Author: Eric Gilbert

The heat on Friday again was intense reaching a peak of 27.6C at 13.19, down 4C on the Thursday maximum but still 7.5C above average. In the early afternoon a change was observed as the wind veered from the southeast into the south and the temperature began to ease downwards. The was due to the change from c=hot, dry Continental Air Was to the cooler, moister Atlantic Air Mass.

In the early hours of Saturday the first rain band arrived producing 3.0mm of rainfall. The minimum overnght was at 01.33 dropping to 13.7c being 3.7C above the average.

Saturday morning was a distinct change from previous mornings in the past week as we were not greeted by strong sunshine but total cloud cover and occasional brief showers of light rain and drizzle.

The barometric pressure is at its lowest since 6th June as we are now under the influence of a depression to the north west of the UK.

The thermometer rose steadily throughout Thursday to reach a maximum of 31.4C at 15.30. This was the hottest day since 25th July 2019 (32.6C) and 11.3C above average. The UV level being ‘High’ for much of the morning and late afternoon rose to 7.4, which was ‘Very High’ between 12.00 and just after 14.00.

The past night has been very warm with the thermometer not sinking below 16.3C being 6.3C above the average.

Friday arrived with variable sunshine through breaks in the cloud. However by 08.00 there was more continuous sunshine that had raised the air temperature to 22.9C making it the hottest morning in June and the hottest start to the day at 08.00 since 19th June 2017. With the hot days and very warm nights it was not surprising to note the soil temperature, at a depth of 5cm, rising recently and today registered 24.7C at 08.00

The thermometer soared to a peak of 30.4C at 16.23 on Wednesday as the high pressure, now centred over Scandinavia, brought very warm air from the Continent and as far south as North Africa. This was the warmest day since 25th August 2019. The UV level briefly reached ‘Very High’, lower than previous days, as the air brought pollutants during its passage over Europe with possible sand particles from the Sahara Desert. The solar energy was down again on previous days as also global sunshine.

The land retained much of the heat overnight so that the minimum of 15.6C at 05.07 on Thursday was 5.6C above average. Both daytime and nighttime extremes were up 4C on the Tuesday values.

Thursday saw hazy sunshine, but strong, from dawn with the breeze coming from the northeast initially. By 08.00 the thermometer had already reached 21.4C making it the warmest start to the day at this time since 10th July 2017.

The barometric pressure has been falling the past twenty-four hours so change is in the near future.

Update on Thursday at 16.45: maximum of 31.4C at 15.30.

With the arrival of the Continental Air on the modest southeasterly breeze it was no wonder the thermometer rose very high to register a maximum of 26.1C. This was the hottest day since 25th August 2019 and 6C above the 36-year average.

The sunshine recorder logged 12.3 hours. This total was sightly down on the previous day as very thin high cloud was evident that meant the UV level was also lower at 7.4. However, the ‘Very High’ category lasted from just after 12.00 to just after 14.00. Further evidence provided by the total daily solar energy recorded, which was down 3% on Tuesday’s value.

A warm night followed with a minimum of 11.8C being 1.8C above the average.

Wednesday saw muted sunshine after dawn as the thin high cloud, brought on the warm, moist Continental Air, was still evident. By 08.00 the sun had boosted the temperature to 19.1C.

The evaporation this month now totals the equivalent of 72mm of rainfall, just exceeding the rainfall of 71mm.

Update on Wednesday at 17.14: maximum temperature of 30.4C at 16.24, which was 10.3C above the 36-year average, making it the hottest day since 25th August 2019.

It was not surprising to find that as a result of the southerly breeze the thermometer rose above average with a maximum of 21.9C (+1.8C) on Monday. The was up 2C on the Sunday peak. Also expected was the ‘Very High’ UV level in the 13.3 hours of strong sunshine.

Also above average was the minimum overnight registering a low 11.4C (+1.4C). This was 4.4C up on the previous very cool night.

Tuesday arrived with strong sunshine after dawn that boosted the temperature to 17.5C at 08.00 ahead of what will be a hot day.

The centre of the high pressure has migrated to southern Scandinavia that is continuing to bring warm air from the Continent.

Update on Tuesday at 16.00: thermometer rose to a maximum of 26.3C at 16.44. This was the hottest day since 25th August that then reached 30.7C.