JERSEY has recorded its warmest summer since records began more than 130 years ago – as well as its hottest August.
The average temperature across June, July and August was 20.5°C, according to figures released by Jersey Met.
That was 2.8°C above the 30-year average and comfortably surpassed the previous summer record of 19.6°C, set in 2022.
Temperature and rainfall records at Maison St Louis Observatory date back to 1894.
Three heatwaves were recorded during the summer, with temperatures reaching at least 30°C on 13 days.
There were also eight “tropical nights”, when the temperature did not fall below 20°C, while the Island experienced its hottest day on record when the mercury reached 39.3°C on 25 June.
Despite the heat, the summer stopped just short of becoming the sunniest on record.
Jersey received 986.3 hours of sunshine during the three months – almost 200 hours above the long-term average of 787.4 hours and second only to the record of 999 hours set in 1976. Sunshine records at Fort Regent Signal Station began in 1925.
Rainfall was also below average, with 106.9mm recorded compared with the 30-year norm of 158mm. The summer’s wettest day was 1 June, when 21.7mm fell.
August rounded off the record-breaking season with an average temperature of 21°C – 0.1°C higher than the previous record, jointly set in 2003 and 2022, and 2.6°C above average.
The month included a three-day heatwave from 11 to 13 August – the fourth of the year – with a high of 35.1°C recorded on 12 August. Tropical nights followed on 12 and 13 August.
It was also Jersey’s second-sunniest August on record, with 324.2 hours, just behind the 327.9 hours recorded in 1976.
Meanwhile, the average sea temperature of 19.7°C was the warmest recorded for August.
