April 2022
SUMMARY OF THE METEOROLOGICAL READINGS AT DURHAM UNIVERSITY OBSERVATORY
April 2022
Temperatures (all temperatures in degrees Celsuis; all averages 1991-2020)
Mean daily maximum: 13.2 Difference from average: +0.7
Mean daily minimum: 4.1 Difference from average: +0.1
Mean air temperature: 8.6 Difference from average: +0.4
Absolute maximum: 18.0 (16th)
Absolute minimum: -2.0 (2nd)
Mean grass minimum: 2.0 Difference from average: +0.1
Absolute grass minimum: -4.8 (10th)
Mean concrete minimum: 4.4
Absolute concrete minimum: -1.9 (10th)
Number of ground frosts: 10 Difference from average: 0
Number of air frosts: 5 Difference from average: +1
Mean soil temperature at 300 mm depth: 10.8
Mean soil temperature at 1000 mm depth: 9.5
Rainfall (all totals in millimetres; all averages 1991-2020)
Total for the month: 26.6 Difference from average: -24.6
Percentage of the average: 52%
Wettest day: 8.8 (6th)
Number of rain days (>0.1 mm): 10 Difference from average: -4
Number of wet days (=>1.0 mm): 7
3-month total rainfall to 30th April 2022: 132.6 Difference from average: -26.9
6-month total rainfall to 30th April 2022: 265.6 Difference from average: -89.1
12-month total rainfall to 30th April 2022: 627.4 Difference from average: -53.6
Sunshine (all totals in hours; all averages 1991-2020)
Total for the month: 184.6 Difference from average: +30.3
Percentage of the average: 120%
Mean daily sunshine: 6.0 Difference from average: +0.8
Sunniest day: 11.2 (29th)
Number of days with no recorded sunshine: 0
Note that the monthly sunshine total is now calculated from the UKMO E&NE regional total. Daily sunshine totals quoted here and in the data summary are uncorrected.
Wind (kph; all data from the West Building roof, Lower Mountjoy campus)
Average wind speed: 6.7
Maximum gust: 61.2 (5th, 11:15, WSW)
Comments on April 2022
As is typical for April, there was a mixture of colder days, at the beginning and end of the month, with some warm days, in the middle of the month, although no day reached 20 °C, and the maximum of 18.0 °C is nowhere near the record for April: 24.1 °C on 17th April 2003. The mean air temperature is the 23rd equal highest since 1844. The mean maximum is the 24th equal highest since 1850; whilst much closer to average, the mean minimum is also the 24th equal highest on record. These rankings reflect the relative warmth of Aprils in recent decades. These relatively high April temperatures occurred despite the high preponderance of winds from the eastern quadrant, especially in the second half of the month, with maxima below 10 °C on the 27th and 28th.
This was the 53rd driest April on record since 1850, with only half the expected amount. Rain fell on 10 days (4 less than average), but the wettest day received only 8.8 mm. This is the fourth April in a row with a rainfall total well below average, although three of these totals come nowhere near the 2020 ‘lockdown’ total of 3.8 mm, the 3rd driest April on record. The long-period totals reflect the fact that recent months have tended to be drier than normal.
As expected for such a dry month, it was sunny too, almost exactly the same total as April 2019, but well below the amounts in April 2020 (218.2 hours) and April 2021 (229.5) – the fourth and second sunniest Aprils on record after 1914 (238.1 hours). This continues to be the sunniest start to a year on record: the current four-month total (579.4 hours) is 36 hours more than the previous record set in 2020.
Emeritus Professor Tim Burt
Department of Geography
Durham University