# England & Ireland are parallel to Labrador Canada. Why aren't they colder? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 20, 2005, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487 "2005-09-20T03:25:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/1 "2005-09-20T03:25:51Z")
[From the CIA fact book](http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/appendix/appendix-f.html) it appears that England & Ireland are parallel to approx mid-Canadian latitudes. Why aren’t they colder? Britain (see Great Britain) United Kingdom 54 00 N 2 00 W Ulster (region) Ireland, United Kingdom 54 35 N 7 00 W Labrador (peninsula, region) Canada 54 00 N 62 00 W ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/2 "2005-09-20T03:31:08Z")
Mostly it’s heat transfer via the [Gulf stream](http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycleoceans.html). As you can see from [this graph](http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/graphics/wcoceansgulfstream.jpg), the area around the UK is significantly warmer than the areas near Labrador at the same latitude. If the Gulf Stream grinds to a halt, as some theorize it may one day, Britains are screwed, weatherwise. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/3 "2005-09-20T03:35:46Z")
The [Gulf Stream.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Stream) Basically, it’s a big ocean current that runs from the Caribbean across the Atlantic to Europe, taking warm water with it all the way. This means that the Atlantic is a lot warmer than it would otherwise be, which in turn ensures that the winters are milder than they are at the same latitude in Labrador. Meanwhile, Labrador is affected in the opposite way by the [Labrador Current](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labrador_Current), which brings cold water down along the Labrador coast from the Arctic Ocean. There is much scientific talk these days on the possibility that human-induced climate change could cause the Gulf Stream to terminate much further south. If this happened, then the climate of Britain would become much colder. So watch out. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/4 "2005-09-20T03:36:55Z")
From what I’ve always been told it’s that the [Gulf Stream](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Stream) carries warm Caribbean water up the east coast of the US and across the Atlantic towards the area of the British Isles. The higher ocean temperatures there cause milder winters, while on the American side, the Gulf Stream diminishes in its coastal effects above Cape Hatteras, while a cold current coming south from the Arctic has an increasing effect. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/5 "2005-09-20T03:39:30Z")
The [Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Current](http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/encyclopedia/g/gu/gulf_stream.htm). ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/6 "2005-09-20T03:41:27Z")
So… let me understand, you’re saying it’s the Gulf Stream. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/7 "2005-09-20T03:50:51Z")
Yep, the Gulf Stream. Starting near Rio. ---
**Author:** ![Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/57b2e6/32.png) [@Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Random)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/8 "2005-09-20T03:54:41Z")
That, and all the beer farts.\* (Sorry. But the question was answered, I normally don’t do this, and I’m half Irish, so this is meant in fun, and not meant as a serious insult. If I blamed it on warm beer, then you’d know I meant to hurt.) ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/9 "2005-09-20T03:55:46Z")
Has anyone mentioned the Gulf Stream yet? On the other hand, the [Labrador current](http://oceancurrents.rsmas.miami.edu/atlantic/labrador.html) keeps eastern Canada [cool in summer.](http://atlantic-web1.ns.ec.gc.ca/climatecentre/default.asp?lang=En&n=83846147-1) > [@](#): > > Spring comes rather slowly and is short. Until late May, night-time averages in the interior are under 4C, and in many valley locations there is a 90% probability of frost on any night until the first week of June. > > Summer is also short and cool. The glacial Labrador Current holds July average temperatures in coastal areas around 14C, but inland averages may climb over 16C. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/10 "2005-09-20T04:09:10Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Has anyone mentioned the Gulf Stream yet? > On the other hand, the [Labrador current](http://oceancurrents.rsmas.miami.edu/atlantic/labrador.html) keeps eastern Canada [cool in summer.](http://atlantic-web1.ns.ec.gc.ca/climatecentre/default.asp?lang=En&n=83846147-1) Gosh, I don’t suppose that was mentioned in post #3? I kid cuz I love. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/11 "2005-09-20T04:19:42Z")
> [@MikeS](#): > > Gosh, I don’t suppose that was mentioned in post #3? > > I kid cuz I love. In this thread all items of interest bear repeating! Actually it’s quite fascinating that the effect of off shore water temperatures have such a profound effect on climate well inland. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/12 "2005-09-20T05:08:53Z")
Are you sure it’s not the Marianas Trench? ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/13 "2005-09-20T05:51:33Z")
> [@astro](#): > > In this thread all items of interest bear repeating! Actually it’s quite fascinating that the effect of off shore water temperatures have such a profound effect on climate well inland. Well, apparently, it’s a lot of water. According to my Wikipedia link above, the Gulf Stream north of Cape Hatteras carries a flow of 80 million cubic meters of water per second, as compared with the total amount of water flowing into the Atlantic from every river emptying into it (Amazon, Mississippi, Congo, St. Lawrence, not sure, but perhaps the Nile as well, and many smaller ones), which is a mere 0.6 million cubic meters of water per second. One of the links I saw mentioned that between the Gulf Stream taking all the West’s warmth to northern Europe, and the Labrador Current taking Greenland’s cold to Eastern Canada, the northern extent of tree growth is up to 15 degrees of latitude further north on the eastern side of the Atlantic than the western. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/14 "2005-09-20T07:05:07Z")
> [@waterj2](#): > > One of the links I saw mentioned that between the Gulf Stream taking all the West’s warmth to northern Europe, and the Labrador Current taking Greenland’s cold to Eastern Canada, the northern extent of tree growth is up to 15 degrees of latitude further north on the eastern side of the Atlantic than the western. That makes sense. The rocky glacier-scraped granitic country of southern Finland at 60 degrees north looks a lot like the rocky glacier-scraped granitic “Shield” country of central Ontario at 45 degrees north, right down to the types of trees and the wild berry bushes. This surprised me, necause I had thought that the Shield country of Ontario was unique in the world. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/15 "2005-09-20T07:26:45Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Are you sure it’s not the Marianas Trench? Well it was, once, for about 20 minutes back in 1960. No seriously, I’m gonna guess it has something to do with the Gulf Stream. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/16 "2005-09-20T07:28:47Z")
> [@Q.E.D.](#): > > If the Gulf Stream grinds to a halt, as some theorize it may one day, Britains are screwed, weatherwise. Not just Britians. Pretty much all of Western Europe is dependant on the Gulf Stream, climatewise. It’s all located north of similar populated regions on North America. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/17 "2005-09-20T07:38:04Z")
Ack! _Britons!_ ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Gene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@Soylent\_Gene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Gene)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/18 "2005-09-20T07:43:56Z")
Yes, the Gulf Stream has alot to do with it, but it’s mainly the presence of an ocean **(or any ocean)** to the west. A major factor for cold in Labrador is the continental air land mass present to the west (weather blows in from the west). In Labrador, they get cold (or warm in the summer) continental air. For this same reason, Maine is colder in the winter and hotter in the summer than where I live in Seattle (even though both cities are coastal at similar latitudes). A different example of this is a place like Nome, Alaska. In the summer, they have a cool 50-degree maritime climate (whereas inland Fairbanks can get into the 80s). In the winter, when the Bering Sea freezes over, the weather is very cold similar to mid-continental locations (like Fairbanks). ---
**Author:** ![cantara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6f9a4e/32.png) [@cantara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cantara)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/19 "2005-09-20T12:50:27Z")
I’m sorry I don’t have a cite, but I recall hearing about the cycle of ice ages and that the long periods of warm weather between them was the cause of the ice ages. The theory went something like this: The gulf stream flows on the surface of the atlantic up towards Britain/Europe and into the Arctic oceans, where it cools down and sinks to the bottom of the oceans and flows back towards Labrador and then down towards Africa where it warms back up rises to the surface and flows back to the Caribbean and completes a circulation. In effect the whole circuit is a figure-8 with the warm water flowing on the surface and the cold water flowing along the bottom of the ocean. The theory is that the warm water arriving in the Arctic causes the ice to melt and contribute to the flow back to Africa, but because the ice is fresh water, it decreases the salinity and ‘sits’ on top of the denser sea water and disrupts the circulation. Without the circulation, the arctic is able to stay colder longer and contributes to an ice age. Oh, wait, [I found one.](http://www.commondreams.org/cgi-bin/print.cgi?file=/views04/0130-11.htm) It seems to have been pooh-poohed though… ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487/20 "2005-09-20T13:08:23Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Ulster (region) > Ireland, United Kingdom > 54 35 N > 7 00 W Ulster can be a cold place, depending on your religion :rolleyes: [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/england-ireland-are-parallel-to-labrador-canada-why-arent-they-colder/322487.md?page=2)