Category: Commentary

Under the intense barometric high pressure Monday gave us 10.75 hours of strong sunshine, the sunniest day since the 6th August. However, the light breeze from the north pegged back the temperature as the thermometer struggled to reach a maximum of 14.4C. This was 2C above the very low peak on Sunday but still 4.4C below the September average.

It was a dry day with the UV easing into the Moderate level after being at Low on Sunday.

The clear sky overnight saw the thermometer tumble again giving an air frost as the air temperature dropped below freezing for half an hour just before dawn with a minimum of -0.2C, which meant a hard ground frost after about 1am.

Tuesday saw the sun shining brightly as it arrived above the horizon triggering the sunshine recorder at 07.53 with the promise of much more sunshine throughout the day. With the thermometer reading 2.1C at 08.00, when readings were taken today, it was the coldest morning since 29th March.

Tuesday update at 15.20: as the anticyclone eased away over the North Sea the wind backed into the south bringing a milder air. As a result, combined with much sunshine, the thermometer steadily rose to a maximum of 17.0C at 15.02, over 2C up on the Monday peak and closer to the average (-1.6C).

If you think the indicator on your wall barometer is exceptionally far to the right it is not broken! The barometric pressure has been rising for the past twenty-four hours as an area of intense high pressure, that has been approaching from the Atlantic, moves across the UK. There has been an exceptional rise of 23mb since 08.00 yesterday with the current pressure reading 1037.2mb.This is the highest barometric pressure at 08.00 since 18th January 2017.

Sunday saw rain during the morning, ceasing just after noon, producing another 6.0mm of rainfall, which brings the total for September to 48.2mm being 78% of the 34-year average.

The wind, then coming from the north and gusting to 24mph, restricted the temperature to a maximum of just 12.2C at 15.55. This was 6.4C below the average.

As the cloud and rain moved away to the east the sun appeared, quite strongly, for 3.7 hours.

Due to the high barometric pressure it was a cold night under clear skies so the thermometer tumbled to a minimum of 2.2C at 07.30 this morning, being 7.1C below average.

Monday arrived with the sun in appearance at dawn so under clear skies, the promise of much sunshine today after that cold start.

Update on Monday at 15.55: continuous sunshine since dawn lifts temperature a little to a maximum of 14.4C at 14.25. This was up 2C on the Sunday peak but 4.2C below the average due to the light breeze from the northwest.

Saturday brought a very wet and cold day. The thermometer did not get above 11.5C all day, which was a significant 7C below the average for September. Overnight the temperature fell away to a minimum of 8.2C at 08.00 this morning at the time readings were taken.

The other notable feature was the rain over the past twenty-four hours. This continued all day reducing to light drizzle in the evening. There was an eight hour period without measurable precipitation but just after 4am today the next wide rain-band arrived bringing consistently heavy rain.

The daily rainfall amounted to 12.6mm, the wettest day this month. This brings the total for September to 42.2mm, which is still 19mm below the September average but by the end of today will likely be approaching that total.

As the depression crossed the country and moved away to the east the wind slowly backed from the south into the east and then northeast during the evening. By this morning the wind has backed further, close to north, as an anticyclone approaches Ireland from the Atlantic with the promise of drier, warmer weather on Monday.

Sunday arrived with low, thick cloud as the next very wide rain-band moved in from the west.

Update on Sunday at 17.36: another very cool day thanks to a wet morning and the wind backing into the north then northwest, which limited the temperature to a maximum of 12.2C being 6.4C below the average. Broken sunshine began to develop in the early afternoon. Barometric pressure has been rising fast all day as an anticyclone approaches from the west, rotating clockwise bringing air from the north. The pressure is up 13mb in 12 hours, currently 1027.5mb, the highest pressure this month.

Although Friday brought us 8.5 hours of sunshine, the third sunniest day this month, the very brisk westerly winds pegged back the temperature. Just before noon the first of the squally showers arrived that continued throughout the afternoon before they eased away and the sun returned last afternoon. Minor showers occurred early today.

The wind was very gusty throughout the day with a peak gust of 29mph at 12.17. During the last few hours the wind has fallen light.

The maximum temperature was 14.8C, which was almost 4C below the 34-year average. Due to the thick cloud cover overnight the minimum was 10.1C, almost 1C above the average.

The Friday rainfall was 3.7mm bringing the total for September to 29.6mm when the 34-year average is 61.9C. The equivalent moisture lost through evaporation currently stands at 42.7mm, which is still in excess of the monthly rainfall. However, if the forecast is correct, the next two days will see this situation reversed as it is possible we could receive significant rainfall between now and Sunday night.

Saturday arrived with thick, low cloud and the occasional brief shower in the almost still conditions.

Update on Saturday at 16.10: cold, wet day with the warmest part of the day late morning at 10.56 when the thermometer struggled to a maximum of just 11.5C. This was 6C below average and at the moment the coldest day since 29th August. Current temperature of 10.0C. Rain has been continuous since before 7am but quantity modest. Wind has been very light all day, the speed mostly in single digits, peak of 12mph

Thursday statistics:
Maximum of 18.8C at 15.48, just above average
Minimum temperature of 8.2C at 07.17 this morning, being 1C below average
Rainfall of 12.0mm, which was the wettest day since 12th August. Total September rainfall now 25.9mm when average is 61.9mm
Maximum wind gust of 38 mph at 15.40.
No sun! the first sunless day in September.

Thursday saw a wet start to the day but rain ceased just after 10.30 and there followed a cloudy, breezy day with moisture in the air until more substantial rain arrived at 21.00 that ceased just before 01.30 this morning.

The southerly wind was regularly gusting up to 30 mph during Thursday with the peak in the afternoon at 38 mph. The night was also windy, again up to 30mph, but not as high as forecast with the wind slowly easing down after midnight as storm Bronagh began to move away.

Friday arrived with clear skies as the last of the cloud from the wide rain band cleared away to the eastern horizon with the sun shining brightly shortly after dawn. The wind veered from the south, where it has been over the past five days, into the west just after midnight, when the barometric pressure was at its lowest since 4th April (996.0mb), and began to build again as storm Bronagh eased away. The temperature at 08.00 was 8.9C, a drop of almost 10C on previous days, as the effect of a cooler wind from the west / northwest set in.

Friday update at 15.50: frequent squally showers that were driven on by a strong westerly wind started just before midday and cleared just around 3pm. These sharp showers produced another 2.7mm of rain. The wind has been increasing during the afternoon with gusts up to 29mph. Late afternoon sunshine lifted the temperature to a maximum of 14.8Ci