This article is from page 18 of the 2009-01-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 18 JPG
TEMPERATURES recorded at the weather station in Shannon last week may well make their way into the record books.
Ground temperatures plummeted to minus 9.2 degrees in Shannon last Wednesday morning, with analysts suggesting this may yet be the cold- est temperature of 2009.
The weather station recorded the cold temperature during what was one of the coldest days in a long time. The air temperature was minus 3.7 eaten Keron Maomcy DOO ComeslOUONDETSE
As _arctic-like weather swept through the country, cold tempera- tures were recorded at Shannon throughout the week. Monday’s air temperature was minus 0.2 degrees; it was minus 2.4 on Tuesday and mi- nus 1.1 on Thursday morning.
A spokesman for Met Eireann said Wednesday’s temperatures may yet be the coldest of the entire year. “It could easily be the lowest ground temperature of the year. While tem- peratures were well below normal, however, it is not unusual to get m1- nus nine or minus 10 in the winter. It is not record breaking,’ said the spokesman.
Shannon’s weather station created
many records throughout 2008, with certain dates and months entering the history books.
August was the wettest on record at the airport, when a total of 1,270mm of rain fell. This was the highest at the station since it opened in 1945.
Its highest ever hourly fall of rain was on August 6, when 38.4mm was recorded during a thunderstorm.
The highest temperature of the year was on July 24 (25.2 degrees Cel- sius).
It was the sunniest October since records began was recorded at Shan- non, where the highest daily sunshine was recorded between October | and 8 and on the 21 and 31.
January, too, saw a record being broken, when the amount of rainfall (221mm) was the highest ever at the station.
The atmospheric pressure in Shan- non in March was the lowest ever re- corded in Ireland.
The weather was excellent in May, where the warmest May was record- ed since records began at Shannon. The average temperature at the sta- tion for the month was 14 degrees.
The temperature remained at this level, reaching an average of 14.2 degrees, in June, but this was the coolest June since 2002.