Alexander Buchan
Alexander Buchan - A Famous Scottish Meteorologist
Alexander Buchan (1829 - 1907) Noted chiefly for giving his name to the annual spells in Britain of exceptionally cold and exceptionally warm weather. He was secretary to the Scottish Meteorological Society from 1860, anD discovered his spells (or periods) in 1869 from a study of 10 years of Scottish weather data. Buchan's six cold periods are: February 7-14, April 11-14, May 9-14, June 29-July 4, August 6-11 and November 6-13. His three warm periods are : July 12-15, August 12-15, and December 3-14. These dates were not meant to apply outside Scotland and even there Buchan recognised considerable variations from year to year. They may be used as a long-term guide to "expectations", subject to later short-term weather forecasts. There is no explanation of them, though their existence is not doubted.
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