UK Monthly weather summaries January -June 2010

January 2010 Very cold and snowy

January was again a cold month- but one of two halves. Though mean temperatures were 3C below average the first half saw them around 6C below whilst the second half was near average. N Scotland was only a degree below average though. This made it the coldest month since January 1987. Rainfall was around 75% across England and Wales but as high as 100% across SE England and the Midlands and only 55% across N Scotland. Sunshine was well above average overall at 124% and especially in the first half of the month and in western UK where 130-150% was recorded. However it was quite dull in places in the second half, especially the east, meaning Eastern Scotland saw just 88%.

The year started rather cold for most; a little less so in the south as snow fell by the 3rd, mainly across E Scotland, NE England and W Wales. Braemar (Aberdeenshire) recorded a minimum temperature of -17C on the 3^rd. However the cold continued through the first week and by January 8th the coldest temperature since 1995 was recorded at Altnaharra (Sutherland) of -22.3C (and the coldest this month) with a rare snow cover across almost all of the UK. Many minor roads remained snow covered or icy. Some areas in the south (especially around Reading, Berks) had seen 30cm of level snow fall. Salt & grit supplies were "stretched" with thousands of schools remaining closed whilst rail and air travel were hit by cancellations and delays with emergency services running. Motorway hard shoulders were no longer being gritted as priority for the salt was given to the worst-affected regions. Milk deliveries were disrupted too as the tankers struggled to reach dairy farms with farmers. The 12th saw more snow overnight for many in the south, along with the upland SW too, with 5-10cm quite widely. Temperatures across England and Wales were just -1.9°C, a full -6.1 degrees below average, possibly one of the coldest starts to January ever recorded . By the 15th though the very cold spell was over as much milder weather started to return to many areas and a slow thaw began. Given the amount of snow in many upland areas it took a considerable time to thaw though. On the 16th a balmy 12.3C was recorded at Chivenor (Devon), the warmest temperature this month.

By the 26th after a milder, somewhat uneventful spell for a week or so, somewhat colder weather returned as an arctic northerly blast developed giving further snow in places mainly exposed east and west coasts. The month ended on a cold note as well. Minimum temperatures fell to -8C in the south at Hurn (Dorset) (and Benson, Oxon) on the 30th/31st and -13.3C on the grass at Hurn. The period around the 26th-28th saw unusually coloured sunsets in places also. Atmospheric expert Les Cowley believed the bright pink and dusty orange colours seen could be a type of Polar Stratospheric Cloud (PSC) lit by dust in the upper atmosphere.

Soil temperatures were below average generally esp around East Anglia & the SE & fell markedly by the middle of the month, esp in central, northern England & much of northern, eastern and central Scotland- to well below average with frozen ground common here but rose generally after then to generally somewhat below average. Sea temperatures remained near or rather above average around most parts though but were below average around the western & SW approaches, east Anglia and Irish Sea by the month's end.

February 2010 Rather chilly; rather dry, snowy in the north

February was a chilly month without being especially cold, although notably for seeing quite a lot of snow in the north and some low temperatures in Highland Scotland. Though mean temperatures were only 1.4C below average (exactly as forecast by us last month) the period after the 10th was rather colder generally though more especially in the north. N Ireland was two degrees below average. Nevertheless, it was still the coldest February (lowest CET) since 1996. Rainfall was around 110% across England and Wales but as high as 170% across SE England but only 60% across NW England, the west was generally dry. Sunshine was around 90% overall but well above average overall at 125% in W Scotland but it was rather dull in the SE with just 80%. The north and some central parts saw more frost & snow days than average, the south saw little snow however, with the exception of the far SE around midmonth.
Initially after a mild start colder weather developed in the north. Baltasound in the Orkney Isles saw -8C on the 4th compared to the south where Heathrow saw a 'balmy' 12.1C on the 5th. February 11th/12th saw a lot of snowfall for a time in a cold NE'ly flow as a shower train developed and clipped the SE for a time, giving about a foot of snow in parts of Kent in particular but it also fell and lay as far west as Eastbourne causing transport disruption & some school closures. Colder weather returned to Scotland after midmonth, where in places the January snow cover remained intact. A run of 8 consecutive cold nights here from the 15th, especially at Braemar and Altnaharra. The 23rd saw temperatures fall as low as -19.2C at Braemar on top of deep snow giving a UK range of 31.7C as this was the mildest day of the month at Jersey, where a maximum temperature of 12.5C was recorded. A lot of snow fell in Scotland though with all roads to the Highlands blocked at one stage, trains cancelled & thousands of homes in Perthshire without electricity as 300 schools were closed. By the 27th Scotland saw further snow and in the south there was some heavy rain too, with 60 flood watches issued across Scotland and England. A woman died when her Land Rover was swept down a swollen river near Cropton, North Yorkshire. The last week saw some 80mm of rain fall in parts of Kent, Sussex & Hampshire with the sodden ground causing local flooding problems, exacerbated by a deep low, of around 968mb, named Xynthia, which ran across N France overnight into the 28th, giving gusts of 80-95mph in exposed spots there and 70-75mph inland. February was notable for its lack of similar winter storms across the UK however, all month

Soil temperatures were below average generally more especially around central & eastern Scotland after mid month. Sea temperatures fell to below average around most parts of the UK especially East Anglian coast and also the Irish Sea, where they were 2C below average, but remained near average around the north west and northern coasts, by the month's end.

March 2010 Cold dry start then rather wet and windy

March was a contrasting month, which began cold, dry and sunny in the first ten days then became wetter and more unsettled but milder, apart from the very end when it became notable for seeing quite a lot of snow in parts of the north. Altogether, mean temperatures were near average but the period up to the 10th was very cold generally with a CET that was 2.9C below average and with it being more or less dry and very sunny everywhere.

Rainfall was around 90% across England and Wales but as low as 40% across parts of E Scotland and N Ireland. Sunshine was around 125% overall but well above average overall at 135% in many areas though N Scotland alone was nearer average. The north and some central parts saw a few more frost days than average, the south saw little frost however after the first week. Initially there were some very cold nights in Highland Scotland . On March 4th Braemar fell to -18.6C overnight , not far off the all time daily record. By March 6th the colder weather sank further south; as high pressure dominated to the north a bitter easterly wind developed on the east coast in exposed spots; however in the more sheltered spots where the wind fell out overnight it was very cold; Santon Downham (Suffolk) fell to -9C. On the grass the temperature fell to -14C as far south as Farnborough (Hants) and Charlwood (Surrey). By mid month there had still been virtually no rain at all in many places with the average England & Wales rainfall just 9% of what it would normally be. By March 15th though St James Park (Central London) & east Malling (Kent) reached 14.1C and on March 18th Weybourne (Norfolk) recorded a max of 18.0C and Northolt in NW London 17.9C, the warmest temperatures in the UK this month.Still warm on March 25th with Coninsby and Leeming, (Yorks) reaching 16.4C. By March 31st though there was a cold unsettled end to the month, as a deep low which peaked in depth at about 976mb over the central UK moved slowly ENE with strong NEly winds to its north and strong WNW’ly winds on its southern and western flanks; Aberporth recorded 68mph, the Needles (Isle of Wight) 75mph, & Land End reached 67mph. Cold air ran down the northern and western sides too with snow reported as far south as the SW Moors & some sleet & snow on high ground such as Salisbury Plain. The north was by far the worse affected though, with parts of central & upland Wales, the Lake District, N Ireland and Scotland seeing a lot of snow, which brought transport and power disruption to Northern Ireland overnight with reports of 30cm or more in places above 200m ; 50,000 homes were left without power in the area; the situation was similar in Highland Scotland with 30-50cm of snow here too and similar reports of power loss and transport disruption.

Soil temperatures were near or a little below average generally, more especially around Scotland. Sea temperatures remained below average around most parts of the UK especially East Anglian coast and also the Irish Sea, where they were 2C below average, but remained near average around the north west and northern coasts, by the month's end.

April 2010 Dry and sunny

April was a dry month with near average temperatures but plenty of sunshine. Altogether, mean temperatures were slightly above average after a chilly start in the first week. However after a wet start it became more or less dry and sunny everywhere away from northern & western Scotland.
Rainfall was around 40% across England and Wales but as low as 25% across parts of E Anglia though nearer average in N Scotland. Sunshine was around 150% overall but as high as 180% in SE England though N Scotland alone was nearer average, as with March. The north and some central parts saw rather more frost days than average. Initially the 2nd & 3rd saw a cold night in places in the north, Braemar (Highlands) was -7.0C on the 2nd and Altnaharra (Sutherland) was -6.4C, the former reading being lowest temperature this month. Easter was unsettled & cool for many with a lot of showery rain in the south overnight on the 3rd/4th, 31mm at the Isle of Portland with flood watches issued for some southern catchment areas. By the 6th it was warming up ; Monks Wood (Cambridgeshire) reaching 17.5C but it stayed unsettled further north, in Scotland Tulloch Bridge (Highlands) saw a 24 hour total of 40mm. Quite warm & dry weather continued then through much of April with some large diurnal ranges as well in places, for example 19C at Benson (Oxon) and at Pershore (Gloucestershire) on the 8th. By the 11th, Castlederg (Co Tyrone, N Ireland) reported 20.4C and a very warm 21.1C was reported at Cromdale (Highland). Tulloch Bridge (Highland) also saw a daily range of 22.6C, after a frosty night on the 11th. From April 15th for a week or so a volcanic dust cloud event from the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland closed many of Europe's airports and skies to air traffic, several places reporting volcanic ash falling with people commenting on seeing a thin yellow veil in the sky in places, some possible ash deposition and a slightly sulphurous smell in the air. The dry weather continued through to the last third of April for many; warm in places too with St James Park (central London) up to 19.6C on the 18th. Nights were cold still inland, the 21st saw -6.1 at Katesbridge (Co Down) and the 22nd saw grass mins (the temperature at about 5cm above the grass) as low as -9C at Eskdalemuir, in Southern Scotland and on the 23rd -7C at Shawbury (Salops). The humidity was as low as 25% in places by day as well inland, making it feel quite chilly out of any sunshine. It was cold enough or sleet & snow in the far north on the 23rd; Shetland reported some hail & sleet showers. April 24th saw St James Park reach 21.3C. The 28th saw 22.0C reached at Leeming (Yorks), the warmest temperature so far this year. As rain fell for many early on the 25th this was the last day of a drought that saw some places record up to 18 days without rain in the south.

Soil temperatures were near or a little below average generally, below more especially around N & W Scotland. Sea temperatures remained near or a little below average around most parts of the UK especially the Irish Sea, but only slightly below average around the south west, north west and northern coasts, by the month's end and a degree or so above average in the North Sea.

May 2010 Dry and quite sunny

May was a dry month with slightly below average temperatures & eventually reasonably good sunshine amounts for most. Although mean temperatures were near average this masked a cold period in early May and a very warm period in the third week, when maximum temperatures reached (or were very close to) the England and Wales all time period record for a few days. However, after a wet start it became more or less dry and sunny everywhere away from some spots like central southern England and the Channel Islands during the last week. Rainfall was generally around 65% across England and Wales but as low as 35% across parts of northern England though nearer 95% in N & E Scotland. Sunshine was around 108% overall but as high as 120% in central & N Scotland. The north and some central parts saw rather more frost days than average.

There was a cold start to the month, Carter Bar (Northumberland) fell to -4.1C on the 4th with daytime maxes some 6-8C below average in places initially.In the south it was notably wet too, 68mm fell at Hampstead London in 48 hours on the 1st/2nd. Further ash from the volcanic eruption in Iceland again closed parts of the airspace around N Scotland and Ireland for 3-4 days at times from the 4th. On the 7th snow fell in places in central Wales such as at Abergavenny, with temperatures staying well below average. The 8th saw Braemar (Highlands) fall to -6.0C, probably the second coldest temperature ever recorded on this date (the record was -7.8C). The cold nights continued into the second week across much of the UK with Altnaharra (Sutherland) down to -6.0C on the 11th and Redesdale (Northumberland) -4.9C on the 12th, perhaps the coldest period of nights in May in the UK since 1996. Grass minima were around -9C in places on both days which caused damage to a range of unprotected tender crops very widely. From the 20th temperatures however, were generally on the increase across the UK under a large area of high pressure, Brooms Barn (nr Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk) reached 24.3C. May 21st saw a warm night for some, close to the all time May records overall in fact; St Angelo in N Ireland didn’t fall below 16C and London Heathrow saw a low of 14C. Hereford (Worcs) saw the highest temperature by the afternoon reaching 25.7C and the 22nd-24th was very sunny overall with an average of 14 hours sunshine each day across England & Wales. On the 22nd Copley (Durham) reached 27.7C. The 23rd saw the England & Wales mean max reach 26C and Santon Downham (Norfolk) reach 28.4C and on the 24th London Heathrow reached 28.8C. Much cooler weather moved south on the 25th though and Tyndrum (Highlands) saw a minimum of -4.4C, close to the all time minima records for this time of year. The 26th was wet in the far south and north, Guernsey saw a 48 hour total of 39mm, as thundery rain moved north from France, Kinloss (Morayshire) saw 26mm in 24 hours.

Soil temperatures were near average generally, though initially rather below more especially in the north. Sea temperatures remained near or by the month’s end a little above average around most parts of the UK though still below in Irish Sea, & slightly below average around parts of the mid Channel coast.

June 2010 Dry sunny and warm

June was another dry month with well above average temperatures & good sunshine amounts for most.
Mean temperatures were1.5C degrees above the CET overall, though this masked a very warm start in the first week and a warm end in the SE too, when minimum temperatures reached near record high values along with some hot days. There have only been five warmer Junes in the past half century. After a dry start there was a wet period in the east and SE which meant that East Anglia saw near average rainfall despite the dryness of the rest of the month. By week two it became more or less dry and rather sunny everywhere away from some spots in the far north west during the last week. Rainfall was generally around 65% again across England and Wales but as low as 35% across much of northwest England & Western & Northern Scotland. Sunshine was around 130% overall but as high as 150% in SW England and parts of South Wales.
Not a great start for many though as June 1stwas a chilly wet day with low pressure moving across southern parts and many places didn't rise above 11C all day, eg Manston, Little Rissington, Sennybridge etc. On the 3rd Santon Downham in Norfolk fell to 1.9C. Some very warm weather saw Howden (Yorks) reach 28.5C on the 5th. However, as low pressure moved across the south, showers and thunderstorms developed in places late on the 5th and through the 6th giving some heavy downpours. In Scotland Threave (Kircudbright) reported 36mm in a 24 hour period and Marham (Norfolk) 29.0mm. Flash flooding was reported in places in Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire but nothing too serious. On June 8th there were further thundery downpours in places and Cardinham nr Bodmin (Cornwall) reported 52mm in a 36 hour period to 18Z with an unofficial report from an observer in the Brecon Beacons of 55mm in the 24 hours to 18Z, the 10th saw 44mm of rainfall at Manston (Kent), the 11th saw a slow moving thundery front moving north across southern parts overnight and it brought some heavy rain into the far south coastal counties of West & East Sussex. Generally 25-30mm fell in a 2 hour period from 0500-0700 but it seems locally that up to twice that may have fallen; some unofficial readings suggest Seaford recorded 49mm, with Polegate & Portslade about 42mm. Seaford Road in Newhaven was blocked after a mini bus got stuck in 3ft of water and flooding also caused problems on parts of the A259 in Worthing, Bexhill, Storrington and Chichester. There was minor flash flooding across much of the Brighton & Hove area. June 17th saw a chilly night . Benson (Oxon), Pershore (Gloucs), Marham (Norfolk) and Church Lawford (Salops) all fell to -1C down on the grass. On the 20th the lowest temperature of the month was reported of -0.1°C at Carter Bar (Roxburghshire). The last week though was very warm in many places. June 22nd saw 28.4C at Howden (Yorks) and on June 27th Gravesend reported the month’s highest figure of 30.9C. The dry weather was becoming an issue in parts of the NW in particular, where reservoir levels were dwindling with a threat of hosepipe bans . On the 29th fronts moved across the west and thunderstorms developed across parts of Wales overnight. 3,000 homes were without power in north Wales in the Anglesey and Gwynedd areas. Lightning also caused gorse fires too; firefighters tackled a gorse fire covering 2,000 sq metres near Llandudno. Further east the hottest spot was Heathrow Airport , with 28.6C reached later in the day.
Soil temperatures were near average generally, though later rather above especially in the northwest. Sea temperatures remained rather above average around most parts of the UK, though near average in the Irish Sea and around the Northern Isles.