Author: Eric Gilbert

Wednesday saw the thermometer rise to a maximum of 23.9C as we enjoyed 12.1 hours of sunshine.

Another dry day finished with a mild night as the thermometer did not fall below 13.1C.

Thursday arrived with more sunshine that lifted the temperature to 17.8C at 08.00.

Update at 16.15: temperature soars again with a maximum of 27.6C at 16.04.

July Summary

What a month! With 249 hours of strong sunshine, which was more than double the average for the past few years, and little rain it could rightly be called a summer month.

There was only 1 day without sunshine, the 29th, when on many days the total rose into double figures, the highest being 15.84 hours on the 8th closely followed by 15.72 hours on the 7th.

The result of so much strong sunshine, when the instrument detects that the strength is greater than 100watts/sq. metre, was to boost the temperature so that there were only two days when the maximum was below average. The coolest day produced a maximum of only 19.1C on the 29th being 3.1C below the average.

The peak days were 30.4C and 30.1C on the 26th and 8th respectively when the average was 22.25C. Although the mean temperature for July was 2.8C above the 34-year average it was principally down to hot days as many nights were quite cool. The analysis shows that the mean maximum was 4.6C above average whereas the mean minimum was only 0.9C above average. The coolest night gave a reading of 9.0C when the average was 11.7C.

July 2018 was the second hottest since my records began in 1984, which was 0.3C lower than the record set in 2006.

The second major feature of July was the lack of rainfall. It was the fifth driest July since my records began in 1984 with just 25.1mm of rainfall when the average was 60.9mm.
The contrasting years were 10.1mm in 1999 and 127.2mm in 2007.

The month produced 24 dry days, with the wettest bringing a welcome 11.5mm on the 28th.

Not only was it a very dry month, the equivalent rainfall lost to the atmosphere through evaporation from ground sources and plant life was 123mm.

Analysing the rainfall for June and July I find that the combined rainfall for both months was 85mm below the 34-year average. This only tells half the story, as the combined loss through evaporation was 233mm.

There were 3 days when fog formed overnight that quickly dispersed as the sun got to work. Thunder was heard on 1 day.

Tuesday saw the sun return with 11.63 hours of strong sunshine that lifted the temperature above average with a maximum of 23.8C(+1.5C).

The UV level also returned to Very High.

It was cool a night with the thermometer falling below average with a minimum of 9.2C (-2.2C).

Broken sunshine arrived at dawn with the thermometer rising to 15.6C at 08.00.

Monday was predominantly cloudy but as the day progressed the cloud thinned and broke giving us 1 hour of strong sunshine with the occasional very light shower of rain/drizzle amounting to just 0.4mm.

The temperature slowly rose to a high of 21.1C at 16.57, only the second day in July with a below average maximum, as late afternoon sun emerged.

Another very mild night followed with the thermometer not falling below 14.2C

With the final day of July unfolding, and with the likelihood of little additional rain today, it is interesting to see how dry the last two months have been and how much moisture evaporated into the atmosphere.

June rain: 5.3mm (average 54.5mm) evaporation 111mm
July rain: 25.1mm (average 60.9mm) evaporation 123mm

Update at 20.00: temperature returns above average with a maximum of 23.8C at 15.55.No further rain for July.

Sunday brought more rain that persisted, if lightly, until early afternoon bringing another welcome 7.3mm that lifts the total for July to 24.7mm. This is well short of the average for July of 60.9mm

Due to the thick cloud and rain it was the first day in July without any sunshine although the total for the month now stands at 237 hours. The maximum of 19.1C made it the coolest day since 17th June being 3.2C below average, only the second below average this month.

Sunday night was very mild due to the cloud cover and residual warmth in the ground that meant the thermometer did not fall below 17C.

Monday arrived with cloud that is much higher and thinner than on Sunday and the wind having abated considerably after the peak gust yesterday of 29mph and 35mph on Saturday.

Update at 18.00: the sun returns, if briefly, and lifts the temperature to near average, just 1C below. A trace of rain and drizzle on two occasions but no measurable quantity.

Saturday brought sporadic light showers throughout the day with 1.4mm and thunder (10.58) between 1045 and 11.10.

In between the showers we enjoyed 6.34 hours of sunshine with the broken cloud limiting UV to the High category as against Very High on many previous days.

The thermometer peaked at 20.3C, which was the first day this month with a below average maximum temperature (-2C) being 8C down on Friday and 10C down on Thursday.

As the barometric pressure fell the wind began to rise with a very strong gust of wind, reaching 35mph at 15.54, being the strongest gust since 1st March.

A heavy shower passed over mid-evening with bursts just after 1am and started in earnest after 02.45 as the weather front arrived. The rainfall over the past twenty-four hours amounted to 11.5mm, the wettest day since 24th May. This brings the July total to 17.4mm when the 34-year average is 60.9mm. Fortunately we escaped the horrendous downpours experienced at various areas of the country.

The minimum temperature overnight was 13.9C, a mild night, being 2C above the average.

Sunday arrived with the rain band slowly crossing the area and wind gusting to 20mph.

Update at 18.30: only 19.1C reached today being 3.1C below average, only second this month, with more rain and strong winds. This was the first day in July without any sunshine.