May Weather

May 2022 Weather at Durham – On the warm side

Temperature The warmer than normal theme continued into May, with a mean of 12.8 degC being +1.8 degC above the long term 1991-2020 normal. May 2022 was a full 3.0 degC warmer than May last year. The peak of the temperature was a modest 22.5 degC reached in mid-month. The thermometer only passed 20 degC on four occasions (a little disappointing). Three of those were 17th-19th. Night time minima were very good, with an average low of 9.3 degC. No air frosts made it easier for gardeners. The absolute minimum temperature for the month was 5.2 degC on 8th.   …

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May 2021 Weather Summary – Disappointingly cold

Hefty showers in the first week of May 2021

May 2021 was notably cold in the first week. Night time temperatures were only a few degrees above freezing and the maxima were very disappointing. Along with this, rainfall was on the high side, resulting in the cold start to Spring continuing. The cold nights continued until the last 5 days of the month, when ‘normal’ weather returned. The maximum temperature was a very modest 22.2 degC on the 29th. The 6th was the coldest minima, coming within a whisker of an air frost, something we haven’t become familiar with in May. Overall, the month averaged 9.8 degC which was …

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The last 5 Mays in the UK according to Trevor Harley

2016 After an unsettled start the rest of the month was largely anticyclonic, with winds generally from the easterly direction, making it particularly warm and sunny in the west, and cooler and cloudier in the east. There was a more unsettled spell midmonth. It was warmer than average, with near average rainfall (92%). Overall sunshine was 115% of average. The highest temperature of the month was 27.7C at Plockton (Ross and Cromarty) on the 9th, and the lowest -5.7C at Tulloch Bridge (Invernessshire) on the 14th. 2017 The first ten days were anticyclonic with easterly winds, and the widespread drought …

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May 2020 Report – Warm, Dry and Sunny Again

The Weather in Durham in May 2020. May 2020 continued the Spring theme in that it was very dry overall, after the first few days, but they yielded some heavy hail showers on May 3rd. This picture was taken in Darlington, about 18 miles to the south of Durham. The weather soon calmed down though and the overwhelming feature was the anticyclone close to the UK, almost all the way through the month after the first couple of days. Sunny as well – according to The Met Office. Sunshine records were broken across the country in Spring 2020. Could this …

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May 2019 Monthly Report – Not really settled yet

May 2019 Summary May opened disappointingly cool, with the preponderence of winds from an Northerly and Easterly sector, the direction no-one wants at this time of the year. There was no real warmth until the 13th and then only for three days! Temperatures did recover a bit in the second half, to give an overall mean of 10.9 degC, which is still on the cool side for May. The rainfall total was also on the low side for May, continuing the rather dry Spring. Rain was well spread, with only two short dry periods. The wettest day was the 8th, …

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Funnel Cloud seen over North East England – 28th May 2019

Funnel cloud seen over north east england 28th may 2019

  The report above appeared in the Northern Echo newspaper on 29th May 2019. The axis of funnel clouds may be vertical, inclined (as seen here), or sometimes long and sinuous.  In the UK it is usually tens of metres in diamater (not huge). It is much rarer for funnel clouds to touch the ground and that is when they become tornadoes, but it does happen occasionally. Most UK tornado reports come from The Midlands, Central, Southern and South East England and East Anglia. Our very own Tornado Alley! If you see a funnel cloud or suspected tornado, you should …

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A cracking Spring day in May 2018. From Prebends Bridge

picture of River Wear and Durham Cathedral from Prebends Bridge

A gorgeous day in May 2018. View from Prebends Bridge looking towards Framwelgate Bridge. It was the precursor of a fantastic summer. The Durham Cathedral tower work continues, still shrouded in it’s protective covering. The stonemasons are replacing weathered stone blocks at the top of the Main Cathedral Tower, as they have become dangerous. Prebends Bridge washed away in November 1771 The previous Prebends Bridge was washed away in a catastrophic flood on 17th November 1771. It was a storm that proved fatal to many North East bridges on both the Tyne and Wear, as well as many smaller tributaries.

18th May 2013 – A very wet day with flooding

May felt disappointing although in fact mean air temperature was just a little above average; daytime temperatures were just a little above average and night-time temperatures just a little below. Rainfall was well above average so that the running 12-month total remained above 1000mm for the 6th month in a row, a remarkable sequence. There were heavy falls on the 15th (21.4mm) and especially on the 18th (40.8mm), the latter causing extensive flooding in the Durham area. Rainfall intensity was extraordinary on the morning of the 18th with 12.2mm in one hour (08:00 – 09:00 BST) and 10.2mm the next …

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