The Jet Stream is a fast moving ribbon of air in our upper atmosphere that brings weather systems from west to east towards the UK. It is affected by both cold polar air from the north and warm tropical air from the south. The battle between these two air masses makes the jet stream 'buckle' or 'kink', allowing wave-like patterns to form. This affects the positioning of the Jet Stream in relation to the UK - and in turns affects the nature of the weather over the UK.
So far this Spring the Jet Stream has been much further south than we would expect. It has kept Low Pressure systems at bay and instead has allowed High Pressure to influence our weather - bringing mainly dry but cold conditions for the past few months.
This means the Jet Stream has been feeding wetter and warmer weather into parts of Europe. Spain, for example, has had its wettest March on record. Rain was persistant here for most of the month, bringing an average of 157mm compared to normal values of 46mm. That works out at 340% of the expected March rainfall - the wettest in 65 years, since records began. This rain on a typical start to Spring would have been reserved for Scotland.
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