Author: Eric Gilbert

After a dull, damp morning on Friday the sun did eventually break through in the late afternoon that lifted the thermometer to 14.7C. This was still below average (-2.6C). We have yet to enjoy a day in May that saw the thermometer rise above the maximum average.

The wind for the morning came from the north east and was light but in the afternoon it began to veer into the east and then southeast by 16.00 and then south-southeast.

At least the nights are above average with 8.4C minimum last night.

Saturday dawned dark and damp with light rain from thick, low cloud. Another 1.3mm of rainfall was logged that brought the monthly total to 45.1mm when the average was 59.6mm.

The depression that slowly worked its way down the Irish coast this past week and then to the south of the UK is loitering in the vicinity of southern England, now over northern France. This meant a north easterly breeze on Thursday that was cool. We suffered under an arc of thick, low cloud and associated rain that slowly circled anticlockwise over the area all day. The rain all morning combined with no sunshine in the morning, minimal in the afternoon (1.5 hours), meant the thermometer was significantly below average, 4.5C below, with a maximum of only 12.8C.

The rain in the morning, with more that fell after 02.00 on Friday, amounted to 5.4mm bringing the monthly total to 43.8mm when the average was 59.6mm.

A remaining arc of thick, low cloud was still over the area on Friday morning producing light rain. However, the depression that has overstayed its welcome is showing signs of filling and easing away with the result that the barometric pressure is rising. The reading at 08.00 was 1010.6mb being the highest since 7th May.

Although we had 5.9 hours of sunshine on Wednesday and the UV level reached a peak of 6.5, which was ‘High’, the thermometer did not reach an average maximum, again, with a peak of 16.1C (-1.2C). It was however, a dry day. The rain set in at 22.45 and amounted to 3.7mm, bringing the monthly total to 38.4mm when the 37-year average was 59.6mm.

At least the last few nights have seen a minimum above average and last night was no exception with a low of 8.7C (+1.7C).

Thursday morning saw us under a cold front draped in an arc over the area, although dry to start with more rain is likely as the depression, centred off the Dorset coast, slowly revolves anticlockwise. This will bring another rain band during the morning. The moving orientation of the depression saw the wind on Wednesday in the afternoon back into the south east. A couple of hours before midnight it began to veer into the north and this morning is coming from the northeast.

Tuesday was another day with showers and sunny intervals with 5.6 hours of sunshine and rainfall totalling 3.5mm that principally fell between 16.45 and 18.25.

The maximum of 15.8C made it the warmest day this month but still 1.5C below the 37-year average. The minimum of 7.2C was also above average, just (+0.2C).

Wednesday was initially quite cloudy but between 07.30 and 08.00 the cloud began to thin and serious sunken to break through that lifted the temperature at 08.00 to 10.6C.

Due to the almost stationary depression in the eastern Atlantic, just off the coast of Ireland, the wind has been predominantly from the south or south-southwest for four days and continues from that direction today.

The warmer days and nights, also early morning sunshine meant that at 08.00 today the soil temperature at a depth of 5cm had risen to 12.6C not seen since 31st October.

Although we had more sunshine on Monday, 7.2 hours, the temperature did not rose above the average with a maximum of 15.1C (-2.2C). However, the UV level rose to 6.8 being at the top end of ‘High’, which was the highest strength since 25th August.

Another 1mm of rainfall was logged bringing the monthly total to 31.2mm when the average isn 59.6mm.

The thermometer fell below average overnight to a minimum of 5.1C (-1.8C) after two consecutive above average nights.

Tuesday began with thick cloud and very brief brightness due to banks of thick cloud over the area and to the east.

The barometric pressure is still low, current reading of 1006.8mb, as the depression just to the west of the UK is rather stuck being blocked in its eastward journey due to a high pressure over Scandinavia. Therefore, the succession of wind from the south or south-southwest continues.