Dry and Rather Warm 

Temperatures

The average maximum temperature during May 2019 in Shoreham was 17.3 Celsius (63F), and that was around 2 degrees Celsius (3.5F) above normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 8.2 Celsius (47F), and that was  around  1  degree Celsius (1.5F) below the May normal.    

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 21.8 Celsius (71F) on the 24th, but both the 21st and 25th had maxima above 20 Celsius (68F). There were a further 13 days with highs between 18 and 20 Celsius (64-68F), although only 2 of these warmer days occurred during the first half of the month. There were no particularly cold days during May, but on 5 occasions the temperature failed to rise above 15 Celsius (59F). One of these cooler days occurred as late as the 29th, and on the 17th the temperature only reached 12.8 Celsius (55F). However, there were 3 consecutive cool days beginning on the 4th, and in fact the 4th was the coolest day of the month with a high of 12.2 Celsius (54F).

There were no particularly warm nights during  May, but on 8 occasions, all during the second half of the month,  the temperature stayed above 10 Celsius (50F). On 3 of these nights the temperature stayed above 12 Celsius (54F). On the 25th, a minimum of 14.2 Celsius (58F) was recorded, with 13.6 Celsius (57F) and 13.7 Celsius (57F) measured on the 30th and 31st respectively. All the coldest nights of the month occurred during the early part of May with no minima below 7 Celsius (45F) after the 16th. Prior to that date, there were 13 nights with temperatures dipping below 7 Celsius (45F), including 6 nights with temperatures below 5 Celsius (41F). All these chilly nights occurred between the 4th and 13th, but there were only 2 occasions when the temperature fell below 4 Celsius (39F). On the 4th a low of 3.8 Celsius (39F) was measured, but on the following night the minimum was 2.1 Celsius (36F). 

The sea temperature gradually rose from 12 Celsius (54F) at the beginning of May to 15 Celsius (59F) by the end of the month.

Frost

There were no air frosts during  May and just 1 grass frost. on the night of the 4th/5th the grass temperature fell to minus 1.1 Celsius (30F).    

Rain

There were  19.4  millimetres (0.75 ins.) of rain during May and that was only around 40% of the monthly average. It was the driest May in the area for 8 years. There were 8 days  of measurable rain, and that was about 4 days below normal for May. The first day of the month was dry and rain on the 2nd was negligible. However, heavy showers on the evening of the 3rd gave over 4 millimetres (0.17 ins.) of rain, and further showers occurred on the 4th.  Heavy rain fell early on the 8th, although the 8.8 millimetres (0.35 ins.) that fell was logged for the 7th (rainfall day 0900-0900 UTC). Showers fell on both the 8th  and 11th but less than 1 millimetre (0.04 ins.) was recorded on each day. From the 12th, there were 14 consecutive dry days, and although this was followed by 4 damp days, amounts of rain were small with 2.4 millimetres (0.1 ins.) on the 29th the highest total. The last 2 days of the month were dry.

Hail

No hail was observed in Shoreham during May.

Thunder

No thunder was heard in Shoreham during May.

Snow

There was no sleet or snow observed in Shoreham during May.   

Wind

On balance, May was a ‘westerly’ month,  although almost a week of northeasterlies occurred around mid month, and the prevailing soputhwesterlies were matched in number (10) by winds from a northwesterly direction.  Winds were quite brisk during the first 9 days of the month, and again during the last week of May. However, overall winds were generally lighter than average. At Shoreham Airport  northwesterly gusts of 31 knots (35 mph) occurred on the afternoon of the 4th, and again on the morning of the 8th, but this time from a southwesterly direction. There were no further gusts above 30 knots (34 mph) during the remainder of the month.     

Fog

There was no fog observed in this part of Shoreham during May, 

Statistics for May 2019

Very Warm and Dry

Temperatures

The average maximum temperature during May 2018 in Shoreham was 20.1 Celsius (68F), and that was around 4 degrees Celsius (7F) above normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 9,8 Celsius (50F), and that was  also about 0.5 degrees Celsius (<1F) above  the May normal. Overall, it appears to be the warmest May in  the area for 20 years.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 27.6 Celsius (82F) on the 28th, but there were 3 other days when the temperature rose above 25 Celsius (77F), namely the 7th, 26th and 27th with highs of 26.9 Celsius (81F), 26.8 Celsius (81F) and 25.1 Celsius (77F) respectively. In  what was a truly summer month, the temperature exceeded 20 Celsius (68F) on a further 13 days. There were several cool days, but these occurred early in the month. Of the 8 days with maxima below 17 Celsius (63F), none were recorded after the 19th. There were just 2 days when the temperature failed to reach 15 Celsius (59F). On the 1st, a high of 13.3 Celsius (56F) was measured, with 13.6 Celsius (57F) logged on the 12th.

Many nights had clear skies and light winds, and this led to some quite chilly temperatures around dawn. However, there were several warm nights, especially during the last week of May. On the 27th a minimum of 16.9 Celsius (63F) occurred, followed by 15.1 Celsius (59F) on the 29th. Overall, there were 14 nights with minimum temperatures above 10 Celsius (50F), with 9 of these milder nights occurring after the 21st. The coolest nights were at the beginning of May, and again just after mid month. There were 8 nights when the temperature dipped below 7 Celsius (45F), but only 2 of these cooler nights had minima below 5 Celsius (41F). The first night of the month had a low of 2.9 Celsius (37F), and the 18th had a minimum of 4.6 Celsius (40F). 

The sea temperature,  around  11  Celsius (52F) at the beginning of the month, steadily rose to 13 Celsius (55F) by the beginning of the second week, with a slower rise to 15 or 16  Celsius (60F) by the end of the month.

Frost

There were no air frosts during May, but a ground frost occurred on the first morning of the month, with the grass temperature falling to minus 1.1 Celsius (30F).   

Rain

There were 30.2 millimetres (1.2 ins.) of rain during May and that was only slightly more than 50% of the monthly average. It was the driest May in the area for 7 years. Rain fell on 11 days, about 1 day below what one would expect at this time of year, and wet days ( rainfall of 1 millimetre (0.04 ins) or more)  amounted to 8 days.  Rain was measured on the first 2 days* of May, but only totalled 5 millimetres (0.2 ins.). A dry spell of weather then ensued until the 23rd,  interrupted only twice by measurable rainfall. On the 9th, less than 1 millimetre (0.04 ins.) of rain fell, and on the 12th  over 7 millimetres (0.3 ins.) of rain was recorded.  The last 9 days of May were more changeable, and during this period the 27th was the only dry day.  Most daily totals were small, but over 4 millimetres (0.15 ins.) were recorded on the 24th, and 8.4 millimetres (0.33 ins.) on the 30th,  the wettest day of the month.    

*A rain day is from 0900-0900 UTC

Snow

No sleet or snow fell in Shoreham during May.

Hail

There was no hail observed in this part of Shoreham during May.

Thunder

There were 3 days with thunderstorms during May.  Distant thunder was heard early in the evening on the 21st, with distant lightning and thunder,  both to the east and west,  on the evening of the 26th.  The final thunderstorms were closer,  and  rumbled away from early to mid afternoon.

Wind

The winds during May were mainly from between southwest and northwest during the first 3 weeks, followed by breezes from between northeast and southeast during the remainder of the month.  Winds were generally gentle or moderate by day, falling light on many nights. There were exceptions, and at Shoreham Airport southwesterly gusts reached 32 knots (37 mph) on the afternoon of the 2nd, and late morning on the 16th there was a gust of 30 knots (34 mph) from the north,    

Fog

Mist and hill fog occurred on both the 20th and 30th, and misty low cloud descended to give fog for a while on the evening of the 31st.

Statistics for May 2018

Mild and Wet

Temperatures

The average maximum temperature during April 2018 in Shoreham was 14.2 Celsius (58F), and that was around 2 degrees Celsius (3.5F) above normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 7.9 Celsius (46F), and that was  also about 2 degrees Celsius (3.5F) above  the April normal.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 22.6 Celsius (73F) on the 18th, and that was the warmest April day in the area for 7 years. The 18th was the first day of an unusually warm spell that lasted for 4 days. On each day the temperature rose above 21 Celsius (70F), and included a high of 22.3 Celsius (72F) on the 20th. There were no other days with maxima above 21 Celsius (70F), with the next highest temperature a mere 17.3 Celsius (63F) on the 10th. On most days (17) the temperature rose to between 12 and 16 Celsius (54-61F), but there were a few chilly days at either end of the month. The 1st, 2nd, 29th and 30th each had maxima below 10 Celsius (50F), but the 30th was the only day with a high below 9 Celsius (48F). On this miserable day the top temperature was only 8.2 Celsius (47F).

There were several mild nights during April, and on 4 occasions the temperature stayed above 10 Celsius (50F). Only 2 of these milder nights had lows above 11 Celsius (52F), with the highest being 12.1 Celsius (54F) on the 19th. On most nights (17) the temperature fell to between 7 and 10 Celsius (45-50F), but there were a few rather chilly nights. On 3 widely spaced occasions, the 1st, 14th and 30th, the minima were below 5 Celsius (41F), with the lowest temperature of 4.1 Celsius (39F) recorded on the 1st. 

The sea temperature,  around  7  Celsius (45F) at the beginning of the month, steadily rose to between 10 and 11 Celsius (50-52F) by the end of April.

Frost

There were neither air nor grass frosts during April. The lowest grass minimum temperature was 1.7 Celsius (35F) on the morning of the 1st.   

Rain

There were 69.8 millimetres (2.7 ins.) of rain during April and that was almost 50% above  the monthly average. Rain fell on 16 days, about 4 days above what one would expect at this time of year, and wet days ( rainfall of 1 millimetre (0.04 ins) or more)  amounted to 12 days.  The month began very wet, with the first 2 days accounting for almost 40% of the April total. The 1st was the wettest day of the month with 14.8 millimetres (0.6 ins.) of rain, followed by the 2nd with 12.8 millimetres (0.5 ins.). Although the 5th and 6th were dry days, the unsettled weather continued until the 10th, with daily rainfall totals including  6 millimetres (0.25 ins.) on the 9th and 4.6 millimetres (0.2 ins.) on the 10th. Between the 11th and 23rd it was mainly dry with the only 2 rain days*  producing a meagre total of 1.4 millimetres (0.06 ins.). The last week of April became changeable again, with the 28th the only dry day. The 30th was a particularly wet day, but with the heaviest rain falling before 10 o`clock in the morning. most of the total was attributed to the 29th, so the figures were 11.8 millimetres (0.5 ins.) on the 29th and 4.6 millimetres (0.2 ins.) on the 30th.    

*A rain day is from 0900-0900 UTC

Snow

No sleet or snow fell in Shoreham during April.

Hail

There was no hail observed in Shoreham during April.

Thunder

There was a thunderstorm late on the evening of the 21st . Although the lightning was quite spectacular for a while, the main activity was to the west and very little rain accompanied the storm.

Wind

The winds during April were variable with no particular direction dominant. If anything, the first 3 weeks of the month had winds generally from the southwest, southeast and occasionally the northeast, whereas the last 10 days of April often had breezes from the west or northwest. The strongest winds were mostly towards the end of the month, and at Shoreham Airport,  southwesterly gusts of 33 knots (38 mph) occurred on the afternoon of the 26th,  and 31 knots (35 mph) from the northwest on the afternoon of the 30th.  

Fog

Patchy fog occurred for a while in central Shoreham on the morning of the 14th.

Statistics for April 2018