Daily Data for Each Month of 2008

2008- Slightly cooler than most recent years, another warm winter, another dull wet summer

After two very dry years, 2008 was the wettest year since 2002, and the coolest (or, more accurately, least warm!) since 2001.  For the second consecutive year there was a warm winter and a dull wet summer, and only one day reached 25C or above.  The total of only 20 days with maxima of 20C or above was the lowest on record.  Snow and hail were below normal but it was slightly snowier than last year.  The frost frequency, in contrast, was the highest since 2001.  There were unusually potent northerlies in early April and in late October.

Winter 2007/08 was warm and quite sunny with near average rainfall but not as warm as 2006/07.  The winter quarter was, however, even more snowless than that of 2006/07, but the 2007/08 season as a whole was snowier because of more snow in the spring.  Spring 2008 was quite sunny and dry and came out warmer than average due to a very warm May, but it did have a notably cold wintry Easter and a potent cold snap in early April.  Summer 2008 was quite warm (entirely because of warm nights), it was the wettest recorded, and it was dull, mainly because of the exceptionally dull August, and duller than Summer 2007.  Autumn was statistically near normal but memorable for the northerly in late October.  December was cold, and had a snowy start.

January 2008- Another warm January, very wet

For the second successive January, westerly winds were unusually frequent.  The month began with an easterly incursion which, despite strong gusty onshore winds, delivered a dusting of snow between 6 and 7am on the 3rd, but it melted during the morning and the wet snow showers during the day were unable to restore the snow cover.  Thundersnow occurred at Newcastle.  It was mainly warm and wet with westerly winds after that, apart from a brief cold snap on the 11th.  Rain on a very wet day on the 21st turned briefly to sleet.  The last week was exceptionally warm, then the last day had gales and a mix of sun and squally showers which produced snow and hail in the afternoon.   It was the wettest January recorded, beating 2004, and the second warmest (behind 2007).

February 2008- Exceptionally sunny anticyclonic spell from the 9th to 20th, with stunning sunsets

There were gales and wet snowfalls on the 1st but no significant accumulations.  The rest of the first week was mainly mixed but quite sunny, then a warm, cloudy south-westerly established on the 7th and 8th.  High pressure crept northwards bringing a sluggish southerly flow for much of the period 9th-20th February.  Nights were often frosty, particularly late in the period, with patchy fog at times, while apart from a brief cloudy interlude late on the 14th and early on the 15th, days were consistently sunny and some of the sunsets were outstanding.  The 12th was very warm with a high of 13.8C. The 21st-29th in contrast were very warm but mainly cloudy with the odd bit of rain.  It was the driest February since 1998.  The mean maxima were the highest (alongside 2002) since 1998, but the mean minima were the lowest since 2003.  Sunshine across the region was the highest in February since either 1988 or 1970.

March 2008- Unsettled, but dry and sunny at the same time, average temperatures, cold snap during Easter

This was an exceptionally cyclonic month but somehow it ended up both dry and sunny.  There was a half-hearted cold-snap on the 3rd and 4th.  Up to the 12th it continued changeable and quite warm with sunshine and showers on most days.  A rather cloudy, dry spell midmonth was followed by another rather weak northerly incursion.  A much more potent northerly coincided exactly with the Easter weekend, bringing mainly hail and sleet showers on the 21st and 22nd but some snow accumulated overnight 22nd/23rd.  The 23rd-25th had more snow showers, which produced temporary accumulations at times.  There was a remarkable snowstorm at around sunset time on the 24th, which saw the temperature fall rapidly from 2C to -1C, but it only produced a dusting on the ground.   It was warmer towards the end.

April 2008- Notable wintry outbreak 6th/7th, sunshine and showers for most of the first half, dull second half

It was warm at the start with a warm, sunny day on the 3rd with 17.2C reached.  There was a dramatic switch-around with a maximum of just 5.1C on the 6th and heavy snow during the day which temporarily covered the ground, the lowest April temperatures since 13/14 April 1999.  There was an unexpected snowstorm early on the 7th which deposited 2 inches and the snow stuck around until lunchtime.  A week of sunshine and showers followed and there was an exceptionally high incidence of hail.  The 17th-23rd were dull with easterly winds, and the 24th-30th were mostly dull and warm with southerlies.  Thunder occurred to the west late on the 27th.  The frequency of hail was the highest on record, beating the Marches of 1994 and 1995.   It was the coolest April since 2001, and the wettest since 2005.

May 2008- Very warm (especially by night) and very dry

The month started showery, then after a few cloudy days there was a spell of warm, sunny weather with the warmth tempered by the onshore wind, but it still got up to 19.8C on the 10th.  Sea fog intervened on the 11th and there was a prolonged spell of dry cloudy weather with North Sea stratus until the 17th.  The 18th-24th was a dry sunny period, initiated by a northerly outbreak which brought a couple of moderately cold nights.  The end of the month was mainly cloudy and wet, warm and humid.  It was the driest May since 2004, and the warmest (just) since 1999.

June 2008- A fairly average sort of June, a little warmer than average

It began muggy and wet but turned warm and sunny on the 8th and 9th with a maximum of 25.2C on the latter date.  Northerly winds followed, initially bringing cool cloudy weather, and then sunshine and showers towards midmonth.  Mixed weather continued through to the 21st which was a very wet day.  The 22nd had the only summer gale I have ever experienced, and the day began with a very squally shower, but became dry and cloudy after that.  The last week was mainly dry and sunny, but rather windy.

July 2008- Very wet, but not especially dull due to a sunny spell after midmonth

It began with a warm sunny day but which ended with a convective rainstorm.  A few showery days followed, then a large depression gave extremely wet and often cloudy weather.  The 13th-15th were muggy and quite warm.  The next big low, on the 17th-19th, mainly gave sunshine and showers and there was thunder on the 19th.  From then until the 27th the weather was predomin/atly dry and sunny, with onshore winds but only occasional low cloud from the North Sea.  The 28th-31st were very dull as low cloud finally took hold from the east.  The average maximum temperature was the lowest since 2004.  It was the wettest July recorded up until 2008 but it was beaten by July 2009.

August 2008- Wet, exceptionally dull

We may have got away with near average sunshine in July despite exceptional rainfall, but not so in August!   The first two days had showers and thunderstorms, then for three weeks afterwards, a succession of Atlantic systems brought frequent bands of cloud and rain, and cloudy showery weather in between the rain belts.  The weather turned dry and settled during the last third of the month, but ironically there was even less sunshine than during the prior unsettled weather, because a moist westerly flow on the high's northern flank gave a layer of stratus or stratocumulus for most of the spell.  Nights were warm and sticky during this spell.  Across many parts of the country it was the dullest August since 1912, and I wouldn't be surprised if Cleadon was among them.  The absolute maximum and minimum of 21.3C and 9.7C were the lowest, and highest, respectively for August, illustrating the excessive cloud cover and resultant cool days and warm nights.

September 2008- Another dull wet month

 September began with a week of dull cold wet weather, with exceptionally persistent rain on the 5th and 6th giving a total of 69mm.  It continued unsettled for a while, then high pressure took charge during the second half of the month.  Sunshine was variable rather than plentiful, due to frequent easterly winds, but around the 18th-21st and towards the end of the month, it was quite sunny at times.   It was the coolest September since 2001, and the wettest since 1993.

October 2008- Frequent westerly winds, a dry sunny month, exceptionally potent northerly near the end

A fairly potent northerly started off the month, and after a couple of showery days the 3rd-6th were sunny with cold nights.  It was warm around the middle of the second week with variable amounts of cloud, and the 12th was a sunny day.  Changeable westerlies took charge until the 26th, but there was little in the way of rain, and plenty of sunshine.  Hail showers occurred on the afternoon of the 26th.  An exceptionally cold northerly brought dry sunny cold weather on the 28th and 29th, and overnight 30th/31st, heavy hail showers temporarily whitened the ground, and inland parts of the region maintained a hail cover through to early morning of the 31st.  The maximum of 6.1C on the 28th was a record low for October in a record going back to 1993.  On the whole, though, it was only slightly colder than average making it the coldest October since 2003.

November 2008- Generally warm until the 20th, then some potent northerlies

The northerlies of late October were replaced by dull drizzly easterlies during the first week, then the second week was mixed with westerly winds.  It was mainly dry during the third week with high pressure in occupation, and apart from a cold night on the 16th/17th, it was warm.  A northerly on the 21st-23rd brought occasional snow flurries on the 21st and 22nd, but the main thrust of the northerly hit East Anglia.  There was a dusting on the 23rd- the first instance of >50% snow cover in November since 2001.  There were hail and sleet showers with thunder on the 24th.  A north-westerly incursion on the 28th was followed by two bright, frosty and unusually cold days, and the maxima of 2.3C on the 29th and 1.1C on the 30th were both the lowest in November since 1993.  -4.1C on the 29th was the lowest November minimum since 1996.

December 2008- Dry, sunny and cold, with a notably snowy start

It opened with the most significant early-December snowy spell since I started recording.  There was early snow on the 1st but it warmed up.  More snow fell on the 2nd, giving an early covering that only partially thawed during the day, and overnight 2nd/3rd, even though it warmed up due to an onshore wind, a hailstorm at 3-4am deposited a lasting cover.  Heavy snow on the 4th saw snow cover exceed the two-inch mark for a time.  There was another, weaker, northerly in the second week.  It was very warm and cloudy from the 16th to 24th, with gales on the 20th.  It turned cold with variable cloud cover after Christmas.  The 28th was showery, but the 30th and 31st were dull.  The 21-09 max on the 31st was -1.4C, the lowest since 29 December 1995, though the temperature rose above freezing by 0900 on New Year's Day 2009.  It was the coldest December since 2001.