October 2015

Temperatures
(all temperatures in degrees Celsius; all averages 1961 – 1990)

Mean daily maximum: 13.8
Difference from average: +0.6

Mean daily minimum: 6.2
Difference from average: -0.1

Mean air temperature: 10.0
Difference from average: +0.2

Absolute maximum: 20.1 (2nd)

Absolute minimum: 1.8 (2nd)

Mean grass minimum: 3.9

Absolute grass minimum: -0.5 (25th)

Number of ground frosts: 2

Number of air frosts: 0

Mean soil temperature at 30cm depth: 12.0

Mean soil temperature at 100cm depth: 12.7

Rainfall
(all totals in millimetres; all averages 1961 – 1990)

Total for the month: 69.8
Difference from average: +17.2

Percentage of the average: 133%

Wettest day: 24.8 (7th)

Number of rain days (>0.25mm): 12

Number of wet days (=> 1mm): 9

3-month total rainfall to 31st October: 190.8
Difference from average: +18.8

6-month rainfall total to 31st October: 384.6
Difference from average: +38.4

12-month rainfall total to 31st October: 608.2
Difference from average: -40.8

Humidity
(averages for 09:00 hours GMT)

Relative Humidity: 89.7%

Sunshine
(all averages 1961 – 1990)

Total for the month: 66.6 hours
Difference from average: -26.5

Percentage of the average: 72%

Mean daily sunshine: 2.1 hours
Difference from average: -0.9

Sunniest day: 7.9 hours (1st)

Number of days with no recorded sunshine: 1

Cumulative total sunshine since 1st January: 1195.1 hours
Difference from average: -22.4

ISSN1350-483

Comments on October 2015
October was above average for mean air temperature, because of warmer days; night-time minima were just below average. There were two ground frosts but no air frosts. Seven of the ten months in 2015 have been above average temperature, but June, July and September were all below average.

Apart from the first two days, October was a very dull month. It was the 15th least sunny October since 1882, but only the lowest October total since 2013. There were ten days with less than half an hour’s bright sunshine. I am grateful to Ken Cook for supplying sunshine data from Copley; the Durham data were suspicious for the 1st and 2nd. The maximum daily sunshine value (1st) is therefore an estimate. Not surprisingly, rainfall was above average for the month, with a notable fall of 24.8mm on the 7th.

Professor Tim Burt
Department of Geography
Durham University