Category: Commentary

Monday was a very breezy day with the wind often gusting above 30mph and a peak gust of 34mph. Another 5.9mm of precipitation fell that took the monthly total to 27.4mm when the 39-year average is 56.6mm.The thermometer just about reached the average by day with a maximum of 14.0C, just 0.1C below. Because the sky cleared in the evening the temperature fell away steadily to reach a minimum of 4.9C, which was 1.2C above the average.

Tuesday arrived with broken cloud that gave us intermittent sunshine, which lifted the temperature to 5.7C at 08.00. The humidity at 08.00 was 89%, the lowest at that time since the beginning of March.

Sunday brought us a misty morning with weak sunshine after 09.30 but clouded over in the afternoon ahead of the next weather front as thin, high cloud began to drift across the area. Rain triggered the automatic rainfall gauge at 00.45, early Monday, and amounted to 8.1mm by 08.00. That additional rainfall took the monthly total to 21.5m when the 39-year average is 56.6mm.

The southerly air stream for most of the day on Sunday raised the temperature to 15.3C being 1.2C above the average. Overnight the cloud meant a mild night with the temperature now lower that 9.1C, being 5.4C above average.

Monday arrived dark and very wet as the rain band continued its eastwards progress, but became lighter after 08.30.

The ridge of high pressure is no longer with is as a deep and large depression, covering most of the Atlantic between America and France, closes in on us with the wind veering into the southwest. The barometric pressure has dropped 15mb since yesterday as the depression approaches with a reading of 1009.5mb at 08.00, the lowest pressure since the 1st.

Under a very light southerly breeze the thermometer slowly rose to a maximum of 16.2C being 2.1C above the average and the warmest day for five months. A minimum of 3.3C was 0.4C below the average.

It was a dry day with the UV strength the highest since September with a value of 4.5, at the top end of ‘Moderate’.

Sunday dawned with misty conditions, quite dull with no air movement at 08.00 when the thermometer had risen to 4.9C.

Friday was a glorious day with strong sunshine all day, 10.5 hours of global sunshine (100W/m2). As a result the thermometer rose to a maximum of 14.9C being 0.8C above the 39-year average and the warmest day for three weeks. Clear skies overnight saw the thermometer drop away steadily to reach a minimum of -0.3C at 02.52 in the early hours of Saturday, which was 4.0C below the average.

Friday was a dry day with the UV level of 4.3 at the top end of Moderate strength, the highest since 19th September.

The sun was shining strongly after dawn on Saturday that had lifted the temperature to 3.9C by 08.00. Another fine day is ahead as another ridge of high pressure has developed reaching from Norway to Brittany, that raised the barometric pressure to 1026.2mb at 08.00.

The wind from the west and then northwest was brisk, gusting to 25mph, that meant the maximum of 13.9C was just below average (-0.2C). There were two showers that produced hail, at 112.55 and a much heavier and sustained shower at 16.40, the latter hail was up to 3mm in size and briefly covered the ground. The total precipitation was 6.2mm.

The clear sky overnight saw the thermometer sink to 0.9C at 06.13 early Friday, which was 2.7C below the 39-year average. The low temperature after the showers meant radiation fog occurred in the River Og valley, the western end clearing just before 08.00 but at the eastern end thickened and not cleared until just before 08.30.

Friday arrived with brilliant sunken that dispersed the fog and lifted the temperature to 3.9C at 08.00. A fine day is ahead as the barometric pressure has risen due to a temporary ridge of high pressure with a reading of 1021.9mb at 08.00.