14 April 2012 - This synoptic map is valid for Tomorrow Sunday 15  April. It shows a similar situation as the past few days: low pressure prevails over Norway and associated frontal systems turn around the center of the depression. This results in mainly weak wind conditions, however local wind pattern can generate pressure in the sails! (Map from Bracknell) click on the map to see the full size.

Forecast Ragnarok - valid for 14-15/04/2012
Center of low pressure over Southern Norway with the associated occluded front extending over Central Norway. This situation results in general poor conditions with a lot of clouds and regularly some snow or snow showers.
From wind perspective, it looks very ’swampy’ with areas of low or no wind-details see below.
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Greenland 2012-From Kangerlussuaq to Isortoq - Forecast
Date: 07 May 2012

Day 1: 07 May 2012
Position: From 65.9/-39.6  To 65.7/-39.2
Wind: 340-360/3-6ms - after 12utc becoming weak to calm. After 24utc again increasing to 350-360/5-8ms.
Weather: sunny with patchy high clouds
Temps: day: +0/-2C night: -8/-10C
Advice: good conditions and traditional daily wind profile

Day 2: 08 May 2012
Position: From 65.7/-39.2  To 65.5/-38.9
Wind: 010-030/5-8ms - after 12utc becoming weak to calm. After midnight again increasing to 350-360/4-6ms.
Weather: sunny
Temps: day: 0/-2C night: -6/-8C
Advice: similar remark

Day 3: 09 May 2012
Position: 65.5/-38.9 -  Isortoq
Wind: calm/weak from variable directions.
Weather: sunny
Temps: day: -2/-4C night: -10/-14C
Advice: again colder-

Greenland 2012-From Kangerlussuaq to Isortoq - Forecast - Date: 04 May 2012

Day 1: 04 May 2012
Position: From 66.0/-41.0  To 65.8/-40.4
Wind: 330-350/10-12ms averagely, after 12/15utc becoming 350-010/6-8ms, further decreasing during the following night.
Weather: drifting snow but gradually decreasing. Mostly a mix of sunny spells and patches of medium/high clouds.
Temps: day: -2/-4C night: -8/-10C
Advice: midday temperatures are likely to get close to 0C, so this could make it a little more difficult to ski.

Day 2: 05 May 2012
Position: From 65.8/-40.4  To 65.6/-39.7
Wind: 350-010/2-4ms temporarily decreasing to weak from variable directions. During the second part of the night increasing again.
Weather: similar: sunny with patchy high clouds.
Temps: day: 0/-4C night: -4/-6C
Advice: similar remark

Day 3: 06 May 2012
Position: From 65.6/-39.7  To 65.5/-39.2
Wind: 340-360/6-8ms - no significant change.
Weather: sunny with patchy high clouds, drifting snow
Temps: day: +2/-2C night: -4/-6C
Advice: maybe avoid skiing during the warm period

Date: 02 May 2012

This is the latest sat shot of Greenland and ’surroundings’. It shows the current position of our team and also the low clouds just to the West of them. So now they are in cleer conditions. However there is an inication that within 36 hours strong winds may develop. More about this tomorrow. Click on the image for the full display. (Image from CWO)

Day 1: 02 May 2012
Position: From 66.2/-42.1  To 66.1/-41.8
Wind: 310-330/7-10ms a little veering to 330-350 - after 24/03utc becoming 340-360/4-6ms.
Weather: mainly sunny and clear/some drifting snow decreasing following night
Temps: day: -10/-12C night: -14/-16C
Advice: good travel conditions.

Day 2: 03 May 2012
Position: From 66.1/-41.8  To 66.0/-41.5
Wind: 330-350/3-5ms - temporarily bewoming weak from variable directions - after 24utc becoming 300-320/10-15ms averagely gust 20ms
Weather: sunny - no significant change
Temps: day: -6/-8C night: -10/-12C
Advice: good travel conditions make it a long day-next day could be a delayed start due to the high winds. When you stop and pith up your tent make sure it is firmly secured and nothing can blow away. High winds develop after 24utc.

Day 3: 03 May 2012
Position: From 66.0/-41.5  To 65.9/-41.2
Wind: 310-330/12-16ms averagely gusts up to 20-22ms, slightly decreasing after 18/21utc.
Weather: probably no significant cloud cover but yet strong winds with blowing snow and reduced visibility-, slightly improving as wind start to decrease after 21utc.
Temps: day: -5/-7C night: -10/-12C
Advice: could be a rest day, depends on how motivated you are to face the high winds. The temperatures are reasonably high so the risk for frostbite is not extremely high.

Date 30 April 2012

This is the most recent satellite of Grenland and the Arctic. It is a visible image and it shows that the Northern half of Greenland is completely cloudfree. The other half, is covered with cloud. More detailed conditions, see below in the forecast. Click on the image. (Image from CWO)

Day 1: 30 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.4  To 66.4/-44.2
Wind: 180-200/3-6ms - after 12/15utc becoming 160-180/8-10ms. After 24/03utc becoming 250-270/7-10ms
Weather: sunny spells, after 15/18utc becoming very cloudy with periods of (slight) snowfall (and drifting/blowing snow);
Temps: day: -2/-6C night: -10/-12C
Advice: first part of the day looks good, deteriorating later-so an early start would be best.

Day 2: 01 May 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.2  To 66.4/-44.0
Wind: 290-310/9-12ms - after 18/121utc becoming 330-350/3-6ms.
Weather: very cloudy with slight snow fall -drifting and blowing snow-, improving conditions after 18/21utc: enlarging sunny spells
Temps: day: -10/-12C night: -26/-28C
Advice: marginal conditions during the first part of the day, later improving. A late start when the conditions improve could work.

Day 3: 02 May 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.2  To 66.4/-44.0
Wind: weak from variable directions - after 9/12utc becoming 150-170/6-9ms.
Weather: maybe a few shallow fog patches but mainly sunny. More clouds during the following night.
Temps: day: -12/-14C night: -14/-16C
Advice: cold morning-good travel conditions

1: 28 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.6  To 66.4/-44.4
Wind: 250-270/8-10ms - veering to 300-320 and after 15/18utc fdecreasing to 2-5ms. After 21/24utc becoming 190-210/3-5ms.
Weather: very cloudy with some intermittent slight snow till aproximately 12/15utc (first hous still windy enough to trigger blowing/drifting snow, than further improving with enlarging sunny spells.
Temps: day: -12/-14C  night:-22/-26C
Advice: improving conditions so, especially after 12/15utc conditions become good to travel. Also significantly colder.

Day 2: 29 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.4  To 66.4/-44.2
Wind: 190-210/5-7ms - after 18/21utc becoming 160-180/8-10ms.
Weather: sunny spells but after 15/18utc again becoming very cloudy with pssobly slight snowfall and later again risk for drifting and blowing snow. Again warmer, probably too warm!
Temps: day: -2/-6C night: -8/-10C
Advice: first part of the day looks good, bt deteriorating later in the day-so an early start could work.

Day 3: 30 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.2  To 66.4/-44.0
Wind: 260-280/6-9ms - after 15/18utc becoming 300-320/4-6ms.
Weather: very cloudy with tempo slight snow fall, improving conditions after 18/21utc: enlarging sunny spells
Temps: day: -10/-12C night: -26/-28C
Advice: marginal conditions during the first part of the day, later improving. So be reay to go when conditions start to improve.

Date: 27 April 2012

Our team is about halfway their Greenland crossing. Click on the image. (Sat shot from CWO)

Day 1: 27 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-45.2  To 66.4/-45.0
Wind: increasing to 210-230/8-12ms temporarily increasing to 12-14ms - after 21/24utc becoming 260-280/8-10ms.
Weather: overcast with periods of moderate snow fall (also blowing/drifting snow)/poor visibility and poor contrast. Conditions start to improve slightly after 24/03utc following night..
Temps: between -8 and -2C
Advice: difficult to travel: poor conditions: poor contrast/visibility-no significant change during the day, improving (slowly) during the following night

Day 2: 28 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-45.0  To 66.4/-44.8
Wind: 270-290/8-10ms - becoming after 12/15utc 240-260/4-6ms after 18/21utc becoming 200-220/3-6ms.
Weather: still very cloudy with probably some intermittent slight snow but further improving, resulting in possibly some weak sunny spells
Temps: day: -10/-12C  night:-22/-26C
Advice: better conditions to travel than the previous days, also significantly colder.

Day 3: 29 April 2012
Position: From 66.4/-44.8  To 66.5/-44.5
Wind: 230-250/4-6ms - becoming after 15/18utc 160-180/5-7ms.
Weather: a mix of cloudy periods and (sometimes weak) sunny spells-there is a risk of temporarily some slight snow (shower).
Temps: day: -8/-10C night: -10/-14C
Advice: not excellent but good travel conditions
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13 April 2012 - This is the synoptic map valid for Saturday 14 April 2012 - It shows an area of low pressure extending from the North Sea extending towards Scandinavia. This results in a low gradient zone over Norway which leads to weak wind conditions. However the local topography can generate some local wind patterns that can be useful for the kite event! Good Luck!!! (map from Bracknell)

Forecast Ragnarok - valid for 13-14-15/04/2012
Outlook for today and the next few days looks much similar as expected yesterday. No excellent conditions but not too bad either.Good luck everybody!

Marc De Keyser - www.weather4expeditions.com
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13 April 2012 - Marc and his team are very close to the Pole now. They are still enjoying a positive drift which is an excellent advantage. Hopefully they reach the Pole during the weekend. Fingers crossed. Click on the image to see the full size. (Sat image from CWO)

North Pole Expedition - Marc C. -2012
Forecast - 13 April 2012 - day11
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Weather4expeditions.com supports the Norwegian team on their ski expedition across Greenland. With daily updated weather reports weather4expeditions.com contributes to the safety of this team. We wish them the best of luck on this epic trip. (click on this banner to visit their website)

Jim Robert Torbjørnsen-Expedition leader:
Jim Robert Torbjørnsen is 29 years old from Tromsoe, Norway. He is currently a law student at the University of Tromsoe, and uses some of his spare time to take tourists on a dog sledge ride through the outlying fields of Tromsoe. Jim has among many other things worked as glacier guide at Finse, crossed Norway from Nordkapp to Lindesnes on bicycle, crossed Finnmarksvidda alone by foot and crossed Hardangervidda by ski.
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Synoptic map, valid Friday 12utc. Shows the Low pressure area over Norway which is not expected to move a lot during the weekend. Click on the Image to see it in full size. Image from Bracknell.

12 April 2012 - Forecast Ragnarok - valid for 13-14-15/04/2012
It looks like the complex low pressure system over the North Sea remains quasi stationary for the three days to come. This means that the frontal systems with the associated snow zones, lingers over Norway for the weekend.
Summary: mainly very cloudy conditions with periods of snow and in between sunny spells. Wind remains on the weak side. More details see below.
Check this website for tomorrows forecast or link yourself to our facebook page weather4expeditions.com
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12 April 2012 - This is the latest sat image of the Arctic, showing the current position of Marc’s expedition team and the prevailing wind conditions. Not visible on this image is the movement of the ice, which is straight to the North pole. This favorable situation continues during the following days. (sat image from CWO).

North Pole Expedition - Marc C. -2012
Forecast - 12 April 2012 - day10
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April is tradionally the month for the biggest kite event of the world: Red Bull Ragnarok. It takes place in Haugastol, Norway. From Today onwards you can find every day an updated weather forecast for this event.

Forecast Ragnarok - valid for 13-14-15/04/2012
An area of low pressure covers the North Sea. The frontal systems linked to that low pressure extend towards Norway an determine the weather in a negative way during the days of Friday and Saturday.
This means for Friday and Saturday: poor weather conditions with periods of snow and mainly weak winds. Sunday weather conditions will be good, but still wind will be on the weak side.

Check this website for tomorrows forecast or link yourself to our facebook page weather4expeditions.com
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11 April 2012 - This satellite image is taken in the visible wave length of the spectrum. It shows you what you would really see from above. We can make clearly the distinction between the high cloud cover and the low clouds. Marc and his team are doing well. They experience a positive drift which means that the sea ice below their tent is moving toward the North! Good stuff! (sat image from the CWO) Click on the image to see the full size.

North Pole Expedition - Marc C. -2012
Forecast - 11 April 2012 - day9
 
D1-11Ap
-p:89.4/138
-t:-20/-24C
-wd:150-170/6-10kt no significant change
-wx:mainly sunny-good conditions-some high clouds
-id:weak/mod tow NNW/N (pos drift)

D2-12Ap
-p:89.55/137
-t:-20/-24C
-wd:130-150/5-9kt bcmg 110-130/7-12kt
-wx:mainly sunny-
-id:weak/mod tow NNW/NW (pos drift), slightly backing
 
D3-13Ap
-p:89.7/136
-t:-20/-24C
-wd:110-130/7-12kt bcmg 140-160/6-10kt
-wx:mainly sunny-increasing high clouds/risk for fog
-id:weak to mod tow NW (pos drift, slightly veering

10 April 2012 - This is the most recent IR sat image of the Arctic, taken by the polar orbiting satellite noaa-16. It shows the cloud distribution over the Arctic as well as the big open leads of the Arctic sea ice. The red arrow shows the most recent position of Marc and his team, whilst the blue one indicates the prevailing wind direction. This is often the most important indicator for the drift of the sea ice. Click on the image to enlarge. (from the Canadian Weather Office

North Pole Expedition - Marc C. -2012
Forecast - 10 April 2012 - day8
 
D1-10Ap
-expected position: 89.3/140
-temperatures: -20/-22C
-wind: 140-160/6-10kt becoming 160-180/5-9kt
-weather: mainly sunny-good conditions-some high clouds
-ice drift: weak toward NNW/N (pos drift)

D2-11Ap
-p:89.4/140
-t:-20/-22C
-wd:140-160/6-10kt no significant change
-wx:mainly sunny-
-id:weak tow N/NW (pos drift)
 
D3-12Ap
-p:89.4/140
-t:-20/-22C
-wd:130-150/8-12kt no significant change
-wx:mainly sunny-
-id:weak to mod tow NNW/NW (pos drift)