With the lack of rainfall regularly in the news and the local River Kennet drying up above Marlborough, it was disappointing to find that the rainfall for February was just 29.3mm which is only 45% of then long-term average, the driest since 1998 and the fourth driest I have recorded. The wettest day on the 4th brought 13.6mm, almost half the month’s total. February 2012 was the ninth below average monthly rainfall in the last twelve months. Compounding this situation I find that the total rainfall for the winter 2011/2012 was 188mm, which is only 78% of the long-term average and the sixth driest winter on record. The rule of thumb, when rainfall is considered to percolate through to the aquifers rather than evaporate, is from mid-October to mid-March. With approximately 14 days to go in this period for 2011/2012 I find that I have recorded only 269mm, which is 68% of the long-term average and the third driest on record. The outlook for the summer water supply and the state of the River Kennet gives cause for concern.
The mean temperature for February was 3.0C, which is 1.2C below the long-term average, the coldest since 2006 and the sixth coldest on record. The thermometer dropped to -13.8C in the early hours of the 11th, which is the coldest February night on record. The all time low was in December 1999 with -14.1C. The mean temperature for winter 2011/2012 was 0.5C above the long-term average and the warmest winter since 2007.
The solar energy for February 2012 was 143% of the dull February of 2011.
There were two occasions when snow fell, 4th and 9th, when moderate falls were recorded with an approximate depth of 5cm and 4cm respectively.
The weather station of Marlborough, Wiltshire
