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graphs      CLIMATE-UK.COM'S  REVIEW  OF  THE  BRITISH  METEOROLOGICAL  SCENE
     MONTHLY  SUMMARY
     No. 571       For     JULY    2003
                   UNSETTLED EARLY AND LATE;  HOT SPELL SECOND WEEK
Text Box: A cool northwesterly type lasted until the 5th, followed by an anticyclonic spell from the 6th to the 15th. An unsettled south to southwesterly type controlled the weather during the second half of the month. Mean monthly pressure was below normal throughout the UK; the main anomaly centres were -8 mbar to the west of Ireland and +6 mbar in the Russian Arctic. A complex depression over England and Wales on the 1st moved into the North Sea the next day, and from then until the 5th a north to northwesterly airflow covered the British Isles with pressure slowly recovering. Eastern and central regions had outbreaks of showery rain with local thunder during the first three days, and it was generally cool here with a maximum of just 11.1°C at Fylingdales (N.Yorks) on the 3rd. Central and western Scotland, however, were warm and sunny for several days with highs of 22-25°C while Bishopton (Renfrewshire) recorded 16.1hr of sunshine on the 4th. Pressure was high over much of the UK from the 5th until the 13th although fronts preriodically affected the Northwest. On the 14th the anticyclone migrated to Scandinavia allowing an easterly airstream to develop for a while. It became increasingly warm and humid between the 5th and 10th with 29.5°C at Gravesend (Kent) on the latter date, but there was occasional rain in western and northern regions. A cold front brought a drop in both temperature and humidity on the 11th and 12th, but a notable heatwave followed from the 13th to the 16th, the temperature widely exceeding 30°C on four consecutive days; the highest reading to hand is 33.6°C at
Text Box: Wisley (Surrey) on the 15th, and this is the highest July maximum at any site in the UK since 1989. In Scotland 30.0°C was reached at Prestwick (Ayrshire), 26.2°C at Stornoway (W.Isles) and 23.5°C at Sella Ness (Shetland). Showers and thunderstorms broke out in Cornwall and in Northern Ireland on the 15th, and these became much more widespread during the next two days. Local downpours led to some flooding in Flintshire, Cumbria and Northern Ireland, while prolonged heavy rain overnight 16th/17th dropped 55mm on St Athan (Glamorgan). For the remainder of the month a changeable south to southwesterly type held sway, with Atlantic fronts crossing the country at frequent intervals. Most places continued rather warm, however, with maxima regularly between 22 and 25°C in southern, central and eastern regions, and 30°C was again reached on the 19th in Kent and East Anglia. However, all parts of the country had rain periodically, and it was very heavy on the 24th/25th when 40-60mm fell in southwest England and Wales with consequent flooding. Cardinham (Cornwall) recorded 64mm. The 29th was also very wet with 42mm at Aspatria (Cumbria). The provisional Central England Temperature for July was 17.6°C, the highest since 1999 and the twelfth highest in the last 100 years. June and July together were beaten only by 1983 and 1976 in the same period. Rainfall was well below normal in some eastern regions, notably in northeast Scotland where several sites collected less than 25 per cent of the normal amount, but parts of Cornwall and Pembrokeshire had more than twice the long-term mean.
                                                                                                                                           
                       TEMPERATURE                                SUNSHINE                             RAINFALL        
                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                   
                                          Highest and lowest totals                     Highest and lowest totals        
                                              on record for month    
Maximum fall in 24 hrs (beginning 09 h)
                    on record for month    
Days with snow or sleet
 
Days with fog (Vis <220 yards at 09 h)
 
                                                                                         
     
Difference from average
   
Difference from average
 
Highest maximum
   
Lowest minimum
   
No. of days with grass minimum below 0ºC
   
Days of no sunshine
 
Maximum duration
       
First year of record
         
Days of no rainfall (0.1 mm or less)
         
First year of record
         
Days with thunder
     
       PLACE  
Mean Maximum
   
Mean minimum
             
No. of air frosts
       
Total for month
                   
Total for month
                   
                               
% of average
                   
% of average
                 
                                                                     
                                   
Highest
   
Lowest
 
Year
             
Highest
   
Lowest
 
Year
       
             
Date
   
Date
         
Date
         
Year
         
Date
         
Year
           
                                                                     
      ºC       ºC       ºC       ºC             Hrs       Hrs         Hrs       Hrs       mm       mm         mm     mm          
                                                                                                                                           
  *Hampstead   23.2   +1.2   14.0   +1.3   31.6   15   10.7   05   00   00   00   12.8   12   170   097   1910   321   1911   109   1913   17   07.3   16   044   094   1910   193   1924   05   1921   01   00   00  
  Thorney Island   22.4   +0.2   14.9   +1.6   30.8   15   11.4   07   00   00   01   15.1   13   242   109   1958   322   1959   153   1978   21   14.2   16   053   103   1941   122   1945   06   1949   02   00   00  
  *Coltishall   22.5   +1.6   13.7   +1.6   30.1   15   09.6   12   00   00   02   14.4   14   180   099   1979   302   1995   104   2000   18   22.1   26   047   085   1964   167   1968   05   1982   02   00   00  
  *Wittering   22.5   +2.0   13.0   +1.0   31.4   15   09.0   13   00   00   02   14.8   13   182   102   1955   265   1955   115   1965   17   24.0   30   056   104   1955   129   1973   06   1977   03   00   00  
                                                                     
  Lyneham   21.8   +0.9   13.0   +0.9   32.3   15   10.1   12   00   00   02   15.5   13   195   096   1952   288   1971   129   1965   15   18.2   01   079   153   1945   125   1950   04   1955   02   00   00  
  Ross-on-Wye   21.9   +0.8   13.4   +1.0   33.0   15   09.0   12   00   00   02   14.4   13   165   093   1915   305   1990   095   1944   15   24.5   16   076   144   1859   197   1872   06   1935   02   00   00  
  *St Athan   20.5   +0.5   14.0   +1.5   31.0   15   09.7   12   00   00   02   14.3   13   145   071   1954   319   1955   131   1965   12   27.5   24   111   154   1954   168   1965   13   1977   01   00   00  
  St Mawgan   19.3   +0.5   14.1   +1.1   28.6   14   11.3   12   00   00   03   14.8   12   157   077   1945   317   1955   111   1954   10   32.0   24   111   168   1944   143   1988   01   1955   02   00   00  
                                                                     
  *Edgbaston   21.9   +1.4   13.8   +1.1   30.3   15   10.6   13   00   00   01   14.2   14   176   101   1887   285   1990   067   1888   15   08.2   17   035   068   1887   167   1936   07   1911   01   00   00  
  Valley   19.1   +0.4   13.9   +1.4   28.9   14   09.4   01   00   00   04   13.0   13   151   079   1946   341   1955   115   1986   16   07.4   28   040   071   1941   114   1957   09   1983   01   00   00  
  Ringway   21.4   +1.5   13.6   +1.3   30.6   15   09.6   07   00   00   05   15.3   14   187   098   1945   280   1955   102   1954   15   17.8   24   069   090   1942   187   1973   10   1999   01   00   00  
  *Watnall   21.8   +1.3   13.0   +1.0   29.8   15   09.9   13   00   00   02   14.5   13   156   087   1948   260   1990   087   1965   17   13.7   24   045   084   1942   148   1973   11   1982   02   00   00  
                                                                     
  Leeming   21.6   +1.3   12.8   +1.1   28.7   15   07.8   13   00   00   03   14.3   13   158   100   1945   262   1955   091   1965   15   11.0   26   055   108   1947   139   1973   09   1984   01   00   00  
  *Boulmer   19.4   +1.3   12.3   +0.5   23.4   04   08.6   13   00   00   02   14.0   13   132   078   1945   268   1955   105   1957   15   06.4   21   027   047   1945   118   1988   11   1989   01   00   00  
  Eskdalemuir   18.5   +0.7   11.2   +2.1   26.8   16   02.7   13   01   00   03   14.8   13   121   084   1911   266   1989   075   1931   11   29.0   20   167   156   1911   269   1988   25   1913   00   00   00  
  *Bishopton   20.2   +1.1   12.4   +1.7   27.9   14   08.8   06   00   00   00   16.1   04   130   079   1921   297   1989   086   1931   10   17.9   20   086   125   1921   147   1988   11   1984   00   00   00  
                                                                     
  Leuchars   20.4   +1.6   11.9   +1.6   23.5   04   07.5   13   00   00   02   14.3   13   173   096   1922   262   1955   091   1931   14   07.6   21   047   073   1922   181   1940   13   1983   00   00   00  
  Dyce   19.9   +1.8   12.5   +2.4   23.7   24   07.8   13   00   00   03   15.6   13   189   121   1941   263   1955   078   1968   19   02.4   17   * 013   018   1941   198   1957   16   1989   00   00   00  
  *Stornoway   17.6   +1.8   12.5   +2.2   26.2   16   10.2   05   00   00   04   15.3   16   115   089   1880   227   1917   057   1939   09   07.2   23   062   086   1943   165   1988   14   1955   00   00   00  
  *Aldergrove   19.5   +0.6   13.1   +1.3   27.3   16   10.4   02   00   00   02   09.1   19   104   064   1927   274   1955   086   1986   09   07.0   29   054   091   1927   155   1950   12   2000   01   00   00  
                                                                     
                                                                                                                                           
  Stations marked with an asterisk record sunshine electronically; comparisons      
  with earlier records are therefore somewhat speculative. Thorney Island's     * New low record  
  sunshine figures are from a nearby site.