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Wrington Meteorological Report 2003 |
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Wrington Meteorological Report 2003 |
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Local councillor and meteorological enthusiast, Dawn Judd, kindly provides us with a weekly met. report based on readings she takes daily at her home - 8.30am for the rainfall. |
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| Overall figures for 2002 | January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | |
| 28th December, 2003 - 3rd January, 2004 | |
| 25mm on 4 days with 17mm on New Year's Eve accompanied by very gusty winds which spoilt some people's celebrations, ( a lot less fireworks than usual ). December December produced a reasonable 147.5mm of rain on 15 days. So fairly average, rather more N/E winds made it feel a lot colder at times than it really was. Some frost, but not too hard and a bit of fog in the mornings. On the whole not a bad month and best of all, we’ve passed the shortest day. 2003 Total rain 928mm on 123 days. Wettest month was December with 147.5, driest month August with 15mm. Most days of rain in a month occurred in November with 20 days. The most notable things about 2003 were: |
| 21st - 27th December, 2003 | |
| 3 dry days, 4 damp days this week. As expected Christmas Day was mild and damp, but only 2mm of rain. Only 16.5mm this week although a lot more cloud made it dark and rather depressing. |
| 14th - 20th December, 2003 | |
| A mixed week which gave us fog, frost, cold winds, very little sunshine - and 22mm of rain. A lot of the time it was very overcast and dark, and, although we didn't have all that much rain, it ended up feeling very damp. Towards the weekend it became much colder as winds coming from the north-east brought very cold air, so the chill factor made it feel worse than the temperature indicated. |
| 6th - 13th December, 2003 | |
| 50mm of rain on 4 days, with very cold wind on Monday, fog on Wednesday followed by rain - and more rain the rest of the week ! Big fluctuations in temperature: Wednesday morning began with -1.4ºC, cold during the day, but rising to 8.1ºC in the evening. Thursday began with 12.8ºC rising to 13ºC, and Saturday was 13.1ºC at 6am ! |
| 23rd - 29th November, 2003 | |
| 40mm of rain on 5 days again this week. Tuesday had 25mm. There was frost on a couple of mornings as well - and even some sunshine - so a fairly mixed bag on the whole ! |
| 16th - 22nd November, 2003 | |
| Only 20mm of rain this week, on 5 days. Although it seemed like a wet week, rain was very light, and didn't ever amount to much. It was altogether rather dreary, with much low cloud and some fog on a couple of mornings. |
| 9th - 15th November, 2003 | |
| Only 23.5mm of rain this week, but this was spread over 6 days out of 7. Also very high winds came along in the latter half of the week, bringing off most of the remaining leaves. This was much more usual weather for November - damp and cold - and we're probably in for much the same next week. |
| 2nd - 8th November, 2003 | |
| 15mm of rain and reasonably mild until Saturday when we had a very cold wind which made everyone feel quite chilly. So, a fairly nice week altogether, with some sunshine and no frost. Next week promises very much the same. |
| 19th - 25th October, 2003 | |
| Only one wet day gain this week, producing 12mm of rain, but a lot of overnight frost, and a very cold, east wind during the day. However, some lovely sunshine too, at times, so nice weather for a walk to take a look at the autumn colours. I can't remember a year when they have looked as good as they do this year. |
| 12th - 18th October, 2003 | |
| A dry week apart from 3mm of rain on 12th. Quite a lot of cloud at times, but the lack of rain means the ground is very hard and dry, making it difficult to get bulbs planted. |
| 4th - 11th October, 2003 | |
| 12mm of rain this week - still not a great deal, but I'm sure we'll be having more eventually. A lovely warm day on Saturday - almost 70ºF in the shade, and even warmer in the sun. This certainly will make the winter seem shorter ! Do make sure any recently planted conifers and evergreens are getting plenty of water, as it's harder to tell if they are dry, because they don't wilt. |
| 21st - 27th September, 2003 | |
| 10mm of rain on Monday - 22nd - when the pressure suddenly dropped to 996. It rose again to 1018 almost as fast, and that was the end of the rain for the whole week ! I recorded a pressure reading of 1027 on Wednesday, which is high, especially for September. Temperatures have also been high in the sun, but it soon turns chilly in the shade. It would be as well to check evergreen shrubs and small trees for dryness as they are still losing a lot of moisture, and are the plants most likely to suffer from drought at this time of year. |
| 14th - 20th September, 2003 | |
| No rain at all, but plenty of cloud at times and heavy dew in the mornings, though without any real sign of change: the pressure is high and steady. Another high pressure area is promised for early next week, and this could mean it will remain dry then as well. |
| 7th - 13th September, 2003 | |
| Another dry week with good spells of sunshine - the end of the week was summer all over again. With only 8mm of rain, the ground is still very dry, so good weather for digging out the last of the main crop potatoes, but not so good for planting. However, it will rain sooner or later, so we should enjoy the fine spell while we can ! |
| 24th - 30th August, 2003 | |
| 9mm of rain on Thursday night/Friday morning, otherwise another dry week. Temperatures are still fairly high during the day, especially when there's sun, but they do drop quite low at night, for example down to 5ºC on Friday, and it is noticeably darker in the evenings. |
| 17th - 23rd August, 2003 | |
| A lot more cloud about at times, but little rain - 5mm only this week. We could do with some now - the gardens are looking quite stressed and some of the trees are beginning to drop their leaves - earlier than they should. On the other hand, the heavy dews we're now experiencing are helping. |
| 10th - 16th August, 2003 | |
| No measurable rain, but the temperature was dropping slowly throughout the week. Plenty of cloud in the latter half, and even a sprinkling of rain in the early hours of Saturday - though not enough, as I say, to measure. However, I suspect this means we'll be having some rain in the coming week, though possibly not very much. |
| 3rd - 9th August, 2003 | |
| Hot weather all week - temperature building up to Saturday's peak. Night temperatures have stayed high too, not dropping below about 18ºC. Hard to believe last week was so wet ! |
| 20th - 26th July, 2003 | |
| 66mm of rain - on 6 days out of 7 ! Me and family away camping, weather very much the same for us as here ... but we managed to enjoy ourselves ! |
| 13th - 19th July, 2003 | |
| A very welcome 17mm of rain on Wednesday night/Thursday morning, and another 3.5mm since then, making 20.5mm for the week as a whole - this after 14 dry, very warm days. Temperatures in the low 30sºC in the early part of the week dropped back to the mid 20s now, as a result of increasing cloud and lowering of pressure. The high which was holding steady over the country for so long, has now moved away, and a more mixed spell of weather seems likely. |
| 6th - 12th July, 2003 | |
| A dry week with high temperatures of 25+ºC, the highest being Thursday when it briefly reached 29.5ºC. Saturday felt the hottest when the thermometer rose to 28.6ºC by 1pm, dropping back to 27ºC, but staying hot until early evening - a lovely day for the village fete. Still no real chance of rain for at least the next couple of days - so keep on watering ! |
| 22nd - 28th June, 2003 | |
| Another warm, mainly dry week. Of the 22mm of rain we had, 17mm fell last Sunday night/ Monday morning. The warmest day was Tuesday. The temperature reached 31.4ºC. On Thursday it was 29.1ºC. Early afternoon temperatures have risen to the mid 20s everyday this week - and still no thunder storms for us, although there was one near Gloucester last Sunday afternoon. July begins this Tuesday, and the average rainfall for the month is 64mm. The driest over 10 years was in 1999 which had only 11mm, and rain on only 3 days. The wettest was in 2001. 119.5mm fell on a total of 14 days. |
| 15th - 21st June, 2003 | |
| The 1mm of rain this week was too little to be useful, and the ground is now quite dry, especially the vegetable areas or allotments, where there is more bare soil. The potatoes I've been digging this week are coming out clean and dry with no sign of moisture in the soil at all. High temperatures have become normal through this week. The highest was on Monday at 31.7ºC, but mid to high 20s have occurred daily. No doubt thunder will be arriving soon. It seems to follow a spell of warm weather in this country. |
| 8th - 14th June, 2003 | |
| Rain on 3 days this week but only 11mm in all. The highest temperature of 29.9ºC was in the early evening of Saturday. There's the possibility of it being even warmer on Sunday, although cloud could develop during the afternoon and evening, as it often does after a few hot days. We might have thunder if this weather continues. |
| 25th - 31st May, 2003 | |
| What a lovely week that was ! Dry, with warm sunshine - how lovely for all those enjoying half-term. The hottest I recorded in the shade was 29.9ºC on Friday, 30th. Total rainfall in May was 88mm, which is fairly average - enough to keep things growing. June is usually reasonably dry - the average is 65mm, although in 1998 we had 163mm, and it rained on 18 days. On the other hand, in 1995 it rained on only 1 day, so the total was just 4mm ! All danger of frost should now be past, so all those delicate plants which go out for the summer should be safe. |
| 18th -24th May, 2003 | |
| Rainfall dropped back slightly to 4 days, but this was enough to give us 34mm. Sunday, 18th was the wettest with 17mm. The wind's been from the south-west most of the time, quite gusty at times, especially during the showers towards the end of the week. As the lowest night temperature was 1.2ºC, there was no frost, and daytime values were fairly normal, but it felt chillier in the wind when it was accompanied by cloud. |
| 11th -24th May, 2003 | |
| Rain on 5 days, but it produced only 28mm altogether. Considerable amounts of cloud have been more of a feature this week, although clear skies and no wind on Wednesday night meant the temperature dropped to 0ºC, and this gave us a slight frost. However, that was enough to damage potatoes and beans on the allotments, and some gardens around the village suffered, too. |
| 4th -10th May, 2003 | |
| Rain on 3 days this week, but only small amounts, so 8.5mm in all. Quite a lot of cloud, though, and at times a very chilly wind. I will be waiting another week or so before putting any half-hardy plants out in the open. The temperature dropped to almost 0ºC on Wednesday night. |
| 20th - 26th April, 2003 | |
| Well, what a change from 21.6ºC early in the week to 10/11ºC by the weekend ! A lot of cloud but little useful rain - only 9mm. Although the soil looks damp on the surface, it's still dry underneath. So, if you're doing any planting - keep watering ! This dry weather doesn't mean we are facing a water shortage. The winter (October - March) rainfall was good - 755mm, which is above average. So, unless it stays dry right through the summer into August, there should be plenty of water for our needs. |
| 13th - 19th April, 2003 | |
| No rain, no night frosts, and some of the warmest April weather I can remember. The highest temperature in our garden was 28.6ºC on Tuesday - in the shade ! Bit of a shock on Saturday, then, to have a maximum of only 10.6ºC, and a bitter east wind. We certainly noticed the difference. The national forecast has been promising rain on Sunday since last Tuesday, but by Saturday this had become only possible showers, and then dry again. 1997 was very similar - dry from 9th March until 25th April. |
| 6th - 12th April, 2003 | |
| No rain this week, but some very frosty nights - down to -2.2ºC on Monday, -3.6ºC on Tuesday, -3.5ºC on Wednesday, and -2.8ºC on Thursday. There's been none since then, and by Saturday the cold wind had moderated. This was too late for the magnolias which usually look so lovely at this time of year. The camelias, too, have suffered - badly. Even tulips, in our garden, have been frost damaged. Rain, badly needed now, is supposed to be on its way to us in the coming week |
| 23rd - 29th March, 2003 | |
| Another dry week with a lot of sunshine. The temperature on 25th rose to 19.8ºC |
| 16th - 22nd March, 2003 | |
| No rain at all, but cold nights, the coldest being Wednesday night with -6.6ºC. The warmest day was Wednesday with 17.8ºC and a south-west wind. The rest of the week the wind was from the east which made it feel much colder than it was. Should stay dry for another another few days, hopefully. |
| 9th - 15th March, 2003 | |
| Only 1mm of rain but plenty of sunshine [Hooray - Ed] towards the end of the week. The lowest temperature occurred Thursday night/Friday morning - 3.3ºC. The highest - last Sunday - rose briefly to 16ºC. Generally, though, temperatures were down towards the end of the week because of a cold east wind. |
| 23rd February - 1st March, 2003 | |
| 23mm of rain this week, but much warmer. Temperatures remained above zero at night all week, and rose as high as 15.3ºC during a sunny spell on Wednesday. The wind having moved round to the south-west, I expect more rain from now on, but hopefully showers in the main. February produced 50mm of rain in total, meaning it was a fairly dry month, though not our driest, as the same months in 1991, '92, 93, and '98 were all drier. Temperatures fell below 0ºC on 12 nights, the coldest being 19th when it dropped to -6.1ºC in the early morning. A cold wind from the north and east was responsible for some particularly cold days between 11th and 22nd, but by the end of the month the wind had shifted to the south-west, allowing temperatures to rise to 15.3ºC on 26th during some welcome sunshine. The average rainfall for the month of March is 68mm, with a low of 25mm and a high of 138.5mm. |
| 16th - 22nd February, 2003 | |
| Another dry week with only 7mm of rain, but again plenty of night frosts. The temperature fell below zero on five nights, the lowest during Wednesday night, -6.1ºC. By contrast, the warmest daytime temperature, on Friday, rose to 12.7ºC, and Saturday was nearly as warm. We are still getting cold winds, and these kept the temperature low, particularly in the early part of the week. However, values should rise somewhat now, although this will probably mean more rain. |
| 9th - 15th February, 2003 | |
| Not much this week - only 6mm, but quite a lot of frost and a cold north-east wind. Rather overcast mid-week, which made it feel that much colder. Saturday was an improvement as the wind dropped and clouds cleared away, resulting in a lovely, sunny day. The highest daytime temperature was Tuesday's: 10.6ºC, the lowest Thursday: 4.8ºC. The lowest night temperature was over Friday night/Saturday morning, at -5.6ºC. |
| 26th January - 1st February, 2003 | |
| Only 18.5mm of rain this week, but a very strong wind at times. We had some lovely sunny spells - quite warm if you were sheltered from the wind - taking the temperature into double figures on Friday. A total of 106mm of rain for January is slightly below average. It fell on 13 days. There was frost on 12 days, so it was quite a cold month. However, we missed the snow which caused such problems in other parts of the UK. February, contrary to old tales, is never our wettest month - a low of 11mm in 1998 and a high of 155mm last year. We usually have some spells of dry weather during the month lasting from several days up to a week or so. In 1998, for instance, it rained on only one day. |
| 19th - 25th January, 2003 | |
| Not a bad week for January. 37mm of rain, and most of that on Sunday and Monday. There were even some nice sunny spells between the showers. Fairly mild, given winds still from the south-west. The snowdrops are showing in the garden and it's bit lighter as the days are noticeably longer now we are a month past the shortest day. |
| 12th - 18th January, 2003 | |
| Back to more normal winter weather this week - cloudy, occasional sunshine and rain - 25mm in all. Wind mainly from the south-west, so fairly mild for January. I don't think there will be much chamge for at least a few days, so it's raincoats again ! |
| 5th - 11th January, 2003 | |
| Well, what a change ! No rain, but a frost on 11 consecutive days. The last time that happened was in February, 1991, but then we had snow as well. The lowest temparature so far was Wednesday morning when it fell in our garden to between -7ºC and -9ºC. The pressure has been fairly high all week. Tonight (Saturday) it is 1033mb. The wind has been mainly north/north-east or east which has made it feeler even colder. |
