NASA's image of the UK is more like a "Where's Wally" of the UK. 

It must be having quite an impact in the UK. According to UK resident and Watts Up With That (WUWT) commenter “borderer”:

Every single newspaper in the UK has published the following satellite image of the UK today – it shows the entire country in glowing white – snow and ice now appears the entire British Isles from John O’ Groats at the Northern tip of Scotland – to Landsend in Cornwall.

 

Despite this – and we are now in our 25th day of sub zero temperatures – the MET Office put up a spokesman on Newsnight last evening claiming that their forecast for a ‘very mild winter’ had ‘only been a probability!!

 

In other news, the Met Head gets paid extra even for botched forecasting. Remember the “BBQ summer” forecast?

 

Excess deaths in the winter months.

108,500 Deaths in the US in 2008; 36,700 in England and Wales Last Winter; 5,600 in Canada (2006); 7,000 in Australia (1997-2006 Average); Thousands in Other Developed Countries

 

Since extreme cold has gripped much of the Northern Hemisphere, some newspapers have been keeping a tally of the number of deaths obviously caused by extreme cold (e.g., freezing). But the BBC’s Health Correspondent, Clare Murphy, in a very timely and, in my opinion, excellent article, How cold turns up the heat on health, reminds us that many more deaths occur from chronic conditions that are exacerbated by cold weather.  She also notes that, “For every degree the temperature drops below 18C, deaths in the UK go up by nearly 1.5%.”

 

Global warming dominates the headlines, but in the UK the cold of winter is much more hazardous to health - especially for the elderly and the sick. Clare Murphy from the BBC has more.

For every degree the temperature drops below 18C, deaths in the UK go up by nearly 1.5%.

 

This year, any new year's resolutions that involve strenuous outdoor activity - at least for those with existing health problems - could be best put on ice.

 

Heart attacks and strokes rise as temperatures fall. This is because when confronted with the cold, the blood vessels in the skin contract to conserve heat by preventing blood from flowing to the surface. The composition of the blood also changes.

 

The heart has to work harder to pump blood through narrower vessels, while the change in concentration means it is more liable to clot, with all the ensuing health problems.

 

The British Heart Foundation says: "There is growing evidence to suggest that heart attacks are linked with extreme weather conditions, especially cold weather.

 

"If you have a heart problem and are outside in cold weather, you should avoid sudden exertion - for example, shoveling snow or pushing a car.

 

"In very cold weather it may be best to stay indoors."