RAINFALL this spring was just over half of the long-term average for the three-month period, figures from Jersey Met have shown.
Across March, April and May, a total of 98.4 millimetres of rain was recorded at Maison St Louis Observatory, compared with the 30-year average of 178mm.
Jersey also had its fifth-sunniest spring on record, with 773.1 hours of sunshine. It was well short of the all-time record of 832.7 in 2020, but well ahead of the 30-year average mark of 629.4.
Plentiful sunshine also meant the average spring temperature of 12.1°C was one degree above the average figure.
The spring trend was reflected in the figures for May, which were also published this week, with the month’s rainfall of 15.2mm being less than 30% of the average figure of 53.6mm between 1991 and 2020. May was also 1.1°C warmer than average, featuring 296.7 hours of sunshine – around 40 above average.
Islanders who enjoy swimming in the sea and may be looking to take the plunge after the recent start of summer have been advised by Jersey Met that the current sea temperature of 15.5°C is around 1.5°C above the 30-year average for this time of year.
A spokesperson for Jersey Met said June had been a different story so far, with 24.5mm of rain recorded during the first seven days of the month up to 10am yesterday. This represents almost half of the monthly average for June of 50.7mm.
