:00:10. > :00:19.It is all around us. It connects us. Should it be weaned from the West,
:00:20. > :00:32.Reina from the east, or the Sun above, it is our weather.
:00:33. > :00:39.We have been forecasting our weather for centuries. We once looked at
:00:40. > :00:44.plants and animals for hints about what the weather would do. We got
:00:45. > :00:52.rain was on the way if cows were lying down, frogs croak, pine opened
:00:53. > :00:57.and the will of sheets and carols. Proverbs were our barometer. Red sky
:00:58. > :01:02.at night, Shepherd's delight. Red sky in the morning, Shepherd's
:01:03. > :01:06.warning. These were natural forecasting methods, but today, our
:01:07. > :01:12.weather team at the most up-to-date scientific data at their fingertips
:01:13. > :01:16.to bring you an accurate forecast. As our weather is so changeable, it
:01:17. > :01:21.makes it very interesting for forecasters because each day is
:01:22. > :01:27.different in one way or another. So we need lots of things. Computer
:01:28. > :01:30.models, satellite imagery and observations from the ground. We
:01:31. > :01:34.collate these and work out what is going to happen for the next few
:01:35. > :01:41.days. But as Angie explains, where we live plays a part as well. People
:01:42. > :01:44.often ask why the weather is so changeable here in Northern Ireland
:01:45. > :01:49.compared to other areas, especially those on similar latitudes, and a
:01:50. > :01:53.lot has to do with positioning. Take, for example, more school. It
:01:54. > :02:03.is more or less on the same latitude as ourselves but it is in the middle
:02:04. > :02:07.of a large land mass. In contrast, we are positioned at the edge of the
:02:08. > :02:11.Atlantic Ocean. What does not heat up at the same rate and a lot of our
:02:12. > :02:14.weather is coming across that water of the Atlantic so we do not get the
:02:15. > :02:19.same extremes. The opposite happens in the winter months. Over the land,
:02:20. > :02:24.it cools down extremely quickly, plummeting temperatures. The seed
:02:25. > :02:27.modifies our temperatures and it doesn't kill down at the same rate
:02:28. > :02:34.here and that is why we have a moderate climate. -- cool. I am
:02:35. > :02:37.going to go out and experience how that climate shapes our lives and I
:02:38. > :02:47.am starting with my head in the clouds.
:02:48. > :02:55.I have come to the Ulster gliding club to meet Alan McKellen, and even
:02:56. > :03:00.though I am taking to the skies, I will not be in a plane, but a
:03:01. > :03:09.glider. An aircraft that does not have an engine and relies solely on
:03:10. > :03:14.the weather for power. You have to put this on. Obviously, this is just
:03:15. > :03:27.for emergencies. There we go. Brilliantly. To get off the ground,
:03:28. > :03:29.we need a bit of help. We will be off in about three seconds. One,
:03:30. > :03:47.two, three. And we are up. We are going to go to 3000 feet
:03:48. > :03:55.today. That is quite high up something that does not have an
:03:56. > :04:03.engine. One way the gliders stays up is by using a thermal, which is a
:04:04. > :04:09.stream of rising warm air. What do you know to look for at this stage?
:04:10. > :04:18.We tried to interpret the clouds ahead of us and we look for a nice,
:04:19. > :04:22.young wispy clouds which is an invitation -- indication of a
:04:23. > :04:26.thermal to starting to grow. And we have lots of nice puffy clouds. And
:04:27. > :04:29.you are in a privileged position because you have all sorts of
:04:30. > :04:33.weather coming from different directions that helps you. A
:04:34. > :04:37.multitude of different types of weather. The skill of a glider pilot
:04:38. > :04:42.is interpreting the weather on the day and making the best use of it.
:04:43. > :04:47.That is what the sport of gliding is all about, extracting the awesome
:04:48. > :04:51.amount of energy which can be in the atmosphere. It is time to release
:04:52. > :05:04.ourselves from the top plane and fly solo. OK, off we go. Now. We are
:05:05. > :05:12.doing it ourselves. That is it. Look at that. That is beautiful. It is
:05:13. > :05:22.the weather now that is literally allowing us to fly without an
:05:23. > :05:32.engine. Absolutely. We are soaring. It is a bit scary. The flying club
:05:33. > :05:36.is ideally situated at the foothills of a mountain and Alan is going to
:05:37. > :05:40.use the mountain range to gain altitude. The wind hits the mountain
:05:41. > :05:48.and has nowhere to go but up, taking cars with it. So that big burst,
:05:49. > :05:52.that was the left. So the ridge lift is basically the wind hits the
:05:53. > :05:57.bottom of the mountain and essentially pushes us up into the
:05:58. > :06:02.air? Yes, we get left all the way along there. You are going to give
:06:03. > :06:26.me a heart attack. Well, that is just a very small
:06:27. > :06:29.taste of the energy that can be in the atmosphere. This must be how
:06:30. > :06:36.birds feel. This is really just harnessing the power of the weather.
:06:37. > :06:48.Absolutely. That is what soaring and gliding is all about.
:06:49. > :06:57.You really do get a buzz from it. Absolutely. There is nothing like
:06:58. > :07:05.the bars when you land. It is a sense of achievement. I'll will turn
:07:06. > :07:13.round back towards the general direction of the airfield. OK. That
:07:14. > :07:19.is a long way down. We generally think of clouds as there being a
:07:20. > :07:26.chance of rain and what do we do, bring the Washington. But we harness
:07:27. > :07:30.it for this. The weather might be keeping is airborne, but how do we
:07:31. > :07:43.land this thing? Oh, now I know what they mean by a wing and a prayer.
:07:44. > :07:51.Here we go. Almost touched down. Fantastic. I am surprisingly -- that
:07:52. > :07:53.was surprisingly smooth. I did not know what to expect there.
:07:54. > :08:04.Thankfully, I did not take my parachute. And from gliding, which
:08:05. > :08:14.relies on clouds, to a profession that requires a cloudless sky.
:08:15. > :08:21.Across the lake is the initial peninsular I'm going there to meet
:08:22. > :08:28.up with the photographer Martin Gardner. Her photographs are
:08:29. > :08:32.landscapes featuring consolations and the Milky Way. Martina, you have
:08:33. > :08:41.a lot of night-time photographs here. What are you interested in
:08:42. > :08:44.about photography? I was always interested in photography, but in
:08:45. > :08:47.the last four or five years, I have become interested in night-time
:08:48. > :08:51.photography. There is just something about being out there and looking up
:08:52. > :08:56.and enjoying the stars. I just can't help myself. I just love it. It
:08:57. > :09:01.can't be as easy as that. Look at this could -- photograph. You can do
:09:02. > :09:07.is go out and think you will get that. No, to catch the Milky Way, it
:09:08. > :09:10.has to be the right time of the month, when there is little or no
:09:11. > :09:15.moonlight and you also need an absolutely clear sky, so trying to
:09:16. > :09:18.get the two on the one night, that is the difficult part. What are the
:09:19. > :09:22.chances of both of the things happening at the same time? Well, we
:09:23. > :09:28.have picked the right day. There is no moon. And the weather, I am not
:09:29. > :09:35.too sure about. Maybe you know better. Well, why don't we have a
:09:36. > :09:37.look. As we can see, some breaks in the cloud and hopefully that will
:09:38. > :09:50.continue and we will have some photographs like this. Yet,
:09:51. > :09:57.fantastic. We are off to the most northerly tip on the island of
:09:58. > :10:01.Ireland with the white Atlantic Ocean in front. You will have heard
:10:02. > :10:06.of this place because there is a weather station there. And the
:10:07. > :10:11.weather element, which distinguishes this from other stations throughout
:10:12. > :10:21.the country is the wind speed. Storm Force 12 winds regularly recorded.
:10:22. > :10:26.Well, it looks like we are in luck. Some clear skies. Yes, it is always
:10:27. > :10:30.good when you see some clear skies. You have been here before when it
:10:31. > :10:34.has been like this and you have got some amazing shots, so perhaps we
:10:35. > :10:36.will get some tonight. Yes, it will get a clear sky even in one
:10:37. > :10:47.direction then we will be able to work with it, so I am quite
:10:48. > :10:52.optimistic so far. This is the spot you reckon we will get a good shot
:10:53. > :10:55.from. Yes, we will get a good shot of the tower from here and the sky
:10:56. > :10:59.is looking even better than I thought it might. We did have a look
:11:00. > :11:03.at the weather earlier and it did say that the cloud was going to
:11:04. > :11:08.clear for us so it looks like it has done so. Yes, it is really shaping
:11:09. > :11:17.up nicely. I am really excited. OK, so tripod, camera, that is ours. So
:11:18. > :11:24.we just line it up here and try to get all of the tower in and leave
:11:25. > :11:30.space for the stars as well. Not looking too bad so far. No, the main
:11:31. > :11:35.thing is we have plenty of sky so when that fills with star is it will
:11:36. > :11:39.be looking good. It is not a bad night to be out. I am sure you have
:11:40. > :11:45.been here when it has been worse. It is the windiest place in Ireland.
:11:46. > :11:50.Yellow M having no wind is really something. So we will set back and
:11:51. > :11:55.wait for that perfect shot. It might not be windy, but it is very cold.
:11:56. > :12:08.It is no wonder the Romans cold Ireland the land of winter. Yellow
:12:09. > :12:18.light years. We are ready for a shot. You have to stay still. Ready
:12:19. > :12:24.and action. Deep breath in. I do not want to be able on the landscape.
:12:25. > :12:30.Here goes. That looks great. Come on down and have a look. OK, breathe
:12:31. > :12:38.out? Let's have a look. That looks fantastic. That has really come out
:12:39. > :12:45.well. We haven't got all the stars I would like. Some stars at the top.
:12:46. > :12:50.The weather hasn't completely let us down. A great day, great photograph.
:12:51. > :12:58.It has been quite cold but it has been worth it. Maybe not as starry
:12:59. > :13:02.as my dear -- Martina would have liked, but I think it is perfect.
:13:03. > :13:06.The relationship we have with the weather is a complex one. We do
:13:07. > :13:08.enjoy sunshine and we might complain about gays being wet and cold but
:13:09. > :13:15.brain is refreshing and wind is bracing. -- days being wet. I like
:13:16. > :13:17.to think there is no such thing as bad, only different types of good
:13:18. > :13:22.weather. There is scientific evidence that a profusion of red
:13:23. > :13:27.hair, fair skin and freckles is the result of living in a sun starved
:13:28. > :13:31.climate. I am living proof, so there you have it. No doubt that the
:13:32. > :13:32.weather is part of who we are and what we are. Until next time,
:13:33. > :14:00.goodbye. but the vast majority of people
:14:01. > :14:06.in Northern Ireland Being a Muslim makes
:14:07. > :14:14.everything easier for me. Ten different noses, ten
:14:15. > :14:23.different selfies. How cool is that? I am more than just the beard
:14:24. > :14:37.or the nation's favourite dish. There's 4 million different ways
:14:38. > :14:42.to understand what British Asian is. mixed with fish and chips
:14:43. > :14:46.and visions of five rivers, this is a modern-day collision.
:14:47. > :14:49.That's just how we're living. I could be a boxing champ,
:14:50. > :14:52.AND build your computer. We are everything that the past
:14:53. > :14:57.has made us, and we are the future.