MONTHLY CLIMATOLOGICAL SUMMARY for MAY. 2001 NAME: Ferryhill CITY: Ferryhill STATE: Co. Durham ELEV: 394 feet LAT: 54deg 41min N LONG: 1deg 33min W TEMPERATURE (°C), RAIN (mm), WIND SPEED (mph) HEAT COOL AVG MEAN DEG DEG WIND DOM DAY TEMP HIGH TIME LOW TIME DAYS DAYS RAIN SPEED HIGH TIME DIR ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 9.7 15.9 15:30 5.1 5:00 8.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 2 11.3 17.9 17:30 3.8 5:00 6.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 3 8.4 11.2 0:30 6.0 24:00 9.7 0.0 1.6 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 4 8.2 11.8 17:00 5.1 3:30 10.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 5 8.0 11.2 14:00 5.3 6:30 10.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 6 7.4 11.1 16:00 3.7 6:30 10.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 7 9.1 13.7 15:30 4.1 6:30 9.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 8 8.9 11.9 15:30 6.4 5:30 9.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 9 9.3 13.6 17:00 5.7 6:30 9.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 10 11.3 17.1 18:00 6.6 6:00 7.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 11 13.1 19.1 17:30 8.1 6:30 5.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 12 14.9 22.1 15:30 8.5 5:30 4.0 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 13 14.0 18.2 14:30 10.3 5:30 4.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 14 10.5 12.5 13:00 8.4 6:00 7.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 15 8.7 9.4 14:00 8.2 23:00 9.5 0.0 0.8 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 16 10.4 16.5 15:00 7.8 4:00 7.9 0.0 3.8 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 17 10.7 14.8 14:00 7.1 5:30 7.5 0.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 18 10.7 14.4 18:00 7.7 8:00 7.6 0.0 0.4 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 19 10.8 14.2 16:30 6.8 6:00 7.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 20 12.8 17.1 18:00 7.8 5:30 5.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 21 14.3 20.2 16:30 8.9 6:00 4.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 22 16.2 22.5 17:00 10.0 5:30 3.0 0.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 23 17.0 24.1 17:30 10.4 6:00 2.7 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 24 14.2 18.6 15:00 10.3 24:00 4.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 25 13.1 18.0 17:00 9.5 6:00 5.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 26 16.0 20.8 16:00 12.2 3:30 2.6 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 27 15.7 20.8 14:00 12.7 5:30 2.7 0.2 1.2 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 28 15.3 19.6 14:00 12.3 8:30 3.1 0.1 0.8 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 29 15.0 20.1 17:00 11.7 5:00 3.3 0.1 0.6 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 30 14.2 18.6 15:00 11.0 24:00 4.1 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- 31 12.8 17.2 16:00 8.8 5:00 5.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0:30 --- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.0 24.1 23 3.7 6 197.7 3.8 11.4 0.0 0.0 1 --- (+1.9) (23%) Max >= 32.0: 0 Max <= 0.0: 0 Min <= 0.0: 0 Min <= -18.0: 0 Max Rain: 3.80 ON 16/05/01 Days of Rain: 8 (> .2 mm) 1 (> 2 mm) 0 (> 20 mm) Heat Base: 18.3 Cool Base: 18.3 Method: Integration Warm and sunny. It was the sunniest May since 1997, and the warmest since the exceptional 1999. It was also a dry month, with only 57% of normal - making it the first drier than average month in nine months; we have to go back to 1991 for a significantly drier May. It was very dry and warm in east Scotland. There was a dry anticyclonic spell in the north at the start. Severe thunderstorms crossed the south and Midlands on the 9-10th, with lightning strikes and travel chaos. Temperatures rose after this. 27C at Northolt on the 11th and Southampton on the 12th, and 28C at Rickmansworth. The 17th was very cold, with a maximum of only 4.3 at High Wycombe. There was another warm spell at the end, with 25C in London on the 28th. The 27-28th were unusually humid, hot days. The minimum on the 28th at Norwich was 17C (the highest May minimum since 1945).