Category: News

Yesterday appeared to be the start of the rainy season! Precipitation started falling just after 8am yesterday morning and continued for over 10 hours, ceasing shortly after 6pm, from the very wide and slow moving band of rain.

The daily total was 21.1mm, making it the wettest day since 19th November 2016 and bringing the total for May to 61.4mm, which is 0.9mm above the average for the whole of May.

It is not surprising that it was the third consecutive day without sunshine and UV level in the ‘Low’ category.

Just after midday the wind began to veer from a southerly direction, which it had been from for six consecutive days, into the west and then northwest late afternoon.

The thermometer slowly rose to its maximum of 15.4C at 11.01 and fell away for the rest of the day and night with a minimum of 7.9C at 06.13 this morning.

Lowest UV level since 16th March
Wettest day since 19th November
Lowest solar energy since 3rd March.
Breaks the pattern of five consecutive months with below average rainfall

What a contrast a day makes. This morning the sun started to break through the mist and patchy fog after dawn and by the time readings were taken at 08.00 had pushed the thermometer to 10.8C and given us 1.3 hours of glorious strong sunshine.

Yesterday was another dry day during daylight hours but the prolonged dry spell was truly broken in the early hours as a weather front crossed the area from west to east. We enjoyed 3.06 hours of strong sunshine during which the UV level again rose into the ‘High’ category, the highest since 22nd August last year.

The thermometer edged a little higher yesterday with a maximum of 17.7C just before 3.30pm, which is 1C above the average in the variable winds between southwest and south.

Overnight the cloud thickened as the weather front brought rain starting just after 01.15 and lasting for three hours. The total rainfall was 16.1mm, making it the wettest day since 21st November 2016. There were peak downpours just after 02.30 and 03.30 with rain falling at a rate equivalent to 14mm/hour. The rainfall total now for May has risen to 29.9mm.

This morning dawned with the weather front and its associated cloud slowly clearing to the east allowing broken sunshine to break through occasionally. It was a mild night with a minimum of 9.8C, which is 3C above the average of May.

The result of the warmer days and nights has raised the soil temperature, at a depth of 5cm, to 13.9C, the warmest since 29th September last year.

With southerly winds yesterday the warm and humid air caused showers to bubble up, but with minimal rainfall of 1.1mm at lunchtime, bringing the total for May to 13.8mm (average is 60.5mm). The maximum of 17.4C was down a shade on thursday’s maximum but just above the average for May. The warm air and thick cloud cover meant that it was the warmest night since 31st March with a minimum of 10.6C, which is almost 4C above the average for May.

This morning has dawned overcast with thick cloud that has totally blocked out the sun. The wind has veered slightly, now into the southwest, is very light with a lower humidity, 92% at 08.00 compared to 97% yesterday.

Warmest day yesterday since 8th April with a maximum of 19.5C at 13.23, which is 3C above the average for May. Strong sunshine was only 1.98 hours but UV level again in the ‘High’ category.

Wettest day since 3rd March with 9.6mm. There were two showers during daylight hours, 1.9mm between 14.30 ad 15.35 followed by 3.8mm between 19.30 and 20.30. A further 3.9mm was logged from light showers overnight. This brings the total for May to 11.6mm but evaporation this month stands at 30mm.

Warmest morning at 08.00 since 8th December with a reading of 11.5C.

Warmest soil temperature at a depth of 5cm since 29th September with a reading of 13.4C.

Lowest barometric pressure since 5th March, at 04.03 this morning, with a reading of 992.9mb. The persistent anticyclone to the north of the UK has given way to a small depression that moved northwards over the west of the UK. As the pressure started to rise the wind veered into the south.

Dawn was cloudy but shortly after the readings were taken at 08.00 the sun began to break through intermittently.