather at a particular place and a particular time. In order to give you the ability to determine the relative chance of precipitation, MeteoGroup use the probability of precipitation (% chance). This ranges from 0% (no chance at all) to 100% (it will be wet).

So what does a 20% chance of rain actually mean? It means that out of 100 situations with similar weather, it should rain on 20 of those, and not rain on 80. In a nutshell, it means that, whilst you may get some rain, it's much more likely (but not certain) to stay dry.

The probabilities are given for the location chosen, and thus are valid for that location only. As MeteoGroup forecasts take advantage of hourly updates, which include real-time information from radar, satellite, and nearby weather station observations, you may notice the probabilities changing in the short-term (next 2-3 hours). This gives you the chance to spot when, for example, a shower may be approaching your location, as the probabilities will tend to rise.

What does 'feels like' temperature mean?

The temperatures in our forecasts represent the 'air temperature' forecast - that is, the temperature that a properly shielded thermometer would record.

However, there are factors which can lead to a day 'feeling' hotter or colder than this value, alone, might suggest. The two main factors which cause this sensation are: wind speed, and humidity.

Our perception of temperature comes down to how quickly, or not, our skin is cooled. In light winds and high humidity, especially with higher temperatures, any moisture on our skin will be slow to evaporate, and so the cooling will be lower.

Thus, the air may 'feel' somewhat warmer than the temperature indicates. Similarly, but going the other way, a windy and dry day, especially when cold, may lead to the air 'feeling' colder than the temperature may suggest.

Thus, the 'feels like' temperature is designed to give an indication as to when these extra factors may combine to make the apparent temperature seem higher, or lower, than indicated. Of course, the perception of temperature is rather subjective, so these should only be taken as broad guidelines.

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