Although the peak temperature of 14.0C on Friday was a little below the maximum of Thursday it was still 3.3C above my long-term average, logged at 11.27, before the cloud built up. The minimum of 6.4C, logged at 06.29 early Saturday was also above average with +3.7C.
Another fine day dawned on Saturday with strong sunshine that had lifted the temperature to 8.2C by 08.00 with the prospects of another sunny day ahead but possibly a little cloud in the afternoon. The humidity of 77.2% at 08.00 was the lowest all month, partly due to the air stream backing into the east and the surface soil beginning to dry up after the sunshine and warmth this past week. The first week of March has been totally dry although the equivalent loss of rainfall, due to evaporation from ground sources and plant life, now totals 10.8mm.
The old anticyclone is now centred over Europe but still fending off the advances of the depression in the Bay of Biscay, which will affect the West Country today. Rain has been falling over the Penzance area and as far east as Plymouth this morning.
The SSW or sudden stratospheric warming that I referred to yesterday occurs when the stratosphere – the layer between 10 and 50km above Earth’s surface – heats up by 50 degrees in just two days according to the Met Office. They add that “We don’t feel this ‘warming’ ourselves because it happens so high up but it can have an extreme knock-on effect on our weather”.
The temperatures will begin to take a tumble on Monday with Tuesday the real start of the cold blast, with maxima in single figures. I note today that the Met Office and BBC both forecast that there might be light snow next Saturday. Time will tell!