Sun Chaser

B87 I don't know about the rest of the country but down here we've actually fallen behind leaf wise. The tree growth seems to have stayed stagnant since early April and some trees are still bare. What's strange is how blossom and leafing started so early this year - mid Feb on some trees - yet the trees now are easily as behind as they were this time in 2021 or 2013.

In Absence of True Seasons Was joking, definitely looks fully overcast there. We've been blessed with a 98% overcast sky and a tiny patch of blue sky that I'm able to see through a layer of high wispy cirrus cloud!

Yess so true. Usually I feel quite energetic but that's been sapped out of me in the past 3 months.

In Absence of True Seasons Looks better than a lot of the days here lately. You know, think yourself lucky that there's a patch of brighter cloud! This. This is what I've been missing this year. There hasn't been a single day like this because every day has been marred by cloud and mild nights. None of the late February/March optimism. None of the excitement of the first April warm spell. Nothing really warm or cold to give interest. Not even two entirely sunny days in a row, let alone a whole week or more of it like most springs have! Just permacloud and temperatures of 11-16c since late January. Some of the leaves on the trees are actually going BROWN thanks to wet soil and lack of sunshine. I'm cautious for this upcoming warm spell next week, even if temperatures are good what I really want is SUNSHINE, and if it ends up being as cloudy as it's predicted to be then I'll be disappointed. But a lot of weather services generally overstate the effects of cloud on the day so I'm hoping we end up with some decently sunny days, possibly reaching into the low twenties?? Is that too much to ask weather gods? I guess I wasn't expecting another back-loaded spring. I just prefer a good old front-loaded, much sunnier one!

Surprised it didn't turn out a much darker shade of grey in more places to be honest. One cloudless day (20th) and another mostly sunny one (18th) and the rest was a dull fest. Although you can see some hotspots in the west (like here) where it could be as low as 50% sunshine.

Alderc 2.0 Thank you for recognising our struggle

danm I don't want to be negative but I have so little trust in any kind of good projected outlook on the models that I'm sure that either it will disappear by the time it gets to day 6, or the high sinks and we all end up with a lovely cloudy westerly setup again!

Me seeing people everywhere else in the country mention 20 degrees

Now falling into single digits as we approach midday... you know it's a good day when the daily high is reached at 6am! Happy for those in the east, it's been equally dull there this year so they deserved their turn with some good weather.

Another awful day in what has to be the dullest April I've ever known, this one has made 2012/2013/2018 seem sunny. 12-21 April wasn't that bad. Average temperatures by day, mostly dry, and decent sunshine. The rest of this month can go straight in the bin it's been dire! Feb had 54% sunshine, 184% rainfall. Mar had 69% sunshine, 199% rainfall. Apr has had 64% sunshine (not getting any more today) and 122% rainfall (almost certain to reach 130 by the evening) I never thought I'd be saying this but spring 2023 actually looks good compared to this. Still yet to record a temperature above 18c this year 2/3 through spring! All this after the wettest Jul - Dec since 1890. The last month here to record over *120* hours of sunshine was June. Bar is on the floor. Still, at least it will be mild next week!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHEN WILL IT END!

The story of 2024 so far. At least February was mild! At least March was mild! At least April was mild! *ends up with the wettest dullest Feb-Apr on record* raz.org.rain Very very true! Just seems so impossible at the moment

I think this is what I mean with the setup, when there's a trough to our west delivering warm weather to the SE while we are stuck under cloud and drizzle and low teens like mid May 2022 and like this week. I just want sun!! I don't care how cold it is. Give me a May 3c below average and I won't care as long as I see 230+ hours of sunshine!! Summer8906 I don't know about that, weather app has London as mostly sunny and 18-20c at the weekend while it's raining here and 15. Any sign of drier, sunnier weather keeps getting pushed back to day 8.

What the hell is this setup. Temps struggling to get past 10c down here and grey skies with rain all week down here while the east pushes 20c and gets plenty of sunshine. After what was promised for the first week of May this is so frustrating. I don't want another endlessly cloudy May 2022 type situation where the forecast keeps downgrading over and over to add to the endless cloud of the past 10 months.

baddie To be fair May 2023 here had us in the low-mid 20s, this spell has been leagues below that one.

Really enjoying this spell at the moment, very like April 2021 in that skies are completely clear but temperatures are restricted to mid teens so it feels chilly sometimes. A shame it's going to be over so soon. Yesterday we recorded over 10 hours of sunshine for the first time since... June 22nd ?????????

May 2018 was amazing and thundery but May 2020 has to take it here just because of how crazy it was to see over 300 hours of sunshine in one month. Cloudless on like 2/3 of the days that month! I'd also like to mention May 2023 which down here was exceptional. Warmer than both, sunnier than 2018, and a bone dry second half in which every day hit 20c. All three had a handful of poor days in the first half but followed by 2-3 weeks of outstanding weather.

reef I imagine the temperatures will be better than the models suggest because they always underestimate. I think we'll have a May 2023 like situation (obviously cooler since it's a month earlier) but I can only hope that leads into a June 2023 like situation!

Out in the west this spell doesn't look bad at all. Good levels of sunshine, most days in the mid teens, completely dry, almost April 2021-esque. For the east though this looks like a nightmare! Days struggling to reach even 10c, yet more slate grey skies, possible showers, and windier to boot. A reversal of fortune from the first half of the month which saw the east warmer and drier than the west, although still very dull everywhere. I'm genuinely wondering if this could turn out to be one of the dullest Aprils of all time in the east seeing as most locations have only recorded 40-60 hrs of sunshine so far (in the west it will probably end up average). And given the outlook for places like east Anglia and London which is still almost entirely cloudy - what's the dullest April at Heathrow out of interest?

A month that will stick in my memory forever just because of how crazy it was! Actually the sunniest April on record here I think! It was the first month where people were going outside again after lockdown and being 16 at the time I was making the most of it no matter how cold it was. April 1st here was a continuation of the March heatwave but soon led into a cool but sunny easter. Suddenly a northerly blast on the 5th had us struggling for double figures. Memories in the first half of the easter holidays being freezing cold when outside with friends although not particularly sunny. My birthday, April 11th, saw a rare example of April snow and a heavy hail shower too. I remember going outdoor swimming in 7 degree weather that day which was definitely something. Sometime around mid month, the high pressure influencing our weather moved slightly closer to the UK, giving basically crystal clear skies for the next 12 days. The northerly winds became less strong and far fetched and this gave us some really pleasant days in the mid teens with blue skies start to finish - the 20th, 21st and 27th all topped 18c here. I remember in this period hanging out in the park with my friends for hours when I was meant to be walking back home after school, it felt more summery than a few summer months we've had since! Sadly low pressure barged its way in late on the 27th and the last few days of the month were damp and cloudy. Frustratingly our only rainfall of the month fell on the evening of the 30th - a whole 11mm as well - making this month not seem as spectacularly dry as it really was. This was a fitting way to lead into one of the most disgusting spring months of my lifetime, May 2021! I can't complain about the timing though. We had all the good weather in our last weeks of freedom, all the dross during exams then when we were let out for the summer on May 27th, the weather took a sharp upturn and led into what was a pretty decent summer here! Although it was never again quite as exceptionally sunny and dry as April was.

I believe it was present some of the time from mid May to early June last year - with the high to the west our flow was usually easterly or northeasterly. Telltale sign being that we had three weeks of unbroken sunshine while the east was generally quite dull!

Two days in a row, two sunny evenings in a row. It's felt amazing, like a part of me that's been hibernating for six months has been released. I feel the tide finally turning.

In Absence of True Seasons If mid April until December is anomalously sunny and dry, I think 2024 can still be considered a great year. Like 3% chance of that happening but it still could, like if we got a 2018 situation until July then a 2016 rest of the year. With a good summer this can still be considered a decent year, I value April - July over Jan - April tbh

This upcoming sunnier drier spell better last a while yet, we have some catching up to do. Here's the sunshine stats here for the first 3 and a half months of the year since 2018: 2018 - 293 hrs 2019 - 299 hrs 2020 - 313 hrs (this came before the sunniest May on record too) 2021 - 297 hrs 2022 - 293 hrs 2023 - 212 hrs (already dull) 2024 - 161 hrs (shocking!) * the only "recent" start to the year comparable to 2024 for dullness was 2013 which was infamously god awful, but even that managed 193 hours! No wonder it's barely felt like spring at all. If 2024 wants to be considered a good year it'll need a classic late spring and summer, otherwise another one for the bin!

I hope this month doesn't even sniff April 2011 or even 2020/2007 in the CET rankings. Most undeserving month ever. Wherever this "exceptionally mild" start to the month has hit, it hasn't been here! 17 hours of sunshine out of 12 days is not enough for this to be even considered anywhere near the same league. To think I thought May 2022 being near the top was undeserving. This is a whole new level!

TheOgre Difference being that March 2014 was genuinely lovely and very opposite of the March just gone. A lot of dry, sunny weather in 2014, with midmonth especially nice! While 2024 had nothing but 27 days of slate grey skies and torrential rain to offer, with odd springlike days scattered between.