Daily Data for Each Month of 1997

1997- Very warm, slightly drier and sunnier than average

1997 was the first of many years to record a mean temperature of 10C or above.  Snow, frost, hail and thunder were all below normal, while rainfall fluctuated considerably from month to month.  

Winter 1996/97 began cold and quite snowy, but after a cold dry January it turned very warm, wet and windy during February.  Spring 1997 was warm, dry and sunny overall- March and April were quite typical of the sort of homogeneous warmth we tend to get in spring these days, but May was notably varied.  Summer was warm and wet, mainly because of the exceptionally wet June and the exceptionally warm August.  Autumn was generally sunny and cold until early November, whereupon it abruptly changed to being cloudy and warm, and this generally cloudy warm theme continued during December.  After observing snowfall on three Christmasses out of the past four, there was no snow on Christmas Day 1997- instead it was cloudy, wet and windy.

January 1997- Cold, exceptionally dry, and cloudy

January 1997 started with the remains of the snowy easterly on 30/31 December 1996 but it was mostly cloudy during the first five days with some outbreaks of rain, sleet and snow at times.  There was sunshine and rain showers on the 6th and 9th and dry cloudy weather on the 7th and 8th, with some hail and snow showers on the evening of the 8th before it turned warmer.  It turned much milder towards midmonth with some sunshine, then the third week was mainly cloudy with some fog at times.  There were a few sleety showers on the 20th and a little sleet and snow early on the 22nd, but the rest of the month was mostly dry with variable cloud cover.  Overall this remains the coldest January that I have recorded, and also the driest.

February 1997- Warm, sunny and wet, with westerly winds unusually dominant

After a day of rain and sleet on the 1st, February 1997 began with a week of dry weather and variable amounts of cloud, and there was a very sunny day on the 3rd.  The second week had frequent belts of rain, and showers turned to hail and sleet late on the 10th, then the 13th-15th were dry and sunny.  There were frequent active rain belts during the third week, especially on the 19th, then the last week continued mild with a mix of sunshine and blustery showers.  Overall this was a very warm February- though not quite as warm as February 1998 turned out to be.  We came very close to seeing out the month without an air frost- only one air frost is very unusual for February.

March 1997- Very warm and dry, sunny at times

March started with a warm, westerly-dominated first week but rain amounted to little.  There was a good deal of warm, sunny weather in the second week as high pressure took charge over England, while haze and occasional fog occurred.  The 15th-17th turned cloudy, and the BBC was predicting a breakdown to snow showers thereafter, but all we got was a half-hearted north-westerly incursion, with some rain showers on the 19th and temperatures falling to around normal.  It was warm and unsettled from the 22nd to 27th with some weak rain bands, then the month ended with four warm and very sunny days.  This remains the warmest March that I have recorded, and it was the driest since 1993.  Sunshine was well above normal but less so than in March 1995.

April 1997- Warm and exceptionally dry, but only average amounts of sunshine

It started mixed, and during a showery day on the 3rd, a heavy evening shower turned to snow for a time.  The 7th-10th were very warm with plenty of hazy sunshine.  The middle phase of the month saw highest pressure out to the west and large amounts of cloud transferring down the North Sea and affecting the east coast.  Colder, bright showery weather took over from the 19th to 23rd, then the next few days were cloudy again.  After a day of sun and showers on the 28th, the 29th and 30th were dry and sunny, and the 30th was notably warm.  Overall it was a warmer April than the last four, but we have had many warmer Aprils since.  With only 9mm rain, the driest April recorded.

May 1997- Very variable until the 16th then a week of North Sea murk, then warm sunny last week

May 1997 began with a remarkable switch-around of the sort we saw a lot of during Spring 1995.  The 1st saw a high of 24C, but a dramatic change occurred over the May Day weekend, and the afternoon and evening of the 6th had frequent snow showers, one of which even provided a patchy dusting on the ground.  Sunshine and showers dominated until midmonth.  Sea fog was exceptionally persistent in the third week, with thunderstorms on the 17th having the lightning barely visible through the fog.  The low cloud finally cleared on the 22nd, and the 23rd-30th were sunny and increasingly warm.  Sea fog returned on the 31st.  No May since 1997 has produced any snow, or a below average monthly temperature, so May 1997 really was the last of the "old-fashioned" Mays.

June 1997- Warm, quite sunny first third, then increasingly dull, cold and wet, and exceptionally so from the 25th onwards

Easterly winds and stratus dominated during the first two days but the sun broke through on the 3rd and it was sunny through to the 5th.  Warm, humid southerlies brought heavy showers at times from the 6th to 10th, with thunder on the 7th, but also plenty of sunshine in between, and it was generally warm.  However the 11th-15th were cold and dull with some rain.  The 16th-21st were mixed with westerly winds, then dry cloudy weather persisted on the 22nd-24th.  Exceptionally cold, dull, wet weather persisted from the 25th to 30th as slow moving fronts were draped down the eastern side of England, and there were only about 5 minutes of sunshine during this period.  This was the coldest and wettest June that I have recorded.

July 1997- Changeable but often sunny and warm

The dull cold wet weather of late June continued on the 1st but it turned bright and showery from the 2nd to 5th, and then it became dry sunny and very warm.  The temperature crept above 25C on the 9th.  A breakdown on the 13th brought a shower of large hail.  After a brief cloudy interlude with westerly winds, high pressure brought dry sunny weather, with sea fog often lapping onto the coastal fringe but Cleadon was far enough inland to miss most of it.  Unsettled breezy weather prevailed from the 22nd onwards but it was warm and there was often a decent amount of sunshine.  There were some heavy rainstorms with a little thunder on the 24th.

August 1997- Very warm, frequent sticky nights

The first week was dry and increasingly warm but often cloudy.  Hot sunny weather took over from the 7th to 9th, with a very hot day on the 8th- 27.6C recorded.  The next few days were very humid with stuffy nights and variable amounts of cloud.  Hot sunny weather arrived midmonth, then sea fog spread in on the 17th, with the fog making the lightning hard to see during a brief thunderstorm that spread in during the evening.  It was hot and sunny again on the 20th.  The rest of the month was unsettled and quite cloudy at times with close to average temperatures.  Overall this was almost as warm as August 1995, but this was due to the exceptionally high minima.

September 1997- Dry and sunny, warm days and cool nights

 The first week was mainly dry with some sunny intervals and some overnight showers.  It was sunny and warm from the 9th to 11th.  The 12th and 13th were bright and showery with cool north-westerly winds, then a week of mainly cloudy weather followed with westerly winds.  A very sunny, anticyclonic spell followed from the 19th to 25th, with most days having unbroken sunshine, and it was quite warm by day while some of the nights were unusually cool for late September.  The 26th-29th continued dry and anticyclonic but it was mostly dull.  Rain finally arrived on the 30th.  Overall this was the driest September recorded until 2004 which ended up even drier.  

October 1997- An episodic month, fluctuating temperatures, frequently sunny and dry

October began with a week of warm weather with variable amounts of sunshine.  It turned changeable from the 6th through to midmonth and there was a chilly northerly on the 10th-13th, with frequent heavy showers on northerly winds on the 13th.  Three cloudy days followed, then a dramatic switch-around saw warm, summer-like sunshine on the 18th with 21C exceeded.  Anticyclonic weather prevailed from the 20th with variable amounts of sunshine, though on the whole the sunny days outnumbered the cloudy ones.  There was an exceptionally cold night for late October on the 28th/29th with -2.7C the lowest minimum recorded for October.

November 1997- Warm, with an exceptionally dull second half

Dry cloudy weather dominated the first week.  The second week was brighter with westerly winds, and sunshine and showers dominated between the 11th and 13th with a couple of heavy rainstorms on the 11th.  There was an unusually warm interlude on the 16th/17th, although it was dull.  From the 18th onwards, the sun shone on only two days- the 21st and 30th- and all other days were monotonously cloudy with some rain at times, and temperatures similar by both day and night.  The 21st was very much a one-off, when it was sunny all day.  Winds swung around to the north on the 30th bringing colder, brighter weather with some sharp showers.

December 1997- Bright snowy start, but generally warm, dull and wet

The first two days were cold and bright and there was a moderate snow shower early on the 2nd which deposited a dusting of snow, but the wind picked up off the North Sea that evening bringing hail and sleet showers, and a more general area of rain moved in on the 3rd.  After some dull dry weather, it was bright and showery on the 8th-11th.  Mainly cloudy weather followed, and an easterly from the 15th-17th brought cloudy weather and patchy drizzle.  An area of rain late on the 17th turned briefly to sleet.  Mostly dull weather continued until Christmas and there was a severe gale on Christmas Eve, but Boxing Day onwards had a fair amount of sunshine.