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graphs      CLIMATE-UK.COM'S  REVIEW  OF  THE  BRITISH  METEOROLOGICAL  SCENE
     MONTHLY  SUMMARY
     No. 626 For   FEBRUARY  2008
SUNSHINE RECORDS BROKEN ACROSS ENGLAND AND WALES; SOME EXCEPTIONALLY WARM DAYS DURING THE SECOND WEEK
Text Box: the Midlands, Lincs and Yorks, with a maximum of -2.9°C at Dishforth (N.Yorks), the lowest here since late-December 2005. The month’s lowest temperature, -10.7°C at Copley (Co Durham), occurred the following night. From the 9th-19th inclusive, Aberporth (Ceredigion) had unbroken sunshine on ten out of eleven days while Norwich logged 9.9 hours of bright sunshine on the 17th, the month’s highest daily total. From the 21st-25th a strong southwesterly flow covered much of the UK although pressure remained relatively high over southern districts. Thereafter pressure was lower, and there were northwesterly outbreaks on the 25th/26th, and again late on the 29th. Rain and gales occurred frequently during these last nine days in northern and western districts. Kinlochewe (Wester Ross) collected 253mm of rain during the week 20th-26th, and Tyndrum 227mm of rain during the same period with 65mm on the 21st alone. The rain which fell in southern and eastern districts on the 24th was the first for 19 days. Noteworthy gusts included 76kn at Foula (Shetland) on the 21st, and 72kn at Newcastle airport on the 26th. Gales affected the Midlands and East Anglia later on the 29th too. It was often very mild during the last week, and 15.8°C was registered at Tain (Cromarty) on the 23rd. The most remarkable feature of February 2008 was the extraordinary amount of sunshine recorded in most parts of the country, especially in East Anglia, Southeast England and parts of the Midlands were some sites recorded more than twice the long-term mean. New records were established at many long-standing stations, and, averaged nationally it was substantially sunnier than previous sunny Februarys in 1891, 1949, 1970, 1988 and 1998. Heavy orographic rain in the first and last weeks resulted in rainfall exceeding the normal in western and northern Scotland, but it was a very dry month in eastern counties of both England and Scotland. Mean maximum temperature was 2 to 3degC above average in most parts of the country, but mean minima ranged from 1.5degC above in parts of Scotland to fractionally below in the English Midlands.
Text Box: February began and ended with northwesterly outbreaks, but the centrepiece of the month was a long anticyclonic period which lasted from the 6th to the 25th in southern Britain, and from the 10th to the 20th in northern Britain. Mean sea-level pressure over the British Isles ranged from 2mbar below normal in Shetland to 7mbar above in Kent, and the anomalous flow was westerly with a marked anticyclonic bias. A vigorous northwesterly flow on the 1st was replaced by a very changeable south-westerly one from the late on the 2nd to the 5th. Strong rises of pressure overnight 5th/6th resulted in southern and eastern districts coming under the influence of a continental anticyclone, but a southwesterly regime persisted in the north and west until the 9th. Snow fell widely and heavily across Scotland and northeast England on the 1st, disrupting traffic especially on high-level routes; 15-20cm level snow accumulated in the Grampians and the northern Pennines. The maximum at Baltasound (Shetland) that day was -0.7°C and early on the 2nd Fyvie (Aberdeenshire) dropped to -9.1°C. The next four days were milder but very unsettled in all regions with strong winds and widespread rain, and the disturbed weather continued until the 10th in western and northern parts. On the 2nd, 55mm of rain fell at Tyndrum (Perthshire) and 45mm at Lake Vyrnwy (mid-Wales) on the 4th. Elsewhere it became mostly fine and very mild, the temperature reaching 16.2°C at Prestatyn (Denbighshire) on the 7th. High pressure lay over the British Isles from the 10th till the 20th, and throughout this period most parts of the country were dry and sunny. At first the days were abnormally warm though nights were frosty locally; at Trawsgoed (Ceredigion) the temperature reached 18.2°C on the 12th and 17.2°C on the 13th, the highest this early in the year since 2003. It turned colder from the 14th onwards with overnight lows typically between -4 and -8°C, and on the 18th a diurnal range of 21.6degC (-7.5°C to 14.1°C) was obtained at Capel Curig (Snowdonia). Fog formed in many areas on the 18th, and freezing fog persisted all day on the 19th in
                                                                                                                                           
                       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   10.0   +3.1   03.2   +2.1   15.9   09   -01.9   02   17   04   02   07.7   13   * 135   219   1910   111   1988   020   1912   19   04.6   25   016   034   1910   124   1951   03   1959   01   00   00  
  Thorney Island   10.1   +2.0   02.1   -0.1   12.6   13   -03.9   17   18   08   03   09.2   18   * 153   199   1956   141   1988   034   1976   09   07.0   04   030   050   1941   147   1951   01   1959   00   00   00  
  *Wattisham   09.4   +3.0   01.8   +0.4   13.4   10   -06.3   18   19   10   04   09.2   17   * 138   210   1968   127   1988   041   1993   13   05.6   04   020   047   1960   091   2001   04   1998   00   00   00  
  *Wittering   08.6   +2.4   01.3   0.0   13.7   09   -06.4   17   20   13   05   09.1   16   127   190   1950   130   1988   032   1972   15   07.8   03   022   044   1948   117   1977   02   1959   00   00   00  
                                                                     
  Lyneham   09.1   +2.5   01.7   +0.2   13.4   09   -05.2   17   20   08   08   09.2   11   * 124   172   1952   116   1988   037   1982   22   10.8   25   017   031   1946   140   1977   03   1965   00   00   00  
  Ross-on-Wye   09.9   +2.7   00.7   -1.3   15.0   09   -07.0   17   20   14   07   08.5   09   103   156   1915   119   1934   018   1940   22   11.5   04   033   055   1859   170   1923   01   1891   00   00   00  
  *St Athan   09.3   +2.2   03.2   +0.7   12.8   07   -02.1   17   19   05   06   09.0   17   124   175   1954   128   1988   036   1958   18   12.4   25   020   028   1954   141   2002   01   1986   00   00   00  
  St Mawgan   10.3   +2.1   05.1   +1.3   13.4   11   -00.1   17   06   01   07   09.4   11   117   140   1944   143   1996   038   1958   15   14.0   25   042   044   1945   195   1950   04   1986   00   00   00  
                                                                     
  *Edgbaston   09.0   +1.9   02.5   +0.5   13.4   12   -04.1   17   16   06   04   08.5   18   * 124   194   1887   109   1949   009   1917   16   11.9   05   040   070   1887   149   1923   01   1891   00   00   00  
  *Valley   09.8   +1.9   03.9   +0.5   15.0   12   -03.7   19   11   07   07   09.1   18   121   146   1946   144   1986   039   1980   14   08.4   29   032   045   1941   161   1977   07   1986   00   00   00  
  *Woodford   10.0   +3.6   00.8   -0.4   16.3   12   -08.3   17   20   12   04   09.1   18   * 115   180   1945   104   2004   034   1980   12   09.6   29   038   062   1942   161   1977   04   1986   00   00   01  
  *Watnall   08.9   +2.7   01.8   +0.5   15.2   12   -05.7   17   18   08   05   09.1   17   * 122   183   1948   113   1988   025   1965   19   07.8   29   032   062   1942   198   1977   05   1959   00   01   01  
                                                                     
  *Leeming   08.5   +2.0   00.8   -0.3   14.5   07   -08.4   17   18   10   05   09.2   26   101   151   1945   116   1970   026   1980   18   08.2   04   020   037   1945   107   1966   03   1985   00   01   00  
  *Boulmer   09.0   +2.8   02.4   +1.5   13.3   09   -04.2   20   12   08   06   08.3   16   103   170   1945   121   1997   038   1980   17   11.0   01   028   048   1945   144   1978   05   1946   00   00   00  
  *Eskdalemuir   08.0   +3.1   00.2   +0.9   14.8   13   -07.1   20   18   14   13   08.2   19   070   110   1911   118   1970   018   1966   09   28.8   29   131   113   1911   402   1997   05   1932   00   03   00  
  *Bishopton   08.4   +1.6   02.6   +1.6   11.6   09   -04.1   19   17   08   08   07.6   19   068   110   1921   118   1970   015   1959   09   28.4   29   141   198   1921   249   2002   01   1932   00   02   00  
                                                                     
  *Leuchars   08.6   +2.1   01.9   +1.0   13.0   07   -04.0   02   19   08   08   08.3   12   093   121   1922   134   1999   033   1923   15   08.2   29   022   039   1922   142   1977   02   1932   00   02   00  
  *Dyce   09.3   +3.3   02.3   +2.1   15.4   21   -04.2   02   17   07   07   08.5   26   107   146   1941   131   1989   034   1994   19   06.6   01   020   027   1941   146   1994   07   1959   00   02   00  
  *Stornoway   08.3   +1.4   03.2   +1.0   11.6   21   -05.1   02   09   05   10   07.0   14   064   090   1880   106   1975   022   1943   07   18.0   02   112   126   1943   277   1997   10   1963   01   01   00  
  *Aldergrove   08.9   +1.9   02.8   +1.2   13.9   07   -05.0   19   18   05   07   08.6   13   091   138   1927   108   2004   030   1993   15   09.2   04   034   057   1927   132   1990   03   1932   00   00   00  
                                                                     
                                                                                                                                           
  Stations marked with an asterisk record sunshine electronically; comparisons      
  with earlier records are therefore somewhat speculative. Thorney Island's   * New record     
  sunshine figures are from a nearby site.