Rain: Is it mizzling, grizzerable or siling down?
- Published
The <link> <caption>Beaufort Scale</caption> <altText>Met Office</altText> <url href="http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/marine/guide/beaufortscale.html" platform="highweb"/> </link> was devised in 1806 to estimate wind speed by describing its effects, from zero - smoke rises vertically - to 12 - causing violence and destruction. After what seems like the wettest drought on record, BBC Radio 4's Broadcasting House has come up with its own scale to gauge the dampness of a British summer day, using colloquial terms suggested by its listeners. And presenter Kevin Connolly wonders <link> <caption>why there are so few official terms to describe the rain</caption> <url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18461189" platform="highweb"/> </link> .