Author: Eric Gilbert

After a cloudy start to Monday the sun came out later in the morning and pushed the thermometer to 18.1C, still 2.1C below the average.

The wind was very light during the past twenty-four hours with a maximum gust of just 8mph and many times very still. Equal to the calmest day on 28th January. What movement there was came from the northeast for most of the day but veered into the south early evening. The UV level rose to 7.7, which was in the Very High category and the highest this year, but we are near midsummer.

The past night was cool with the thermometer dropping to 6.1C, which was 4C below the average under clear skies.

Radiation fog formed in the River Og valley in the very early hours of Tuesday but sunshine from dawn saw that evaporate very quickly and lifted the thermometer to 16.6C at 08.00

No sun and very cool by day on Sunday due to total cloud cover and the breeze brisk from the Northeast. The thermometer struggled to reach 14.0C being 6.2C below the average and the coolest day since 1st May (11.7C).

A wide rain band, 50 miles from north to south, approached from the south during the late afternoon with rain observed beginning to fall at 18.35. There was a slight pause just before 23.00 but more in the early morning. The daily rainfall total of 8.7mm was the heaviest daily total since 18th May and brought the monthly total to 11.5mm when the average is 54.2mm.

Due to the thick cloud cover the thermometer did not drop below 11.1C, which was 1C above the average.

Monday arrived with low cloud covering the Marlborough Downs and Savernake Forest giving very misty conditions, however, it began to lift slowly after 07.30.

The wind has veered from the northeast, where it came from for much of Sunday, through South to Northwest on Monday, and very light.

After a cool and damp start to Saturday the cloud began t thin mid-morning and brighten to give a cool day under the influence of the very brisk north east wind that was very gusty with a peak speed of 30mph at 12.12.

As a result of the overcast conditions and cool breeze the thermometer did not rise above the average with a peak of 19.3C (-0.8C).

The minimum overnight of 9.8C was also below average (-0.3C). Rain arrived before dawn but was light and only amounted to 1.0mm, much as my garden would like a good drink. One again the intense and heavy rainfall passed this area.

Sunday dawned dull and cool under the hang back of cloud from the rain zone that passed over the area early morning and the northeasterly breeze continuing. However, as the two low pressure systems affecting our weather relocate the wind is forecast to change abruptly to southwest late afternoon early evening.

Thursday under strong sunshine, the thermometer rose to 21.4C being 1.2C above the average and the warmest day in a fortnight. At the same time the UV level rose to 7.3, which is rated Very High. The modest breeze came from the southeast.

The past night was far less cold than the previous night with the thermometer not sinking below 10.0C, just average for June, at 04.49.

Friday after dawn did not reveal any sunshine as there was total cloud cover with the thermometer having recovered to 13.3C at 08.00 and barometric pressure reading 1018.0mb. With the centre of the anticyclone relocating the wind on Friday will be coming from the northeast for most of the day.

The breeze from the north meant a cool day on Wednesday for the beginning of Meteorological summer with a maximum of 18.4C being 1.7C below the 38-year average. At least the new month started dry with the UV level of 6.7 classed as High.

The past night was very cool as the thermometer dropped to just 3.2C at 04.52 on Thursday, which was 6.9C below the 38-year average and the coldest night since 30th April.

At least the sun greeted the new day on Thursday with strong sunken after dawn that lifted the temperature to 13.8C at 08.00 and the air much drier with humidity of 79%.

The centre of the high pressure is off the coast of Holland so the breeze will come from the southeast on Thursday.

May 2022 Review

After the very dry April many gardeners were hoping for rain at the start of the new month. However, the very dry spell continued until many hours of steady rain fell on the 11th with 10.6mm.

Before this event an Azores ‘high’ developed that brought many warm days peaking at 21.9C on the 9th, which was 4.4C above the 38-year average.

Warm air from North Africa arrived a little later that saw the thermometer climb a little higher peaking at 22.1C on the 14th.

During the night of the 14th a disturbance moved northwards from the Continent. However, from the two intense approaching rain bands, one in the late evening moved to the west of this area and in the second a little later, in the early hours of the 15th, passed to the east depositing just 1.6mm. However, later in the day intense rain arrived that produced a daily total of 13.5mm, the wettest day for two months.

Showers continued all day on the 15th that produced 13.5mm making it the wettest day since 16th March (16.4mm).

There were occasional very warm days in the changeable weather from the 15th with the warmest day of the month on the 17th when the thermometer soared to 23.1C being 5.6C above the 38-year average.

The following day produced the second wettest day of the month with 10.9mm.

During the very warm, dry days the equivalent rainfall of over 3mm was lost due to evaporation from the ground and plant life with a considerable 4.11mm lost on the 22nd.

The month finished on a cool note. The breeze from the northerly quarter meant cooler days and nights with a maximum of only 15.4C on the 30th being 2.1C below the 38-year average.

A depression settled, but cool days and nights, over the area from the 30th that brought changeable weather with sunshine and showers.

The month proved to be warmer than average with a mean temperature being 1.7C above the 38-year average. Separating day from night the mean daytime temperature was +1.5C and the mean night-time temperature was +1.9C. The latter due to no air frosts occurring, the first frost-free May since 2015. The coolest night of the month occurred in the early hours of the 6th when the thermometer fell to 3.9C.

It was the second warmest May I have recorded with a mean of 13.75C against 13.73C in 2017 and 13.50C in 2008. The trend for the mean May temperature has shown a steady rise since the late 1990s being 1.2C above that in the earlier years.

It was yet another month in 2022 with below average rainfall. The total rainfall was exactly 53mm, which was 7.7mm below the 38-year average and the fourth below average month this year. In fact, there is a deficit of 113mm for the first five months set against the long-term average.

There were 16 dry days, exactly average for May, with three very wet days that made up the bulk of the monthly rainfall. A daily rainfall total of 10.6mm, 13.5mm and 10.9mm fell on the 11th, 15th and 18th respectively.

Not only was there a rainfall deficit but a loss of equivalent rainfall due to evaporation from ground sources and plant life that amounted to 81.6mm.

Thunder occurred late in the evening of the 18th between 22.00 and 22.25 and the early hours of the 18th (00.25). Fog was observed in the early morning of the 2nd.

Spring 2022 Review
The mean temperature for the months of March to May was 1.1C above the 38-year average.

The rainfall amounted to 113.2mm, which was 65mm below the 38-year average and the driest since 2011 (65mm). The wettest Spring occurred in 2000 with 279mm.