Britain is set to face an increase in cold winters, with up to one-in-seven hitting the UK with longer periods of time when temperatures are below freezing, a study has suggested．The prediction was based on research that found out how low solar activity affected winter weather patterns．

    However, the researchers were eager to stress that their findings did not suggest that the region was about to fall suddenly into a "little ice age"．The findings appear in the journal Environmental Research Letters．"We could get to the point where one-in-seven winters are very cold, as we had at the start of last winter and all through the winter before last," said co-author Mike Lockwood, professor of space environment physics at the University of Reading．

    Using the Central England Temperature （CET） record, the world's longest instrumental data series that dates back to 1659, the team said that in general temperatures during recent winters had been obviously lower than the longer-term temperatures．"The mean CET for December, January and February for the recent relatively cold winters of 2008 ~ 2009 and 2009~2010 were 3．50℃ and 2．53℃ respectively," they wrote． "However, the mean value for the previous 20 winters had been 5．04℃．The series of lower winter temperatures in the UK during the last three years had raised questions about the probability of more similar, or even colder, winters occurring in the future．"

    Last year．Professor Lockwood and colleagues published a paper that found a link between fewer sunspots and atmospheric conditions that "blocked" warm westerly winds reaching Europe during winter months, opening the way for cold easterly winds from the Arctic and Russia to sweep across the region．Professor Lockwood, while acknowledging that there were a range of possible meteorological factors （气象因素） that could influence blocking events, said the latest study moved things forward by showing that there was "improvement in the predictive skill" when solar activity was taken into consideration．

1.We can know from the second paragraph that _____．

    A．research shows that Britain will soon fall into an ice age

    B．Mike Lockwood's research focuses on space environment physics

    C．it was quite cold in Britain over the entire winter last year

    D．so far one-in-seven winters have been very cold in Britain

2.The．underlined word "mean" in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to "_____"．

A．average              B．stable           C．ungenerous       D．changeable

3.What can we infer from the last paragraph?

    A．It was sunspots that blocked warm westerly winds reaching Europe．

    B．Meteorological factors hardly have any influence on blocking events．

    C．The latest study done by Professor Lockwood was of little practical value．

    D．Considering solar activity or not affects the accuracy of weather forecasting．

4.What's the best title of the passage?

    A．Another big danger approaching the UK

    B．Research finds out solar activity is to blame for the cold

    C．UK faces more cold winters due to weaker solar activity

    D．Changes in weather patterns should be responsible for low solar activity