August 2023 Climate in Armagh – Astronotes

AUGUST WARMER, WETTER AND SUNNIER THAN AVERAGE.  SUMMER FOURTH WARMEST ON RECORD AT ARMAGH, ALSO WETTER AND SUNNIER THAN AVERAGE

Armagh Observatory reviews that August 2023 was hotter, wetter and sunnier than common. Unusually, this month additionally recorded the primary two named storms of the 2022/2023 season.  Taking June, July and August collectively, the meteorological summer time was a lot hotter than common, and each wetter and sunnier than common.

Complete August precipitation was 105.35 mm (4.15 inches) together with three hint values, that’s, 105.2 mm if hint values are ignored.  That is 28% greater than the 183-year long-term (1838-2020) common August precipitation at Armagh (82.35 mm) and 34% greater than the newest (1991-2020) 30-year common (78.62 mm).  This was the wettest August at Armagh for 3 years, that’s, for the reason that a lot wetter August 2020 (147.15 mm).

The wettest day was the 18th with 36.0 mm of rainfall related to the arrival of Storm Betty on the night of the 18th and into early morning of the nineteenth.  This storm was accompanied by robust winds approaching gale pressure because it crossed Northern Eire.  The second wettest day was the 4th with 25.5 mm of rainfall related to Storm Antoni, the primary named storm of the 2022/2023 season that began in September 2022.  This moist day was adopted by the first with 13.2 mm, and the sixth with 10.1 mm.  These 4 days equipped greater than 70% of the whole precipitation for the month.

There have been no thunderstorms nor rainbows; however swifts have been seen on the morning of the sixth. The imply temperature, roughly 15.9 levels Celsius (60.6 Fahrenheit), was 1.3 C hotter than the 225-year long-term (1796-2020) common August temperature at Armagh (14.63 C) and 0.4 C hotter than the newest (1991-2020) 30-year August common (15.48 C).  This continued a current development for higher-than-average August temperatures at Armagh.  The (1961-1990) 30-year common is 14.82 C and the newest (1991-2020) 30-year common is 15.48 C, suggesting a mean improve in August temperatures over this 30-year interval of roughly 0.2 C per decade.

The warmest day (highest most temperature) was 24.0 C on the ninth, adopted by 23.2 C on the tenth and 22.7 C on the seventeenth.  Though the ninth of August was hotter than any day in July, it was a lot cooler than the very best temperature reached through the record-breaking June 2023, particularly 28.5 C on June thirteenth. Unusually for a date so early within the yr, this stays the warmest day of the yr.

The best day (lowest most temperature) was 16.4 C on the thirty first, adopted by 17.0 C on the twenty seventh and 17.2 C within the small hours after midnight on the nineteenth and due to this fact conventionally attributed to the 18th.

The warmest night time (highest minimal temperature) was 16.5 C attributed to the tenth, adopted by 15.4 C on the twenty first.  The bottom minimal temperature or coolest night time was 8.8 C attributed to the eighth.  There have been no floor frosts this month, the 2 lowest grass-minimum temperatures being 2.3 C on the eighth and a pair of.5 C on the sixteenth.

This August there have been 149.0 hours of robust sunshine, roughly 12% greater than the 140-year (1881-2020) long-term August common variety of hours of robust sunshine at Armagh (133.1 hours) and 6% greater than the newest (1991-2020) 30-year common (140.6 hours).  The three sunniest days have been an unremarkable 11.3 hours on the seventeenth, adopted by 9.6 hours on the eighth and eight.7 hours on the eleventh.

Taking the three months June, July and August collectively, the meteorological summer time was a lot hotter than common, and each wetter and sunnier than common.  The imply temperature of 16.20 C was 1.88 C hotter than the 225-year (1796-2020) long-term common summer time temperature at Armagh (14.32 C) and 1.10 C hotter than the newest (1991-2020) 30-year common (15.10 C).   This was the warmest summer time at Armagh for 17 years, that’s, since summer time 2006 (16.23 C), and the fourth warmest summer time at Armagh on file.

The six warmest summers at Armagh at the moment are 1995 (16.50 C), 2006 (16.30 C), 1983 (16.23 C), 2023 (16.20 C), 2021 (16.19 C), and 2018 (16.17 C). Nominally, summer time 2023 is the fourth warmest summer time on file at Armagh. Nevertheless, contemplating the probably errors arising from guide readings of various thermometers over time (a minimum of +/- 0.1 C), no significance ought to be connected to the small variations between a minimum of the final 4 on this checklist.

As for precipitation, though June was a lot drier than common (the driest June at Armagh for 8 years), each July (the wettest July at Armagh for 87 years) and August have been wetter than common.  Taken collectively these produced whole precipitation of 286.1 mm together with 6 hint values.  Summer time 2023 was roughly 33% wetter than common, good for grass development however disappointing for these on vacation.  This was the wettest summer time at Armagh for 3 years, that’s, since summer time 2020 (302.05 mm).

The full of 493.0 hours of robust summer time sunshine was roughly 15% greater than the 140-year (1881-1990) long-term common at Armagh and 17% greater than the newest (1991-2020) 30-year common.  This was the sunniest summer time at Armagh for 10 years, that’s, since summer time 2013 (519.8 hours of robust sunshine).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Mark Bailey on the Armagh Observatory, School Hill, Armagh, BT61 9DG.

Tel.: 028-3752-2928; FAX: 028-3752-7174; mark.bailey@armagh.ac.uk; URL: http://climate.armagh.ac.uk/.

These information consult with observations at Armagh Observatory, which has been recording the climate at Armagh since 1795.