WARMEST MAY ON RECORD, DRIER AND DULLER THAN AVERAGE. EQUAL WARMEST SPRING ON RECORD, WETTER AND DULLER THAN AVERAGE
Armagh Observatory experiences that Could 2024 was a lot hotter than common, the warmest Could on file. It was additionally drier than common, with roughly half the common Could rainfall at Armagh, and far duller, with roughly three quarters of the common variety of hours of sturdy sunshine.
Taking March, April, and Could collectively, the meteorological spring was the equal warmest on file at Armagh, shared with spring 2017, and each wetter and duller than common. This was the dullest spring for 5 years, that’s, because the exceptionally boring spring 2019.
The imply temperature this month was 13.9 levels Celsius (57.0 Fahrenheit), nearly 3.3 C hotter than the 225-year long-term (1796–2020) Could common at Armagh (10.62 C), and a couple of.5 C hotter than the latest (1991–2020) 30-year common (11.42 C). This was the warmest Could at Armagh on file, that’s, since each day temperature measurements started on the Observatory round 1795. The half-dozen warmest Mays at Armagh at the moment are 2024 (13.9 C), 1809 (13.8 C), 1848, 2017, and 2008 (all 13.2 C), and 2023 (13.1 C).
Though the instrumental file clearly reveals that this month was conventionally the warmest Could on file, it’s attention-grabbing to ask why that is at odds with most individuals’s notion. Many individuals have remarked that they discover the outcome shocking. Though there have been some short-lived heat spells across the center of the month, in contrast to another very heat months, for instance June or September 2023, there have been no heatwaves nor any very popular days. Regardless of its unusually excessive common temperature, the record-breaking Could 2024 was not related to paddling swimming pools or summer season BBQs!
As an alternative, the exceptionally heat month seems to have arisen as a result of most days had been hotter than the latest 30-year common and most nights a lot hotter. The truth is, there was an awesome quantity (25) of days with most temperatures better than the corresponding most up-to-date (1991–2020) 30-year common (15.8 C), and equally 28 days with minimal temperatures better than the corresponding lowest temperature common (7.0 C). This month there have been no very chilly days nor any exceptionally chilly nights. Contemplating that the month was a lot duller than common, it due to this fact appears most probably that these outcomes resulting in a record-breaking month-to-month common temperature, conventionally outlined to be half the sum of the month-to-month common most and minimal, is linked to cloudiness.
It is because better daytime cloudiness will are likely to suppress daytime temperatures whereas the warmest moments of the day will are likely to happen throughout quick sunny spells between clouds. On this case, the day’s highest recorded temperature could exaggerate the general heat of the day. Conversely, cloudy nights are usually a lot hotter than clear ones, so better nighttime cloudiness will produce greater temperature minima. The online result’s a “cloudy bias” in the direction of greater measured common each day temperatures. This offers a potential clarification for the distinction between individuals’s notion of the month’s climate and the instrumental file.
This Could the imply most temperature was 18.1 C, which is roughly 2.3 C hotter than the latest 30-year common at Armagh and the fourth warmest such common on file. Equally, the imply minimal temperature was 9.6 C, roughly 2.6 C hotter than the corresponding most up-to-date 30-year common and the best such outcome on file at Armagh. This common minimal temperature surpassed the earlier file (8.9 C) set in Could 2022 by the surprisingly giant margin of 0.7 C. The three warmest days this month had been the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth, with respective highest
temperatures of twenty-two.9 C, 22.8 C, and 22.6 C. The tenth, with a most temperature of twenty-two.9 C, was the warmest day of the yr to date, and is projected to stay the warmest day of 2024 till at the very least the center of June. Even so, this warmest day ranks solely among the many high 90 hottest Could days noticed at Armagh.
The good day (lowest most air temperature) was 11.5 C on the twenty third, adopted by 12.9 C on the 4th, after which by 13.7 C shortly earlier than the each day readings had been taken at 9.00am (GMT) on the twenty fifth, and due to this fact attributed to the twenty fourth.The best each day minimal temperature, notionally the warmest evening, was 12.1 C. This occurred through the early morning of each the twelfth and the twenty second and was adopted by 11.8 C on the thirteenth. The bottom minimal temperature, or coolest evening, was 4.2 C on the seventh, adopted by 6.2 C on the first, and 6.4 C on the nineteenth.
There have been two nights with floor frost, particularly -1.3 C on the first and -1.0 C on the seventh. There have been no air frosts this month.
As for rainfall, complete Could precipitation was 28.85 mm (1.14 inches) together with 5 hint values (that’s, 28.6 mm if hint values are ignored). This was roughly half the Could common and the driest Could at Armagh for 4 years, that’s, since Could 2020 (17.80 mm). The wettest day was the twenty first with 8.1 mm of precipitation, adopted by the twenty sixth with 5.7 mm and the thirteenth with 3.2 mm.
The observer famous the primary sighting of a peacock butterfly near the climate station on the third, and a uncommon sighting of a jay near the climate station across the time of observations on the 4th. Shortly afterwards on the identical day the observer famous the primary swifts of the season. Distant thunder was heard on the afternoon of the twenty first, whereas additional swifts, swallows, and a pair of goldfinches had been seen across the time of observations on the twenty fourth.
There have been no gales, nor hail showers or rainbows this month. Nonetheless, a powerful and vibrant show of the aurora borealis or northern lights occurred on the tenth and was extensively seen. The phenomenon lasted from roughly 22:30 to midnight (GMT) with a resurgence a few hours later.
These with an curiosity in Irish literature could know that the playwright, poet and writer, William Carleton (1794–1869), gave a remarkably correct description of an aurora in his story “The Priest’s Funeral”. It appears possible that the outline was based mostly on his personal observations of the Nice Aurora of September 1833, which was seen worldwide together with at Armagh across the center of that month. Astronomers identify craters on the planet Mercury after deceased artists, musicians, painters and authors who’ve made excellent or basic contributions to their discipline, and each Seamus Heaney and
William Carleton have been so commemorated.
Could 2024 noticed roughly 136.8 hours of sturdy sunshine, barely greater than three quarters of the common for Could at . This was the dullest Could at Armagh for 5 years, that’s, since Could 2019 (126.8 hours of sturdy sunshine). The sunniest day was the tenth with 13.3 hours of sturdy sunshine, adopted by 11.4 hours on the eleventh, and 10.1 hours on the nineteenth.
Taking the three months March, April and Could collectively the meteorological spring was the warmest spring on file at Armagh, shared with spring 2017. It was additionally wetter and far duller than common. The common spring temperature was a really heat 10.2 C (almost 50.4 F), roughly 2.1 C hotter than the 225-year (1796–2020) long-term spring common at Armagh (8.1 C) and 1.2 C hotter than the latest (1991–2020) 30-year common (9.0 C). The 4 warmest springs at Armagh at the moment are 2024 and 2017 (each 10.2 C), and 2011 and 1945 (each 10.0 C). Complete spring precipitation was 198.0 mm together with 12 hint values. Regardless of the drier than common Could, spring 2024 was roughly 15% wetter at Armagh than common.
March, April and Could had been all duller than common, collectively producing 357.2 hours of sturdy sunshine, which is roughly 83% of the spring common at Armagh. This was the 18th dullest spring on file and the dullest at Armagh for 5 years, that’s, because the exceptionally boring spring 2019 (312.7 hours).
These knowledge confer with observations at Armagh Observatory, which has been recording the climate at Armagh since 1795.
