April drier and colder than average

After the wettest April on record in 2012, provisional full-month Met Office figures show this April has been slightly drier than average in the UK.

Rainfall throughout the UK was 64 mm this year, compared to the 1981-2010 average of 72.7 mm. That’s considerably less than the 128 mm we saw last year.

There were big regional differences in April rainfall this year. Scotland saw 121.2 mm of rain which is above the 91.1 mm average and Northern Ireland saw 75.2mm, almost spot on the 75.0 mm average.

However, both England and Wales saw well below average rainfall. Wales had 50.3mm, compared to an average of 89.3mm, and England saw 30.4mm, compared to an average of 58.7 mm.

The month was characterised by generally cold and dry weather, following on from the theme set in March. Despite this, April registered as only slightly colder than average with a mean UK temperature of 6.3 °C, which is 1.1 °C below the 7.4 °C long-term average.

This is the same mean temperature as recorded in April 2012. To find a colder April than the last two years, you have to go back to 1989 – which saw a mean temperature of 5.5 °C.

Scotland saw the coldest temperatures compared to country specific averages, with a mean temperature of 4.8 °C, which is 1.3 °C below average – and is the same temperature as recorded in 1998.

The warmest day of the month was 25 April at Faversham in Kent when the temperature recorded was 23.1°C.

In terms of sunshine, Scotland was sunnier than the rest of the UK with hours of sunshine totalling 170.9, followed by Northern Ireland with 168.0, England at 167.7 and Wales at 162.7 hours.

This compares with only 127.9 hours of sunshine in April last year throughout the UK. The sunniest April in the last 10 years was 2007 with 203.5 hours.

	Mean Temperature		Sunshine hours		Rainfall
Apr-13	Actual	Diff to Avg	Actual	Diff to Avg	Actual	Diff to Avg
	degC	degC	hours	%	mm	%
UK	6.3	-1.1	168.4	114	64	88
England	7.2	-0.9	167.7	108	30.4	52
Wales	6.4	-1.2	162.7	105	50.3	56
Scotland	4.8	-1.3	170.9	127	121.2	133
N Ireland	6.5	-1.1	168	115	75.2	100

Met Office figures show we are on course for coldest March in over 50 years

This March is set to be the coldest since 1962 in the UK in the national record dating back to 1910, according to provisional Met Office statistics.

From 1 to 26 March the UK mean temperature was 2.5 °C, which is three degrees below the long term average. This also makes it joint 4^th coldest on record in the UK.

The table below gives details of statistics up to the 26 March for broken down by the counties used to compile climate statistics.

	mean temperature		precipitation
	Actual  (deg C)	Difference from 1981-2010 average (deg C)	Actual (mm)	Percentage of 1981-2010 average (%)
Regions
UK	2.5	-3.0	62.2	65
England	2.9	-3.3	63.4	99
Wales	2.8	-3.0	86.2	74
Scotland	1.6	-2.5	50.3	36
N Ireland	3.0	-2.9	78.9	83
England & Wales	2.9	-3.3	66.6	94
England N	2.0	-3.5	54.0	72
England S	3.4	-3.2	68.4	118
Historic Counties
Aberdeenshire	0.6	-3.1	67.9	86
Anglesey	3.9	-2.9	79.8	100
Antrim	2.9	-2.8	68.9	75
Argyllshire	2.5	-2.1	47.2	22
Armagh	3.1	-3.1	96.8	125
Ayrshire	2.0	-2.9	53.8	41
Banffshire	0.8	-3.1	56.4	76
Bedfordshire	3.0	-3.5	50.1	119
Berkshire	3.4	-3.2	78.5	157
Berwickshire	1.6	-3.2	65.0	108
Brecknockshire	1.9	-3.1	100.5	74
Buckinghamshire	3.1	-3.4	66.6	137
Buteshire	2.7	-2.3	58.0	36
Caithness	2.3	-1.9	45.5	52
Cambridgeshire	3.2	-3.5	40.0	102
Cardiganshire	2.8	-2.8	62.5	54
Carmarthenshire	3.4	-2.7	87.0	69
Carnarvonshire	2.8	-3.0	96.1	64
Cheshire	2.9	-3.5	42.1	72
Clackmannanshire	1.7	-2.7	65.3	57
Cornwall	5.1	-2.3	102.0	109
Cumberland	1.6	-3.3	42.1	37
Denbighshire	2.1	-3.4	66.2	75
Derbyshire	1.9	-3.7	58.8	81
Devon	4.0	-2.7	112.9	118
Dorset	4.0	-2.7	96.8	132
Down	3.2	-3.0	158.4	193
Dumfriesshire	1.3	-3.1	65.6	53
Dunbartonshire	2.1	-2.7	49.4	25
Durham	1.6	-3.4	61.9	99
East Lothianshire	1.9	-3.2	55.4	100
Essex	3.5	-3.3	44.2	110
Fermanagh	3.0	-3.0	45.6	42
Fifeshire	2.3	-3.0	58.8	89
Flintshire	2.9	-3.5	60.9	105
Forfarshire	0.9	-3.0	73.1	89
Glamorganshire	3.6	-2.8	123.1	98
Gloucestershire	3.2	-3.3	77.1	129
Hampshire	3.9	-2.9	85.4	133
Herefordshire	2.9	-3.5	80.3	134
Hertfordshire	3.2	-3.4	50.3	109
Huntingdonshire	3.1	-3.6	56.4	143
Inverness	1.3	-2.1	36.9	19
Kent	3.8	-3.1	58.2	121
Kincardineshire	1.5	-3.1	56.5	82
Kinross	1.5	-3.0	65.6	65
Kirkcudbrightshire	1.7	-3.0	79.2	54
Lanarkshire	1.2	-3.0	51.8	47
Lancashire	2.6	-3.3	41.1	45
Leicestershire	2.4	-3.8	52.4	114
Lincolnshire	2.7	-3.6	49.0	113
Londonderry	3.0	-2.8	59.3	60
Merionethshire	1.8	-3.1	98.6	62
Mid Lothianshire	1.7	-3.1	59.4	83
Middlesex	4.2	-3.3	57.7	128
Monmouthshire	3.1	-3.2	94.8	100
Montgomeryshire	2.0	-3.4	64.5	56
Moray	1.7	-2.8	39.5	60
Nairnshire	1.5	-2.9	32.0	47
Norfolk	3.0	-3.4	60.5	128
Northamptonshire	2.6	-3.6	61.0	133
Northumberland	1.5	-3.3	63.0	92
Nottinghamshire	2.6	-3.8	49.0	113
Oxfordshire	3.0	-3.3	74.3	149
Peeblesshire	0.4	-3.4	69.6	68
Pembrokeshire	4.0	-2.6	76.9	77
Perthshire	0.6	-2.6	58.8	39
Radnorshire	1.7	-3.2	87.8	91
Renfrewshire	2.5	-2.8	42.8	29
Ross and Cromarty	2.1	-2.0	35.1	20
Roxburghshire	1.0	-3.4	62.8	73
Rutland	2.4	-3.7	58.0	123
Selkirkshire	0.5	-3.1	76.5	68
Shropshire	2.6	-3.5	61.6	108
Somerset	3.8	-3.0	65.3	91
Staffordshire	2.3	-3.7	51.0	87
Stirlingshire	1.9	-2.9	53.2	36
Suffolk	3.2	-3.3	46.4	104
Surrey	3.7	-3.1	72.1	135
Sussex	4.0	-2.8	64.6	103
Sutherland	1.5	-2.4	38.8	27
Tyrone	2.8	-2.8	60.1	57
Warwickshire	2.8	-3.6	52.2	110
West Lothianshire	1.9	-3.1	49.3	62
West Suffolk	3.3	-3.5	31.8	80
Westmorland	1.2	-3.1	56.1	40
Wigtownshire	2.7	-2.8	55.5	51
Wiltshire	3.3	-3.0	76.1	118
Worcestershire	3.1	-3.5	63.9	133
Yorkshire	1.9	-3.6	59.0	84

Clearly March has been extremely cold and snowy and joins 2006, 2001, 1995, 1987, 1979, 1970 and 1962 as years when March saw some significant snowfall.

The cold weather is expected to continue through the Easter weekend and into April. You can stay up-to-date with forecasts and warnings online, through our mobile apps, facebook and twitter, and through TV and radio broadcasts.

The table below lists the coldest March average temperatures on record and details where March 2013 ranks in terms of cold months of March.

Area	Coldest March on Record (deg C and year)		Rank of March 2013
Aberdeenshire	-1.4	1947	5
Anglesey	3.6	1962	2
Antrim	2.2	1947	5
Argyllshire	1.5	1947	5
Armagh	2.9	1919/1947	4
Ayrshire	1.0	1947	5
Banffshire	-1.0	1947	5
Bedfordshire	2.3	1962	2
Berkshire	2.6	1962	2
Berwickshire	0.3	1947	5
Brecknockshire	1.1	1962	2
Buckinghamshire	2.3	1962	2
Buteshire	1.5	1947	5
Caithness	0.0	1947	5
Cambridgeshire	2.6	1962	2
Cardiganshire	2.0	1962	3
Carmarthenshire	2.5	1962	3
Carnarvonshire	2.3	1962	3
Cheshire	2.6	1962	2
Clackmannanshire	0.1	1947	4
Cornwall	3.9	1962	2
Cumberland	1.0	1947	4
Denbighshire	1.4	1962	2
Derbyshire	1.5	1962	2
Devon	3.1	1962	2
Dorset	3.1	1962	2
Down	3.0	1937/1947	4
Dumfriesshire	0.5	1947	5
Dunbartonshire	0.3	1947	5
Durham	0.9	1947	4
East Lothianshire	0.2	1947	5
Essex	2.8	1962	2
Fermanagh	2.8	1947	3
Fifeshire	0.7	1947	5
Flintshire	2.4	1962	2
Forfarshire	-0.6	1947	4
Glamorganshire	2.9	1962	3
Gloucestershire	2.6	1962	2
Hampshire	3.0	1962	2
Herefordshire	2.4	1962	2
Hertfordshire	2.4	1962	2
Huntingdonshire	2.6	1962	2
Inverness	0.0	1947	5
Kent	2.9	1962	2
Kincardineshire	0.3	1947	2
Kinross	-0.1	1947	5
Kirkcudbrightshire	0.9	1947	3
Lanarkshire	0.0	1947	5
Lancashire	2.3	1962	2
Leicestershire	2.0	1962	2
Lincolnshire	2.4	1962	2
Londonderry	2.2	1947	5
Merionethshire	1.2	1962	3
Mid Lothianshire	0.1	1947	5
Middlesex	3.4	1962	2
Monmouthshire	2.5	1962	2
Montgomeryshire	1.3	1962	3
Moray	-0.2	1947	5
Nairnshire	0.0	1947	5
Norfolk	2.5	1962	2
Northamptonshire	2.1	1962	2
Northumberland	0.4	1947	4
Nottinghamshire	2.4	1962	2
Oxfordshire	2.4	1962	2
Peeblesshire	-1.2	1947	5
Pembrokeshire	3.2	1962	3
Perthshire	-1.2	1947	5
Radnorshire	1.1	1962	2
Renfrewshire	0.8	1947	5
Ross and Cromarty	0.8	1947	5
Roxburghshire	-0.4	1947	5
Rutland	1.9	1962	2
Selkirkshire	-0.8	1947	5
Shropshire	2.1	1962	2
Somerset	3.0	1962	2
Staffordshire	1.9	1962	2
Stirlingshire	0.1	1947	5
Suffolk	2.5	1962	2
Surrey	2.8	1962	2
Sussex	2.9	1962	2
Sutherland	0.1	1947	5
Tyrone	2.3	1947	5
Warwickshire	2.3	1962	2
West Lothianshire	0.3	1947	5
West Suffolk	2.5	1962	2
Westmorland	0.4	1947	3
Wigtownshire	1.7	1947	3
Wiltshire	2.5	1962	2
Worcestershire	2.7	1962	2
Yorkshire	1.4	1947	3

The full month figures for March 2013 will be available later next week and a summary of the month will be issued soon after.

Statistics for December and 2012 – is the UK getting wetter?

Provisional statistics from the Met Office show 2012 was the second wettest year in the UK national record dating back to 1910, and just a few millimetres short of the record set in 2000.

The exceptionally wet year was characterised by a dry start which quickly gave way to very wet weather, with April and June both being the wettest on record.

Unsettled weather continued through to the end of the year, with December being the 8th wettest on record for the UK.

Throughout the year, accurate forecasts and warnings from the Met Office have helped everyone across the UK plan and prepare for the worst impacts of the extremely wet weather we have seen.

The persistent wet weather resulted in total 2012 rainfall for the UK of 1330.7 mm, which is just 6.6 mm short of the record set in 2000.

Looking at individual countries, 2012 was the wettest year on record for England, third wettest for Wales, 17th wettest for Scotland and 40th wettest for Northern Ireland.

This adds to a high frequency of wet years since 2000 in the UK – with four of the top five wettest years occurring since then.

Top five wettest years in the UK
1. 2000 – 1337.3mm
2. 2012 – 1330.7mm
3. 1954 – 1309.1 mm
4. 2008 – 1295.0mm
5. 2002 – 1283.7mm

We have always seen a great deal of variability in UK rainfall because our weather patterns are constantly changing. However, preliminary evidence suggests we are getting slightly more rain in total and it may be falling in more intense bursts.

Looking at annual rainfall for the UK, we can see the country as a whole getting wetter in recent decades.

Long-term averages of 30-year periods show an increase in annual rainfall of about 5% from 1961-1990 to 1981-2010:

Annual average UK rainfall according to 30-year averages
1961-1990: 1100.6mm
1971-2000: 1126.1mm
1981-2010: 1154.0mm

Preliminary research from the Met Office also suggests we may have seen a change in the nature of the rain we get, with ‘extreme’ rainfall becoming more frequent.

An analysis of 1 in 100 day rainfall events since 1960 indicates these ‘extreme’ days of rainfall may have become more frequent over time.

The above graphic shows the frequency of what climate averages tell us should be roughly 1 in 100 day heavy rainfall events in each year. Over time, this gives a view of the frequency of ‘extreme’ rainfall.

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2012 Provisional stats
	Mean temperature ( °C)		Sunshine duration (Hours)		Precipitation (mm)
	Actual	Difference from 1981-2010 average	Actual	% of 1981-2010 average	Actual	% of 1981-2010 average
Regions
UK	8.8	-0.1	1356.4	99	1330.7	115
England	9.6	-0.1	1470.2	98	1123.2	131
Wales	9.1	0	1355.7	97	1716.2	118
Scotland	7.3	-0.1	1187.6	100	1602.6	102
N Ireland	8.9	0	1239.1	99	1153.7	102
England & Wales	9.5	-0.1	1454.4	98	1205	128
England N	8.8	-0.1	1360	99	1288.1	133
England S	10	-0.1	1528.5	98	1036	130
Districts
Scotland N	6.9	-0.2	1124.9	104	1599.5	93
Scotland E	7.1	-0.1	1217.1	96	1313.2	111
Scotland W	8.1	0	1239.1	99	1917.1	107
Eng E & NE	8.8	-0.1	1420.3	100	1064	137
Eng NW & Wales N	8.8	-0.1	1305	97	1614.1	122
Midlands	9.4	-0.1	1439.2	100	1074.6	135
East Anglia	10.1	-0.1	1538.1	98	804.1	129
Eng SW & Wales S	9.8	-0.1	1457.3	96	1574	125
Eng SE & Central S	10.3	-0.1	1601.5	98	999.7	127

Infographic: 2012 weather review of the year

Hover over the image to link through to more detail on the UK weather in 2012.

Met Office confirms wettest June in over a century

Provisional Met Office figures for June show double the average amount of rain has fallen, making it the wettest June since records began in 1910.

This is the second record breaking month of rainfall this year, with April also topping the rankings. The period from April to June is also the wettest recorded for the UK.

It is also the second dullest June on record with just 119.2 hours of sunshine, narrowly missing out on the record of 115.4 hours set in 1987. To complete the disappointing picture, it has also been the coolest June since 1991 with a mean temperature of 12.3 deg C.

Unsettled weather has never been from the UK during the past three months, with only the latter half of May seeing a spell of prolonged fine weather.

Movements in the track of the jet stream, a narrow band of fast flowing westerly winds high in the atmosphere, have contributed to the weather we have seen.

This June has seen periods of heavy and prolonged rain, as well as short but exceptionally heavy showers.

The total UK rainfall was 145.3mm – exactly twice as much as you would normally expect compared to the 1971-2000 average. This beats the previous record of 136.2 mm set in 2007.

Looking at individual countries, it has been the wettest June on record for Wales and Northern Ireland, the second wettest in England, and the eighth wettest in Scotland.

Many areas have seen extremely high rainfall – with 83 (out of 237) observation sites marking their wettest June on record. Some of these aren’t significant as they have very short recording histories, just a year in some cases, but others have been operating much longer - Otterbourne in Hampshire been operating for 119 years.

One of the key features of the month has been that the far north west of the UK, traditionally the wettest part of the country, has been remarkably dry.

Up until quite late in the month, a few stations in this area were below their record lowest rainfall amounts – but they just missed the record books with rain falling in the last few days of the month.

Met Office provisional June figures

	mean temperature		sunshine duration		rainfall
	Actual	Difference from 1971-2000 average	Actual	% of 1971-2000 average	Actual	% of 1971-2000 average
	degC	degC	hours	%	mm	%
UK	12.3	-0.3	119.2	70	145.3	200
England	13.4	-0.2	121	67	142.6	227
Wales	12.7	0	120.6	71	205	238
Scotland	10.4	-0.6	119.4	77	129.4	152
N Ireland	12	-0.4	97.4	64	169.2	235
England & Wales	13.3	-0.2	121	68	151.2	229
England N	12.5	-0.3	105.9	63	162.5	234
England S	13.9	-0.2	129	69	132.1	222

Current or previous wettest years on record are:

· UK: (Previous) 136.2 mm in 2007

· England: 146.0 mm in 2007

· Wales: (Previous) 183.1mm in 1998

· Scotland: 155.0 mm in 1938

· Northern Ireland: (Previous) 152.6 mm in 1912.

Average UK conditions (1971-2000):

· Mean temperature: 12.6 deg C

· Rainfall: 72.6mm

· Sunshine: 169.4 hours

Related articles

• Wettest June sees double rainfall (itv.com)
• June seeps into record books as wettest month (guardian.co.uk)
• UK News: Record rainfall makes June the wettest since 1910 (walesonline.co.uk)