PITSFORD HALL WEATHER STATION NORTHAMPTON, UNITED KINGDOM MONTHLY WEATHER REPORT for OCTOBER 2001 Monthly Assessment ================== Headline: A wet month with frequent outbreaks of rain, some heavy. Unseasonably mild. Nationally, the warmest October on record. The first week of October was generally very unsettled, although initially very mild. Low pressure centred to the north and west prevailed bringing frequent showers and longer spells of rain. Winds were fairly brisk from the south or south-west easing a little on the 4th. The 7th was a particularly wet day with 11.3mm of rain recorded in a matter of a few hours. Despite the rain there were notable windows of bright weather with good sunshine figures recorded on some days. High pressure began to influence the scene during the second week and a quieter spell of weather ensued. It was generally dry from the 10th until the 13th and again some days had some good spells of sunshine. Temperatures began to climb from the 10th onwards and it had become very warm by the 12th with an unseasonal high of 21.3C recorded at Pitsford. Light winds and the high humidity led to mornings with mist and patchy fog between the 12th and 14th. From the 14th onwards low pressure centred to the west and south-west brought mild air across much of the UK. The weather was generally unsettled with rain falling on most days. A succession of active fronts crossed the county from the 19th onwards bringing some heavier spells of rain. 12.7mm was recorded on the 21st and the following day saw the Environment Agency releasing a floodwatch for the River Nene. The county largely escaped the heaviest of the downpours which occurred in neighbouring Cambridgeshire where over 70mm of rain fell in a matter of a few hours. Further spells of wet weather occurred between the 25th and 28th as further lows tracked close-by. A particularly active front crossed the county on the 26th releasing 9.7mm at Pitsford Hall and forcing the Environment Agency to issue another floodwatch this time for the Great Ouse at Brackley. With the exception of a particularly mild day on the 30th, a deepening low brought fresher and breezier weather to the county as the month came to a close. Nationally, this was the warmest October on record. However, in Northamptonshire warmer Octobers have been recorded: 1986 with 14.7C and 1956 with 13.8C. Climatological & Agromet Statistics - October 2001 ================================================== Air Temperatures The Highest Maximum: 21.3C on 12th The Lowest Maximum: 12.2C on 31st The Highest Minimum: 13.5C on 15th The Lowest Minimum: 6.7C on 29th The Mean Maximum: 16.9C The Mean Minimum: 10.0C The Overall Mean: 13.5C Difference from the Monthly Mean: +3.2C Relative Humidity: Highest Relative Humidity (at 0900): 100.0% on 14th Lowest Relative Humidity (at 0900): 86.2% on 31st Mean Relative Humidity (at 0900): 94.8% Dew Point: The Highest Dew Point (at 0900): 14.9C on 20th The Lowest Dew Point (at 0900): 6.7C on 31st The Mean Dew Point (at 0900): 11.1C Rainfall: Total: 93.4mm Difference from the Monthly Mean: 169.5% Duration: 48.8hrs Highest 24-hour fall (from 0900): 12.7mm on 21st Rain Days (>/=0.2mm): 20 Wet Days (>/=1.0mm): 16 Lowest pH: 5.90 on 21st Sunshine: Total Duration of Bright Sunshine: 93.5hrs Sunniest day: 7.7hrs on 28th Sunless days: 6 Cloud cover (mean at 0900): 6.2 oktas (77.5%) Pressure (reduced to sea level): The Highest Pressure: 1034.0mb on 31st The Lowest Pressure: 986.4mb on 7th Mean Pressure (recorded at 0900): 1010.6mb Winds: Run of wind (mean over 24 hrs): 87.4 miles Mean daily wind speed: 4.7mph Highest 24-hour Wind Speed: 9.6mph on 30th Run of wind (to date): 2709.6 miles Highest Maximum Gust: 38mph on 31st Highest wind strength (at 0900): 18.4mph on 26th Mean wind strength (at 0900): 6.7mph Winds from the Following Directions: N 1 NE 0, E 2, SE 4, S 13, SW 4, W 0, NW 3, Calm 4 Days with: Thunder: 0 Hail less than 0.5mm: 0 Hail greater than/equal to 0.5mm: 0 Snow or snow & rain: 0 Snow lying: 0 Fog: 6 Air Frost: 0 Duration of Air Frost: 0 hrs Ground Frost: 0 Evaporation: Total evaporation (tank): 20.18mm Ground Temperatures: Lowest Grass Minimum: 2.6C on 29th Mean Grass Minimum: 7.4C Lowest Concrete Minimum: 4.3C on 29th Mean Concrete Minimum: 8.7C Lowest Bare Earth Minimum: 5.1C on 16th Mean Bare Earth Minimum: 9.2C Soil/Earth Temperatures: Surface mean: 10.8C 5cm mean: 11.5C 10cm mean: 12.1C 20cm mean: 12.7C 30cm mean: 13.3C 40cm mean: 13.2C 50cm mean: 13.8C 100cm mean: 13.1C Climatological observations made at 0900 UTC. Agro-meteorological observations made at 0700 UTC. Averages refer to the period 1971-2000. All data © Northamptonshire Grammar School.