The unusual warmth for February, brought from around the Azores region, had flooded the country by Thursday that saw the starting temperature of 11.2C rise to a maximum of 12.4C at 16.04 being 3.9C above my long-term average. However, it was a very wet day with thick,low,cloud that produced variable light rain on and off all day, combined with light showers overnight, that amounted to 3.0mm. The maximum gust of 30mph was the strongest since the 7th. Not surprisingly, the thick cloud overnight again provided a duvet to minimise loss of any warmth into the atmosphere so the temperature only dropped to 10.8C just after midnight at 00.26 being a significant 9.1C above the 40-year average. The maximum solar energy of 130 w/m2w as the lowest for five days. The maximum UV light was the lowest forever a week.
Friday revealed a cloudy start to the new day, yet again. The depression will throw another weather front across our region later in the morning, that from the current radar display, looks to have brief but heavy rain within it. The wind, gusty overnight and rising since just after midnight, is forecast to be very strong during the morning. The back end of the weather front will mean a cloudy end to the day.
The depression is slowly edging northeastwards towards Iceland that will see the wind veer from the south to southwest later today. The barometric pressure at 08.00 read 1008.9mb, the lowest pressure all month.
Saturday will bring a calmer day but another deep depression is developing mid-atlantic that is likely to bring very wet and windy weather, probably for later on Sunday.
The shrub shown in the picture, that’s been flowering for several weeks, is Mahonia Japonica. It is much loved by bees but not at the moment, it also produces a very pleasant, strong scent.