The anti-2024

[Summer8906]

(Note, Jan to Sep copied from the "anti-2023" thread).

With the final three days of the year looking nailed-on for weather, it's probably time to do the final final anti-2024 thread.

 January - started cold and frosty but the month became mild, dull and wet for two weeks until the 20th. The final 10 days however were cold with N-ly or NE-ly winds and frequent snow showers.

February - constant NE winds. Frequent snow showers and some general spells of snow, with notable snow cover even in the south. Sunny but record cold.

March - generally NE winds again but a brief cyclonic interlude producing dull, wet but rather cold weather still around the 5th-9th. Otherwise much sun and more snow showers at times. Cold.

April - the first 10 days are very cold with E-ly winds but also very sunny and dry, somewhat reminiscent of the start of April 2013. Snow showers appear at times and the 6th is especially cold for April, with maxima in the mid single figures. Then a short period of cold but wetter conditions occurs as a low moves NW from the continent. This then moves further NW to produce a dull southerly for a few days which is also warm for the time of year, and sporadic outbreaks of rain. As the month comes to an end the low moves out into the Atlantic leaving an anticyclonic southerly with much sunshine and temps around 24C. It looked like the month was going to be record cold but the warmer second half meant it was only marginally colder than average. Also drier and sunnier than average overall.

May - a rather NW-ly month but with frequent Atlantic high influence. The warm sunny spell is quickly replaced by cool NW-lies which predominate most of the month, but due to the proximity of high pressure it's also mostly dry and rather sunny. However there is a wet, cold and dull period in the second week as the low track migrates SW-wards and the Eurovision Saturday and the following Saturday are both wet, cold washouts. However the two bank holiday weekends are mostly fine and rather sunny.

June - something of a month of two halves. The May pattern quickly changes as we enter June and the first half of the month is warm to hot, hazy and thundery with some torrential downpours at times. Temps are frequently in the 25-28C range and peak at 32C on the hottest days, but some days are dull as well as being warm with stifling humidity. Most areas are wet. On the 13th following a cold front a transient ridge brings a few days of sunny and still rather warm weather before a further wet and dull period with mostly SW-ly winds takes over, with average days but very mild nights. Around the 24th the wind then veers NW-ly and a nearby low produces cool weather with thundery downpours until the 26th. Finally the low migrates south into the continent and the closing days are easterly with average sunshine, rainfall and temps. Overall a wet month and rather warm but dull in places. South-eastern Europe shares in the wet conditions but is incredibly cool.

July - the first half is particularly hot with temps generally in the 28-30 range and the odd instance of 33-34C. It's sunny with isolated severe thunderstorms though Election Day is dull with more general thundery rain. The second half sees the southerly replaced by an easterly and temps drop to near average, with sunshine above average. Low pressure over the Continent produces showers at times in the south though. The last three days sees the continental low move north to produce dull, cool and wet weather. Overall a dry and rather warm month, as well as sunny. Meanwhile Greece sees a record wet and cool July.

August - uncommonly easterly for August as easterlies get locked in more or less all month, Consequently the north is very dry and sunny. The south sees sunny weather towards the west but a rather dull SE corner due to the proximity of the continental low. Temps not far from average. Frequent showers and thunderstorms result in a wet month in the south but there is very little frontal rainfall.

September - vast areas of the south receive virtually no rainfall at all with the driest September on record. The northwest is rather wet though. High pressure from the Azores predominates in the first 10 and last 10 days which achieve near-continuous sunshine and zero rainfall in the south. Temps are often rather unremarkable but a short heat spike sees temps achieve 35C on the 11th. The 13th-20th is in contrast very dull and rather cool but even in this period, the weakness of the fronts that pass through ensures that the south sees virtually no rainfall. Some areas around Swindon have absolute zero rainfall, the driest month on record of any name. Sunshine above average. Unremarkable temps.

October: notably sunny in the south but less so elsewhere. Mostly dry and settled. The month however begins with a rather changeable and dull westerly before an anticyclone builds in around the 6th and produces a largely dry week with variable winds and a few weak troughs producing showers at times. We do however miss a notably fine spell of weather over France mid-week due to intense Anticyclone Kirk.

Around the 11th a northerly plunge arrives and produces a cold and unseasonably sunny week; from the brightness level it feels more like September than October. This kind of weather persists for around two weeks: it becomes more cyclonic from around the 20th but with mostly N or NE winds it remains bright away from windward coasts.

On Dark Sunday a more pronounced NW-SE jet arrives and the final days of the month are wet but sunny.

November: the first half of the month features a very pronounced cyclonic NW-SE jet with several deep lows but northerly outbreaks and transient ridges in between meaning that it's on the one hand one of the wettest first halves of November on record, on the other hand one of the sunniest. It's also notably cold with snow at high levels in all parts of the country and to low levels in the north. With the jet backing WNW-ESE after the 10th it becomes a little less sunny and less cold.

After mid-month a large and slow moving Atlantic low introduces a southerly type and it becomes extremely mild for a few days with temps up to around 16-17C in places. However pressure isn't that low so rainfall is not excessive and some places in the far east obtain some unseasonable late autumn sunshine with a long continental land track to the airmass.

Following a very marked cold front on the 22nd an abrupt change occurs with intense Anticyclone Bert introducing a direct northerly over the following weekend, with temps far below normal, just zero in the east but a little above in the west. The west is especially dry and sunny. Frosts overnight are close to all-time November records.  However Bert migrates east on the following Monday allowing in a less cold and cloudier SE-ly, and the final week of the month is mostly dull with temps close to normal and the occasional trough producing damp weather off the North Sea. The 30th however features a renewed northerly plunge and is cold and sunny again.

Overall, a rather cold and rather sunny November with rainfall close to average and a marked contrast between the wet first half and dry second half.

December: a somewhat uneventful but sunny month and on the cold side overall. The first week features a mostly WNW-ly type with somewhat chilly Pm plunges mixed with mild tropical maritime interludes so temps are around average. However the Pm interludes are sunny, so it's sunny overall.

During the first weekend Anticyclone Darragh produces an extraordinary 48 hours for December. The latest occurrence of such weather on record, the anticyclone is centred over the North Sea and a very mild but very dry S-ly is pulled up from Africa and as a result, unusual conditions of around 10-12C maxima with prolonged sunshine are produced, exceedingly unusual weather for the time of year. A trough however advances into the west later in the weekend, producing showery rain in the far west on the Sunday.

The Tm air continues to pull up mild but dry southerly air into the following week though it becomes more unsettled with dull and damp SW-lies taking over for a few days. From the weekend of the 15th easterlies arrive again and much of the run up to Christmas has cold easterlies but with cool uppers, streams of showers, some wintry, arrive off the North Sea on some days. It is fairly sunny though. A couple of days in this period produce milder and duller SE-lies.

Following a strong cold front on the 23rd the final week of the year features the parent low filling over the North Sea and as a result it is sunny but mostly cold (less cold in the south) with showers, some wintry, in coastal areas facing the mostly NW to NE-ly wind. At the very end of the year, on the 31st, the low sinks southwards allowing a fierce easterly to take over for New Year's Eve and a widespread snow event. New Year's Day looks to be cold, frosty and sunny but many models are suggesting screaming SW-lies might arrive soon after. We will see, I guess.

So, the anti-2024 or the real thing?

Edited December 29, 2024 by Summer8906

[Catbrainz]

Ill try it but with pressure amomalies flipped see where we end up 

Jan 2024= With a massive Azores high to the SW and a big low over Iceland we get a very strong NAO+ set up. Likely would be wet and cold with lots of NWlies given the NAO+ would be  west based. 

 

Feb 2024= With this ironically we stay in NAO- but going from a west based one to a east based one. Would be very cold and dry with a massive block to the north of us with lots of Elies and NElies. 

Mar 2024= This reversed March would feature a Euro high and would be very warm, sunny and dry with lots of SElies under a very NAO+ set up. Something like March 2012. 

 

Apr 2024= A weak block over Scotland and a Med low gives us easterlies. Cloudy and cold for eastern coasts but sunny and dry for most. 

 

May 2024= We get a British Isles high and a Scandi low with this set up. Would likely turn out similar to May 2020


Jun 2024= With this we go from a west based NAO+ to a east based NAO-. Would likey be pretty similar to the June we had for many with being still cool and dry but would be better for eastern coasts. 

Jul 2024= Would likely be dry and cool again with a very NAO- but one that ends up with the block extending to NW Europe (As an asides July 2024 is the most west based NAO+ ever the Azores high actually took a holiday to New England it seems) 

Aug 2024= We get a very east based NAO- with a NW/SE split again this time NW areas get lovely weather while the SE might get the July 2021 treatment and get rain off the Euro low. Woudl probably end up similar to July 2021. (This is the strongest NAO+ ive seen in summer btw) 

 

(Cont on next post as file size too large). 

[Catbrainz]

Sept 2024= Would be a NAO+ on steroids with a big low over Iceland/Greenland and a trough down the Atlantic with a Euro high. You'd probably see a NW/SE split again but this time the SE gets the heat and sun while NW areas get soaked. Would be similar to the real August 2024 or October 2022. 



Oct 2024= With a Atlantic ridge it would be a NWly month. Dry and cool I imagine


Nov 2024= Very cyclonic with lots of cold rain. Very NWly given that it would be a very west based NAO+ with the Azores high taking a trip to Nrwfoundland

Dec 2024= With a huge low to the west of Ireland would be a truly dire December. Endless wet SWles abound, would be like Feb 2024 weather wise. 


 

[Summer8906]

@Catbrainz thanks. Yours presumably come out a bit different to mine because you're flipping anomalies rather than completely flipping the pressure pattern - mine ends up basically being a mean easterly in absolute terms! So yours end up being more westerly than mine.

I can see the anti-Aug-2024 being more settled than July 2021 even in anomaly terms. The Aug 2024 anomalies show below-average pressure even in the southeast so an anti-Aug-2024 would see above average pressure everywhere, suggesting fine conditions prevailing (but the SE being most prone to thundery rain moving out of France).

Edited December 30, 2024 by Summer8906

[Catbrainz]

 Summer8906 Your flipped 2024 I would give a 8/10 and mine a 7/10. Mostly due to both our years having far better springs. Mine loses a point for a dire Nov/Dec. (To be fair 2024s greatest sin was the garbage spring, summer and autumn were both fine overall, even if we had a medicore spring say something like 2014 or 2019 this year would be far better,even September didn't feel mad wet given it mostly fell in intense short spells). 

[East Lancs Rain]

OK, here’s my version of the anti 2024, using Trevor Harley’s weather website and Hadley CET data.

 

Overall a cold, dry and sunny year. This year saw a new record low for January and indeed any winter month, -29.9°C at Achfary in the NW Highlands. The very dry weather of anti 2023 continues into the first part of the year: the 18 month period between anti October 2022 and anti March 2024 was the driest 18 month spell in England since records began (in 1836, with 696 mm). Anti 2024 saw the coldest spring on record, although it was also very dry and quite sunny. The lack of cloud meant temperatures quickly dropped at night so spring frosts were common. It was however unusually wet across northwestern Scotland. After the cold spring, it was the warmest summer since anti 2015. Summer was very dry in western Scotland, but wet over much of England and Wales, and duller than average in the south and East Anglia. Yet because of how chilly our recent summers have been, many remember it as a good summer. It was a very anticyclonic year with very few wind storms. The 2023-24 storm season saw the least named storms since the current naming system was introduced (in 2015). Overall it was the 17th driest since systematic rainfall records began in 1836, but the rainfall was very skewed; it was particularly dry in southern England, with Northern Ireland and Scotland being slightly wetter than the average. There were very few heatwaves and there were some unusually cold spells during the first half of the year. Another reason the year was so cold was because the average minima were very low with an unusual amount of frosty nights.

 

 

 

January. An eventful month. There was a mild southerly midmonth. There were occasional rain showers, but also some very mild temperatures with some places in the south seeing temperatures into the mid teens. The highest temperature of the spell was 17°C at Plymouth on the morning of the 17th, the highest January temperature in the UK since anti 2019. Then a strong anticyclone unusually affects nearly all of the UK with very light winds and no rain. There was an average wind speed of just 0.9 mph at Brizlee Wood near Alnwick (Northumberland). Then two days later Anticyclone Jocelyn arrived, brining more frost and very light winds. Then on Sunday 28th -29.6°C was recorded at Kinclochewe (Wester Ross, Highland), beating the previous January low by 1.3º. The cold was due to very cold air from the Arctic. It is later reported that Achfary (NW Higlands) recorded -29.9 the same day - a new UK record for January and indeed for any winter month in Scotland. There was a notable fall of heavy snow, carried by the same blast of arctic air, across the British Isles the same day, most noticeable of course across the north. On the 25th, Olso, Norway, recorded an overnight low of -30.7C, the new lowest temperature ever recorded in Europe in January.

 

 

February. Very cold but also dry and sunny. It was very anticyclonic with lots of NE winds. There was lots of dry, sunny and frosty days. The highest temperature of the month was just 12.1°C at Pershore (Worcs.) and Teddington (west London) on the 7th.

It was mostly settled, with a mild spell, with occasional rain showers in places, lasting a few days in the south from the 6th; it never quite reached the north, which only really saw milder weather for a few days from the 24th. It was very dry in the south, with many places having their driest February on record, and many locations having just half the average rainfall. Heavy snow on the 22nd caused disruption in the north. Indeed it was the driest February on record in the south, with less than half of the average; however, parts of Scotland were somewhat wetter than average. East Anglia had both its driest and coldest February on record. 86.9 cm of snow fell on the recording day 17-18th at White Barrow on Dartomor (Devon). The lowest temperature of the month was -23.8°C at Altnharra on the 8th. 

 

 

March. A cold month, but also dry and sunny. The month started mild, with temperatures into the mid teens in the SW on the 2nd, but then became very cold across most of the country, although there was a milder spell towards the end. The result was that overall the month was colder than average, but it was particularly cold in the south; for England it was the 7th coldest March since 1884. Rainfall was below average, with 73% of the average for the UK. This average conceals a pattern where parts of Scotland were a little wetter than average, but the south of England was extremely dry. The UK average sunshine total was 113%. The highest temperature of the month was 17.6°C at Teignmouth (Devon) on the 2nd, and the lowest -16.9 at Altnaharra on the 16th. A very strong area of high pressure (1056 mbars at centre) was centred over the UK on the 27th. It brought some severe frost with thick fog in the SW on the night of the 27-28th.

 

 

April. Overall it was settled, dry and sunny. There was a cold and dry first half, with a southerly in the second half. It was rather wetter in the second half with an area of low pressure to the west of the country from the 20th to the 25th. A strong anticyclone brought heavy frost and light winds particularly to the north and west on the 5-6th. A new low temperature record for Northern Ireland in April was set on the 11th, as it dropped to -19.3C at Castlederg (Co. Tyrone). A plume of warm air on the 15th April brought a warm and sunny day with temperatures into the low 20’s in the south east, with 21.8°C recorded at Erittle in Essex (also the highest temperature of the month). Southerlies made the second half of the month much warmer. The chilly first half was cancelled by the mild second half, so overall temperatures were close to average. It was a dry month across the UK, 70% of the average. Scotland and Northern England were particularly dry, especially in the Edinburgh region, which recorded less than half of the April average (second driest on record there from 1836). It was a sunny month, with 121% of average. The lowest was -6.3°C at Shap (Cumbria) on the 6th. The deepest snow depth was 12 cm at Kinross on the 10th.

 

May. Overall one of the coldest Mays on record in the UK. The UK mean was 8.3°C, -2.4°C below average, and a degree less than the previous record, anti May 2008. In terms of CET, the average for 2024 was 9.7. Many were surprised by this because it was often sunny and dry; the clear skies had the effect of allowing overnight temperatures to drop quickly at night, leading to an unusual number of frosts, while daytime temperatures were not too far from average. The seas around the UK were also unusually cold, although marine temperatures have been steadily decreasing over recent years. The month was the coldest May on record in England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, and equal record coldest in May. The month was very settled, with plenty of sunshine, although there was a period of unsettled weather midmonth. The night of Friday 10 May saw the best auroral display since October 2003; unfortunately this display coincided with Storm Laura, so much of the country couldn’t see it due to overcast skies. There was some unusual heavy snow on the 8th; a young person died in a snowstorm at Carlton-in-Cleveland on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors. This was the snowiest spring day on record. The snowy spell continued on the 9th, leading to serious snowdrifts around Edinburgh. Many drivers were stuck for several hours when the City Bypass, the A720, was snowed up. 111 cm of snow was recorded over 36 hours near Penicuik. The second half of the month was particularly dry, and rainfall was below average for the month (UK 84%);  northern England was particularly dry (73% for the month). Just 9.5 mm of rain fell at Keswick throughout the entire month. Northern Ireland was the driest region, followed by Northern England and Scotland. It was also sunnier than average, with the UK average close to 224 hours (117%) - another reason why people are surprised it was so cold, as the strong May sun made the subdued daytime temperatures feel warmer. Yet another reason why it didn’t feel that cold is that the highest temperature of the month was 30.5°C at Chertsey Abbey Mead (Surrey) on the 22nd; while the lowest was -11.1 at Kinbrace (Sutherland) on the 8th.

 

 

June. A warm month overall. With a CET of 15.4°C it was the warmest since anti 2015. It was also the first time since last July that a month was much warmer than average. It was particularly warm until the final week, with frequent S and SE winds bringing incursions of continental, humid air, although temperatures were rarely exceptional. For the UK as a whole the average temperature was 0.4C above average. There was then a short-lived wet spell - and very short-lived in the south. There was 30 mm of rain at Keswick and Windermere on the 25th, and 30.5 mm at Fort William on the 26th, with daytime temperatures well below average, although the temperatures then returned to average or above. It was quite a wet month, with 131% of the expected rainfall across the UK around and double for England and Wales. It was slightly duller than average (UK 96%), although Northern Ireland was sunny (125%). The highest temperature of the month was 30.3°C at St James Park on the 11th. The lowest temperature of the month was 1.6°C at Kinbrace (Sutherland) on the 3rd.

 

 

 

July. After a warm and settled first half, there was a brief wet spell midmonth, with 31.9 mm at Plymouth recorded on the 19th, and temperatures well below average. There was another brief wet spell at the end of the month, with many places recording over an inch of rainfall, and maximums of just 16°C recorded at Kew Gardens and Heathrow on the 30th.  Although the start of the month was very warm (the warmest first half since anti 2004), the cool weather in the second half meant that overall the month was close to average. The mean temperature was above the reference average for 1991 to 2020. Overall rainfall was exactly average across the UK (82.4 mm), although it was drier in the south and wetter in the north, with much of the rain falling in the second half of the month. It was quite a sunny month (111%). The lowest temperature of the month was 2.7°C at Tyndrum and Tulloch Bridge on the 1st. The highest daily rainfall total was 75.7 mm at White Barrow (Devon) on the observing day 30th-31st.

 

 

August. Overall quite a benign month but with some cool spells with low humidity. A very easterly month. This month saw a big NW/SE divide, but the other way round from usual. In summary the north and west was dry and sunny, and the south and east was dull and wet. There was a brief wet spell midmonth with a high of just 14.8°C recorded at Cambridge on the 15th. There were very few thunderstorms. Anticyclone Lilian brought light winds and sunny skies to parts of the north on the 22nd. Overall the month was slightly cooler than average, particularly in England, although it was slightly warmer than average across Scotland and Northern Ireland. The UK was slightly drier than average (90%), but while England was wet, with 200% of the average rainfall, west Scoland was very dry, with places such as Glasgow recording less than 50% of the August average, making it in some places the third driest August on record (since 1836). It was very slightly sunnier than usual (101% across the UK). The lowest temperature of the month was -1.2 C at Kinbrace (Sutherland) on the 1st.

 

 

September.  This month saw a big north-south divide. In summary the south was dry and sunny, and the north dull and wet. The month began with a cool spell with low humidity, and a high of just 10.1°C was recorded at Tulloch Bridge on the 1st. While the end of the first week was warm and sunny in the south and south east, a band of very heavy thundery rain moved across northern England bringing disruption and flooding, particularly in North Wales. There was a plume of tropical continental air in the second week which brought high temperatures. 28.4°C was recorded at Heathrow on the 10th, and 29.7°C was recorded at Bournemouth on the 11th. The third week was cool and unsettled. There was persistent heavy rain in the south and midlands around the 17th, resulting in some severe flooding. AFC Wimbledon's pitch collapsed with sinkholes. 108.0 mm fell in South Newington (Oxon.) on the observing day ending on 18th September. The final week was warm again with high pressure across the south: 22.7°C was recorded at White Barrow (Devon) on the 30th. Hence the average figures mask many contrasts. Overall temperatures were slightly above average, but while East Anglia was 0.5 C below average, east Scotland was 0.7 above. UK rainfall was below average, but while England had its third driest September on record, Scotland had 137%, with east Scotland particularly wet (in Angus I recorded 156%). In the south of England it was very dry, with less than half of the long term average, and the counties of Bedfordshire, Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire saw their driest September on record, with less than a third of the long-term average. Indeed Bedfordshire and Oxfordshire had the driest month of any sort since records began (in 1836). Some places (e.g. Woburn, Beds., and Shawbury, Shrops.) had no measurable rainfall all month. The lowest temperature of the month was -3.0°C at both Tyndrum (Perthshire) and Braemar on the 5th.

 

 

October. A mixed month with some fine periods with high pressure interspersed with lows coming in from the Atlantic. It was slightly cooler and wetter than average; the CET was 10.3°C (-0.6), and the UK rainfall average total was 116%, although southern England was very slightly drier than normal. Sunshine was about average (103%) although there were some regional variations, with the south and parts of Scotland being sunnier than average. There was a notable aurora on the night of 10-11 October, but yet again we were cursed with cloudy skies. On the 20th Anticyclone Ashley brought light winds, particularly to the NW, and harsh frost, with an overnight low of -8.2°C recorded at Aberdaron (Gwynedd). The highest temperature of the month was 22.5 C (St James Park, London, 6th) and the lowest -8.2°C at Aberdaron. The highest rainfall total in the observng day was 74.2 mm in Capel Curig on the 9th. Meanwhile, on continental Europe, at least 200 people were killed in the area around Valencia in Spain following unusually high temperatures on the 28th and 29th as a heat dome became stuck: a temperature of 38°C was recorded on the 28th and 42°C on the 29th.

 

 

November. The first two weeks were marked by a large stationary area of low pressure over the country, giving lots of showers and longer spells of rain. Despite this, it was actually quite sunny, with many areas particularly in the south being very sunny, although also wet, with short sharp showers interspersed with long sunny spells. There was a notable southerly blast in the third week bringing sunshine, mild temperatures and some mild nights. The mild spell came to an end with a cold anticyclone beginning on Saturday 23rd. The anticyclone brought air frost to Scotland on the 23rd, and some dense fog and light winds. Parts of the south had their coldest November night since the Burns Day Anticyclone of 1990: Yeovil (Somerset) recorded an overnight low of -7.6°C. A low of -8.2°C was recorded at Capel Curig in Gwynedd on the same day. White Barrow on Dartmoor recorded 175.7 cm of snow from the 23rd to the 25, and Treherbert (South Wales) 171.6 cm in the same period; 149 cm of snow fell at Tyn-Y-Waun (Mid-Glamorgan). There was widespread severe snowfall. The Met Office was criticised for not issuing amber and red weather warnings. A third anticyclone brought heavy frost to the far south of England in the final week. Temperatures overall were very slightly above average; Northern Ireland was relatively the coldest area. Overall the month was wet, giving 132% of the average rainfall overall, most falling in the first half of the month. It was also a sunny month, particularly in the first half across much of the country apart from parts of northern and eastern Scotland; the average was 111% of the expected sunshine overall. The highest temperature of the month was 18.8 C at Treknow (Cornwall) on the 20th, and the lowest -12.4 at Kinbrace (Sutherland) on the 23rd.

 

December. A mixed month. On Saturday 7th Anticyclone Darragh is over Britain, with a yellow weather warning for severe frost in sheltered spots. Berry Head (Devon) recorded an overnight low of -9.6°C on the 7th. After the settled start, there was an unsettled spell before the anticyclonic weather returned. It was very cold over Christmas, with snow in places. Overall it was a very cold month. It was a dry month (90%), particularly in parts of Scotland. It was a sunny month, averaging 61 hours of sunshine (143%); it was slightly duller in the north (around 140%). The highest temperature of the month was only 10.9°C at Westonzoyland (Somerset) on the 21st, and the lowest -16.2°C at Tyndrum (Perthshire) on the 27th. 123.2 mm of rain fell at Achnagart (Rosse and Cromarty) on the observing day ending on the 10th.

 

 

 

CET

 

Jan: 4.6°C (-0.1)

Feb: 2.0°C (-2.9)

Mar: 5.2°C (-1.5)

Apr: 8.3°C (-0.7)

May: 9.7°C (-2.2)

Jun: 15.4°C (+0.7)

Jul: 17.3°C (+0.5)

Aug: 16.0°C (-0.5)

Sep: 14.4°C (+0.2)

Oct: 10.3°C (-0.6)

Nov: 7.6°C (+0.2)

Dec: 3.2°C (-1.8)

 

Annual CET: 9.5°C

 

 

Temperature anomalies (flipped)

Rainfall anomaly (flipped, grey/black=drier)

Sunshine anomaly (flipped, grey/black=sunnier)

 

 

Personally I much prefer the flipped version. Colder temperatures (especially at night) but also much drier and sunnier to make up for it. A cold spring but at least there would be plenty of sunshine and dry days. I’d rather have 10°C and sunshine than 15°C, cloudy and damp. I also prefer the anti 2024 summer to the real one. A cooler August but a warmer June and July (and I suspect the anti August 2024 would be better here).

Edited January 9 by East Lancs Rain

[Summer8906]

 East Lancs Rain Interesting. Where does the name "Storm Laura" come from incidentally? Presumably the high that brought that short fine spell in the real May was officially "Anticyclone Laura"?

Would September feature extreme rainfall at Wimbledon?

I'd also extend the sunnier weather in August over much of central southern England too (as the real thing appeared to be dull here) but also wet with frequent thundery activity.

Edited January 10 by Summer8906

[East Lancs Rain]

 Summer8906 Yes, maybe I could have made a couple of tweaks. But as the original night in May had clear skies under high pressure, I thought the opposite could be a named storm, so Storm Laura was just a random name I’d thought up. I agree the extreme rainfall in September would be unrealistic as the anti September 2024 would be very dry in the south, and an extreme rainfall event would probably send the monthly total above average, I just shifted the date of the actual rainfall event to conincide with the dry anticyclonic spell in the real September 2024. But realistically the anti September 2024 would be almost bone dry in the south during the first and final third of the month, with overcast skies and occasional light rain and drizzle during the second third.

[East Lancs Rain]

Here’s the anti 1995. This time I’ve used info from Trevor Harley’s weather website and then used ChatGPT to write the opposite of what the weather actually was (with a few tweaks).

 

The coldest August on record, and an unremarkable December in Scotland. The month from 23 July to 22 August was notably cool, with a mean of 12.5°C (far below the record of 1976). The period November 1994 to October 1995 was the coldest of any 12-month period since records began. The period April 1995 to October 1997 was unusually wet (with an excess of 20” of rain over the southeast). During the summer, eastern and southern locations saw rain almost daily, and Margate reported rain for 42 consecutive days. Hence the wettest summer on record in England and Wales. Before anti 2003, it was the cloudiest year on record in England and Wales, with an average of just 730 hours of sunshine. On combined measures of sunshine, temperature, and rainfall, it was the worst summer since anti 1976, and the second-worst summer on record (depending on your precise measure of “worst”). It was the coldest summer on record in Northern Ireland (8.4°C).

 

January. Near-average temperatures (4.8°C). It was very dry in the south: the driest in the London area since 1943. Stable conditions.

 

February. Very dry and very cold (0.5°C).

 

March. Very dull; over England and Wales, most years were sunnier. Temperatures in southern Britain reached the high teens on March 2, and Birmingham recorded 16°C. Arctic plunges were rare. Temperatures remained mild, with no notable frosts. Southend recorded just 27 hours of sunshine.

 

April. Very cool and dull for most of the month. Southerly air dominated from the 18th onward, leading to several days of warmth and no frosts. It was the wettest April in 11 years over England and Wales.

 

May. Wet and cloudy. No warmth occurred in the first week, and temperatures struggled to reach 10°C in most areas. Pollution levels were extremely low due to strong winds. Sunshine was scarce, with fewer than 10 hours recorded in the first ten days in many areas. The remainder of the month was warm, dry, and frost-free in all regions. The 17th was particularly sunny over England and Wales.

 

June. Warm and sunny first half, cool and cloudy second half. Temperatures remained very stable on the 30th, barely changing throughout the day. Snow was absent from the Scottish mountains. This month saw the lowest daytime temperature ever recorded in Belfast for June (8.0°C).

 

July. Wet, cloudy, and cool (14.6°C). Temperatures rarely exceeded 20°C, the highest temperature of the month was just 22.2°C at Heathrow on the 31st. Rain fell almost every day in London throughout July and August.

 

August. A diabolical month. The coldest (11.9 CET) and dullest August on record, and very wet (many parts of the southeast being flooded – England and Wales received 300% of the average rainfall). No temperatures above 20°C were recorded throughout the month. Thunderstorms were absent, with no significant rain or wind events. The highest temperature of the month was only 20.2°C at Boxworth (Cambs.). In Scotland, Onich recorded its coldest August on record, with an average daytime temperature of just 10.1°C.

 

September. Below-average temperatures; dry and sunny in the east, dull and wet in the west. Scotland saw minimal rain throughout the month, with Kinloss recording less than 10 mm. The England and Wales rainfall average was only 23 mm.

 

October. Very cold and cloudy. The CET average of 5.9°C was the lowest on record. Temperatures failed to reach 15°C in the south. Sunshine was minimal, with Torquay recording 18 sunless days. There were very light winds in the NW on the 24th.

 

November. Generally a very cold, cloudy, and dry month. No temperatures above 10°C were recorded anywhere. Heavy rain was absent, and flooding did not occur anywhere.

 

December. The mildest December since 1981, and generally dry. A very westerly month. Arctic air was entirely absent from Scotland throughout the entire month. Christmas was mild and snow-free across the country. Temperatures never dropped below 0°C, even in Scotland. Altnaharra recorded a balmy 16°C on the 30th. No freezing rain occurred, and plumbers had a quiet month due to no pipe bursts.

So. Anti 1995? Or the real thing?  

[Summer8906]

 East Lancs Rain I prefer the anti-Jan, Feb, Sep and Nov to the real thing to be fair.

But for the rest of the year... makes 2024 look good.

 

Edited January 12 by Summer8906

[East Lancs Rain]

Ok, Heres the anti 2016.

 

 

Overall a very cold winter. The winter of 2015-16 just failed to beat the winter of anti 1868-69 to become the coldest on record (since 1659). It was the last few days of February, with a late mild spell, that let it down. The first half of the year was settled and dry, the second half largely unsettled and wet, particularly in the south. It was quite a cold year. Only April and November were significantly warmer than average.

 

 

 

January. Cold and dry. The first week was very settled leading to very low rainfall totals in east Scotland, with local rivers and reservoirs at low levels. The second week was much milder, with a spell of tropical maritime air. It was then mostly settled and cold. The highest temperature of the month was only 12.5°C at Achnagart (Highland) on the 12th, and the lowest temperature was -22.4°C at Kinbrace on the morning of the 29th. The rainfall total was only 48% of average, making it the fourth driest January on record; it was the second driest calendar month of all in east Scotland - just beaten by anti December 2014. Only 10.3 mm of rain fell at Spittal of Glenmick (Aberdeenshire) throughout the entire month. It was a sunny month in all but the far south (120% of average).

 

 

February. A cold and settled first half but turning milder in the second half. Overall it was about average temperature; it was colder than usual in the south, but milder than average in Northern Ireland and Scotland. The lowest temperature of the month is -14.1C at Braemar early on the 4th. The highest temperature of the month was 16.0 at Exeter on the 28th. It was a dry month (71% of average), being particularly dry in the west but wetter in the east. It was a dull month, with 78% of expected sunshine.

 

 

March. High pressure at the start and end of the month sandwiching a ten-day cyclonic spell from the 13th to the 23rd. The named Storm Katie brought strong winds to the north on the 18th. Overall temperatures were close to average, although it was milder in the south and more cold in the north. Rainfall was close to average (109%), although it was drier in the east and wetter in the north. It was duller than average, with 85% of the long-term average, particularly in the west. The highest temperature of the month was 18.7C at Braemar on the 27th, and the lowest -8.1C at Altnaharra on the 5th. The snow cover at Malham Tarn (North Yorkshire) reached 17 cm on the morning of the 12th.

 

 

April The first ten days or so were settled; the rest of the month was mild and quite cloudy. There was a notable mini heatwave in the south on the 29-30th. 27.3°C was recorded in Bournemouth on the 29th, the highest temperature of the month, and 25.6°C at Heathrow on the 30th. The month was 1.3C above the CET average; it was also drier than average (88%), particularly in the east. It was slightly duller than average. The lowest temperature of the month is -5.6C at Kinbrace in Sutherland on the 8th. The greatest snow depth was 9 cm at Crombie Country Park in good old Angus on the 9th.

 

 

May. After a settled start the rest of the month was largely cyclonic, with winds generally from a westerly direction, making it quite cool and cloudy in the west, and warmer and sunnier in the east. There was a more settled spell midmonth. It was cooler than average, with near average rainfall (108%). Overall sunshine was 85% of average. The highest temperature of the month was 25.5°C  at Plockton (Ross and Cromarty) on the 1st, and the lowest -7.7°C at Tulloch Bridge (Invernessshire) on the 28th.

 

 

June. Dry, sunny, but quite cool. The first half was unsettled and quite cool. The night of the 22-23 June saw some unseasonably cold temperatures with frost in the SE, particularly in the London area. Farnborough recorded a low of -1°C overnight. The end of the month was warm and dry. The average temperature was brought down by some cold nights; despite this, it still managed to reach 32.8C at Heathrow on the 30th. Rainfall overall was 66%, with most of it occurring in the first half of the month. It was particularly dry in the east. There was 126% of average sunshine, although Anglesey and some of the western islands recorded below average: Shetland saw just 80 hours. In many ways the anti June 2016 was similar to the real June 2024.

 

 

July. An easterly month, with low pressure to the south and high pressure to the north. Slightly cooler than average overall. Warm and settled first half, then with an unsettled spell, and a wet spell from the 18th to 29th, before turning dry but cool right at the end of the month. Rainfall was about average overall (96%), being a bit drier in the NW and wetter in the SE, and very wet in the south. It was quite a sunny month, with 108% of average sunshine. The highest temperature of the month was 33.5C at Brize Norton (Oxon), and 35.2 St Hellier, Jersey ,on the 9th. 97.9 mm of rain fell at Nunraw Abbey (East Lotion) on the 26th.

 

 

August. A cool month - at 15.8°C, the coolest since anti 2004 in the CET series. It was particularly cool in the east. The highest temperature of the month was 30.1°C at Faversham in Kent on the 14th; the 10th was a warm night, with 21.5°C at Kindrogan (Perthshire). The month was settled in the first half, and cooler and more changeable in the second. Rainfall was very close to the long-term average, although it was dry in parts of the north. It was quite a dull month, with 90% of average.

 

 

September. An exceptionally cool month. Overall very cool, the second coolest September from 1910. The first five days were settled, and then northerly winds brought chilly arctic air to the north. A high of just 9.3°C was recorded in Edinburgh on the 7th. It was slightly milder from the 8th to the 12th, and then an overnight low of -6.4°C was recorded at Tulloch Bridge on Tuesday 13th, a real record breaker, in many ways: it is one of the coldest September days on record; nowhere in the country got into double digits, and there was reports of snow flurries in the Scottish Highlands. It is a remarkably early cold snap. There was also some very heavy hailstorms to the north and west: Manchester City's Champions League clash with Borussia Monchengladbach had to be postponed. There were some unusually low minima that night, with lows of -1°C recorded at locations in Kent. The next day was cold too, with Marham recording a high of just 11.1°C. The second half of the month was warmer and more settled. Rainfall was about average, but it was wet in the east and drier in the west. Sunshine was close to average.

 

 

October. A very unsettled month, with low pressure to the north, so generally a very westerly month. The end of the month was very cold. Overall very slightly cooler than the long-term average, but very wet, with 162% of the average rainfall. It was wettest in places most exposed to weather systems from the Atlantic. It was duller than average (83%), particularly in the north and west; northern Scotland recorded its dullest October since records began (only in 1929). The highest temperature of the month was 21.2°C at Trawscoed (Dyfed) on the 1st, and the lowest -6.0°C at Tulloch Bridge (Invernessshire) on the 31st.

 

 

November. Settled midmonth in the south, but unsettled and mild at the end of the month, and more generally in the north. It was much milder than average, particularly with mild nights. Rainfall overall was 111% of average, wetter in the north and west. It was a dull month, particularly in NW Scotland, but Cornwall was quite sunny. The highest temperature of the month was 19.0C at Cardinham (Cornwall) on the 11th, and the lowest -10.1°C at Braemar on the 1st. Anticyclone Angus brought dry weather to the southwest midmonth.

 

 

December. A cold month. The highest temperature was just 12.0°C at Hawarden (Flintshire) on the 17th, and the lowest was -16.0°C at Cromdale (Moray) on the 25th. The month had a mild cyclonic start with frost-free nights. Then from the 5th mostly northerly winds brought very cold weather, with occasional snow and a lot of frost and ice. There was a maximum of -6.2°C at Peatlands (County Armagh) on the 7th, which was a new record low high for Northern Ireland in December. It was then settled, with a very cold Christmas Day, record-breaking in places. It was also very snowy in places on the 25th and 26th. It was more unsettled and milder at the end of the month. Despite being a cold month, it was also a wet month, with 131% of the long-term average, and particularly wet in the SE. Sunshine was about average, although it was quite dull in eastern and central England. 109.6 cm of snow fell at Kinlochewe (Wester Ross) on the 25th to 26th.

 

 

 

 

CET

 

Jan: 3.8°C (-0.9)

Feb: 4.7°C (-0.2)

Mar: 7.4°C (+0.7)

Apr: 10.3°C (+1.3)

May: 11.2°C (-0.7)

Jun: 14.1°C (-0.6)

Jul: 16.6°C (-0.2)

Aug: 15.8°C (-0.7)

Sep: 12.3°C -(1.9)

Oct: 11.0°C (+0.1)

Nov: 9.3°C (+1.9)

Dec: 4.0°C (-1.0)

 

 

Annual average: 10.0°C

 

 

So, anti 2016? Or the real thing?

Edited January 23 by East Lancs Rain

[Summer8906]

I suppose we can do an anti-Jan-2025 now.

New Year's Day was frosty and sunny, becoming mild by evening.

There then followed a lengthy mostly mild spell, often dull and mostly drizzly. There was an exception though, on the 5th a strong cold front produced a brief potent northerly plunge with widespread sub-zero maxima, and an embedded polar low produced widespread snow, for one day. It became rapidly mild again the following day though.

The 14th and 15th also produced a brief cold NW-ly with wintry showers.

The mostly mild and drizzly conditions continued until the 22nd but the final 9 days are modelled as being likely to be very dry and very sunny with severe frosts. The model charts suggest cold or very cold, yet oddly the day maxima are predicted to be close to average despite what looks like an easterly from Siberia.

Despite a large number of drizzle-days, the month is likely to end up very dry, particularly to the S and SE. CET predictions vary though something at or only very slightly above average seems likely. If the latter it would end up being the first above-average January since anti-2021.

 

Edited January 23 by Summer8906

[Jonnoramo87]

 Summer8906 it would be interesting to see an anti 2020 or an anti 2021 lol.

[East Lancs Rain]

 Jonnoramo87 I did an anti 2020 and 2021 in the anti 2023 thread a year ago. Two interesting years to flip around.

 

 

 

Edited January 23 by East Lancs Rain

[Jonnoramo87]

 East Lancs Rain thanks, I see it now.

[LetItSnow]

An anti-2020 summer would work out very similarly as I consider it a summer that didn't whether it wanted to be 1911 or 1912.

Doing anti months 

Here's an interesting one. Anti-late '80s. In this universe, scientists warn that continued use of fossil fuels will end up sending the planet into the next Ice Age! The brutal winters across NA in the late '70s and through Europe during the '80s were a taste of what's to come.

Anti-1988

 January: A chilly anticyclonic January. Extremely dry with variable sunshine.. 3.3C, 19.0mm, 101% sun.

 February: A cold, very dull, but rather dry south-easterly month. I imagine frequent snow showers in the east with the evident cold pool. (2.9C, 54.6mm, 72% sun)

 March: Mild (the cold pool transitioning to warm southerlies), dry (wetter west) and variable sunshine. (7.4C, 57.3mm, 102% sun)

April: A cool north-westerly month. Rather sunny with average rain overall. (7.7C, 64.6mm, 103% sun)

 A dry and cool May. Dull and wetter in the east. (10.9C, 45.8mm, 101% sun)

 An unsettled and dull June. Cool in the north but wafts of heat from a hot Europe. (14.3C, 90.2mm, 90% sun)

 A very warm, dry and sunny July. Quite dry homegrown heat instead of humid southerlies. (17.6C, 29.0mm, 135% sun)

 A hot, sticky, perhaps quite thundery August with an unstable continental flow. (18.2C, 59.0mm, 114% sun)

 A warm but wet September with low pressure often tracking south and giving southerly flows. Perhaps thundery. (14.7C, 92.0mm, 101% sun)

 A cool and changeable October but dry and fine (duller in Scotland). (9.8C, 74.2mm, 105% sun)

 A cold and wet November with frequent Artic digging, perhaps marginal polar snow events at times. A snowy month for Scotland. (6.0C, 120.2mm, 99% sun)

 Close to being a very cold month, otherwise a southerly tracking jet bringing copious amounts of cold rain. (3.9C, 165.7mm, 104% sun)

Overall: 9.73C, 871.6mm, 102% sun

A seasonal if not benign winter, a dry and cool spring, a hot summer albeit late to start, then a very dynamic autumn transitioning into a very wet and dank December. Would you take this over the real 1988?

Edited January 24 by LetItSnow

[Summer8906]

10 hours ago, LetItSnow said:

An anti-2020 summer would work out very similarly as I consider it a summer that didn't whether it wanted to be 1911 or 1912.

On balance an anti-2020 summer would be good for this area.

It would probably go something like this:

Anti-June 2020

Following an icy winter and the dullest and one of the wettest springs on record, June was a month that was rather cool overall with cool nights but with frequently sunny days and at times quite warm by day. Winds were variable but trended easterly. Nonetheless it started with a cool and very wet day with a low right over the UK. On the 2nd this low started easing away southwestwards and an east-to-southeast airmass provided around a week of sunny and rather warm days but there were scattered thundery showers and thunderstorms.

Retrogression of the high on around the 10th led to a cooler period with E-to-NE winds and it was very stable with little convective activity, as well as being very sunny. This kind of stable weather persisted for a week but became cool and dull for a short period from around the 15th-16th. It was then, however, followed by more sunny and dry easterlies until the 21st.

On the 22nd-25th a cyclonic northerly intervened for a short time and due to fronts it was generally wet and very cool. However finally the low eased east and the last 6 days were dry, sunny and increasingly warm.

Anti-July 2020

A sunny and warm month overall but also one which featured a historically unprecedented cool plunge at the end. The first two weeks were generally warm, hot at times, and sunny with mostly easterly winds with the month's warmest temps of around 30C during this period. Temps were consistently  above average by day but average by night, and the south was occasionally affected by thundery lows over France. From around the 16th to the 23rd or so, cyclonic NE-lies developed for a short period so the SE became cooler and cloudy and prone to spells of heavy rain at times. Further NW it was fine. From the 24th-26th sunnier and warmer easterlies took over again with the 25th being a notably warm and sunny day but a northerly type took over for the final week. At first it was only somewhat cool at around 19C but an unusually potent N-ly on the 31st took temps down to 14C maxima widely in SE England, the coldest late July day of modern times. There were also ground frosts in sheltered parts.

Overall sunny and warm everywhere, but rather wet (mostly from thundery activity) to the south. Very sunny and warm to the north.

Anti-August 2020

Another mostly easterly month but another potent northerly for a week. The month started with the N-ly easing away and the first few days had cool nights but close-to-average temps in the low 20s by day, and variable cloud. Later on the 6th a new cold front produced a strong and potent cyclonic northerly until the 12th with large amounts of cloud by day and sporadic outbreaks of rain, but some clear and cold nights. Maxima were typically around 15-17C.

However on the 13th the northerly eased away again and a prolonged fine, sunny anticyclonic spell then took over for just over two weeks until the 28th. It was warm by day, around the mid-20s, but cooler by night.

The last three days then became very warm with a southerly, but it became more unsettled with thundery showers. The month's highest temps of around 27-28C occurred in these three days.

Overall a sunny month but rather cool overall but daytime temps around average on the whole. Dry.

I think I prefer the anti-summer to the real thing on the whole!

Edited January 24 by Summer8906

[Summer8906]

9 hours ago, LetItSnow said:

A seasonal if not benign winter, a dry and cool spring, a hot summer albeit late to start, then a very dynamic autumn transitioning into a very wet and dank December. Would you take this over the real 1988?

Overall, yes. That said your anti-March is mild yet the real March 1988 was also mild, albeit in a different way - I guess a product of how the anomalies work out. Was March 1988 anomalously NW-ly? I remember it being a very cyclonic SW-ly month but looking at the archives there was more NW-ly - and anticyclonic - influence than I recall. The period which typifies my memory of the month was around the 13th-23rd.

Edited January 24 by Summer8906

[LetItSnow]

 Summer8906 There are times when you can flip an anomaly and can still end up cold or hot. A good example is if you have a mean large Scandinavian high in winter the flip would be a big Scandi trough which would still translate to a cold month as easterlies would be northerlies. In summer of course this would be a massive contrast between hot and very cool. 

It looked mild to me because the mean flow was south easterly and the hypothetical cold pool probably would have had had little influence. 

Edited January 24 by LetItSnow

[LetItSnow]

1 hour ago, Summer8906 said:

potent N-ly on the 31st took temps down to 14C maxima widely in SE England, the coldest late July day of modern times. There were also ground frosts in sheltered parts.

I’m going to do anti-1989 later but this reminded me of a very, very, very tame example of this sort of happening - the end of July and early August 1976. A northerly wind under high pressure and incredibly dry soil lead temperatures to plummet. Not by day much but by night. Even Heathrow fell to 7C on the night of the 1st. 

Ironically one of the better chances you have of getting anomalously cold nights in summer is in a hot and dry one. If you manage to get a cold northerly flow in then temperatures can fall quite rapidly due to evaporative cooling. It just doesn’t often happen because hot summers - well, they tend to stay hot!

I remember reading that in the blisteringly hot American summer of 1988 there was one short lived northerly, IIRC in early July, which sent temperatures plummeting. I think July 1988 holds one of the coldest readings for July in NYC even though overall it was a very hot month. 

EDIT - It wasn’t as extreme as I’d remembered but yes it was right.

Edited January 24 by LetItSnow

[LetItSnow]

The anti-1989... brace yourselves, folks.

 A cold, dull, snowy January following on from a chilly, wet December, as the jet moves even further south. (-0.6C, 89.3mm, 85% sun)

 A bitterly cold easterly February with frequent snow showers in the east. Very dull. (-1.4C, 50.5mm, 63% sun)

 Winter continues into March, a cold, dull and dry easterly month. (3.4C, 46.1mm, 81% sun)

 A warm, dry and sunny April, though perhaps quite cool nights at times. (9.1C, 28.3mm, 123% sun)

 However, then an unusually Atlantic dominated May. Extremely wet, dull and cool - especially by day. (9.9C, 140.7mm, 81% sun)

 A changeable, westerly June. Cool, wet and dull. (13.5C, 87.6mm, 91% sun)

 A cold, wet and dull July - utterly miserable. (14.6C, 138.6mm, 82% sun)

 An improvement in August. Perhaps rather thundery with a continental flow - therefor probably a good deal warmer. (17.1C, 69.4mm, 91% sun)

 An unusually cyclonic September - often wet and windy and quite cool, mostly by day. Rather sunny in places though. (13.1C, 131.6mm, 103% sun)

 A chilly, and dull October with an unusual N/S split. Sunniest and driest in Scotland, very dull and wet on the south coast. (9.1C, 93.0mm, 85% sun)

 A changeable, north-westerly month. Often unsettled with alternating airmasses. (7.0C, 92.7mm, 106% sun).

 A cold and dry December but with frequent wintriness in the north and east. A notable absence of the usual westerlies. (2.2C, 39.3mm, 109% sun)

8.08C, 1,007.1mm, 92% sun

"The Met Office have revealed that 1989 was the coldest year of the century and the coldest year since 1879. This comes as the globe experienced an unprecedented cold year globally in 1988. Scientists note the gradual decline of global temperatures throughout the 1980s and urge action to be taken after crop failures across Europe during 1989, and after 1988 became the 20th century Year Without a Summer across parts of North America."

A long, cold winter. One of the coldest January-February periods on record. A strange spring, overall cold but with a nice, warm April in the middle. The summer for the most part would be dreadful, though August is a surprising one. Still would be on the dull side though. The autumn probably the least gloomy season of the year. A quaint seasonable December. 

Only the diehard coldies would take this over the real 1989 I think... would you?

Edited January 24 by LetItSnow

[East Lancs Rain]

No I’d rather have the real 1989.

 

 

How about the anti 1966?

 

We won the World Cup in 1966, and the summer was very good (except on the day of the final, of course, which was a washout). The highest temperature of the year was 36.9C - it was the fourth time in five years the maximum temperature of the year managed to exceed 30C (the exception being 1964); the anti 1960’s really were good if you like hot weather.

 

 

 

January

 

A month of contrasts. Mild and wet but also sunny. It was 12C on the morning of the 19th at Elmstone in Kent, with a maximum later that day of 18C. There was very little snow in the east. There was an unusually warm day in the south of Britain on the 20th as an area of high pressure hit the warm tropical continental air brought in on a long-fetch southerly wind. Temperatures were widely into the high teens in the south.

 

 

February

 

Some warm weather in Scotland mid-month, with 20C at Balmoral on the 15th, and 17C at Turnhouse (near Edinburgh). At the same time, many places in southern England were cold and frosty. It was very cold towards the end of the month, with thick cloud and a northerly wind. Overall a very cold month in the CET series.

 

 

March

 

A cold start, with snow showers, but there was a series of mild spells starting on the 11th, with some spring sunshine, and plenty of warm and sunny days in the final week. Wet overall.

 

 

April

 

Warm, dry and sunny. Very dry in southwest England, where it was one of the driest Aprils of the century: there was about one third of the average rainfall. It was a warm day on the 1st, with many places in the south reaching the low 20’s. It was cold around Easter (10th). There was a notable snowfall in some places in the north; parts of Lancashire saw at least six inches, and some sites might have had a foot of snow. The snow fell as a shallow low moved across the Midlands on the 10th-11th. It was very warm in the south on the 13-14th, in a southwesterly wind. Brighton recorded a high of 24C on the 14th; and temperatures were widely in the low 20’s from Kent to Hampshire. In some places it was cloud free for 48 hours.  It was sunny and warm until the the 27th. The warm, dry, sunny month was good for breeding birds.

 

 

May 

 

Very cool and cloudy at the start (12C in the SE on the 2nd), but the rest of the month was settled with easterlies.

 

 

June 

 

Cool but dry. It was particularly dry in the north, and it was very sunny in Scotland (where it was the sunniest since records began) and Northern Ireland. June was the coolest month of the summer according to the CET, and indeed the coolest of any summer month from September 1964 until July 1967.

 

 

July

 

The SE of England had the best weather this month, with high pressure to the south bringing in warm westerlies to the SE. The highest temperature of the month was 29C in London on the 21st. On the same day Perth in Scotland was only 12C, as low pressure to the north affected much of Scotland.

 

 

August

 

This was the hottest August Bank Holiday on record. A high of 35.4C at Winchester, and 36.9C at Wroxhall (Warks.), the highest temperature of the year - although the preceding Saturday and Sunday were cool and wet.

 

 

September 

 

A very average month.

 

 

October 

 

A dry month. Just 26.5 mm of rain for the month at Ramsgate. The temperature reached 25°C at Headington, in NW Oxford, on the 16th. It reached 22°C in South Wales on the 21st.

 

 

November

 

Generally mild. It was briefly cold in the SE around the 7th, when an overnight low of -7°C was recorded at Cambridge. Around the 17th there was a meteor storm, corresponding to a peak in the Leonids cycle.

 

 

December

 

It was a mild and cloudy Christmas Day. The highest temperature of the month was 17C at Dalness in the Highlands on the 17th. The month started with an strong anticyclone on the 1st; pressure was as high as 1044 mb near the Mull of Galloway.

 

 

 

CET (based on 1961-1990 anomaly)

 

Jan: 4.7°C (+0.9)

Feb: 1.9°C (-1.9)

Mar: 4.7°C (-0.8)

Apr: 8.6°C (+0.7)

May: 11.4°C (+0.2)

Jun: 12.8°C (-1.3)

Jul: 17.2°C (+1.1)

Aug: 16.9°C (+1.1)

Sep: 13.4°C (-0.2)

Oct: 11.1°C (+0.5)

Nov: 7.4°C (+0.9)

Dec: 3.7°C (-0.9)

 

Annual average: 9.5°C

 

Would you take this over the real 1966?

 

Edited January 26 by East Lancs Rain

[Summer8906]

 LetItSnow Your anti-1989 sounds a bit like what I know of 1879.

Despite some decent winter and spring months, on the whole I'll leave it.

Edited January 26 by Summer8906

[Summer8906]

1 hour ago, East Lancs Rain said:

Would you take this over the real 1966?

I wasn't around in 1966 but probably yes, on the whole, as it seemed to be a distinctly unsettled year. January 1966 was interestingly cold but much of the rest of the year seemed to be varying degrees of changeability.

[East Lancs Rain]

Ok, how about the anti January 2025?
 

 

January

 

There was some lots of dry and unusually mild weather across much of England and Wales in the first week, with a rare 18°C reached at Aberdeen on the 6th January. There was some flooding in the south due to heavy rain on the 7th, but the north and midlands were drier. It briefly turned colder around the 8th, but the cold weather in the south didn't last long, with some unusually high temperatures as tropical continental air came wafting in, with the temperature in the early hours of the night of 8-9th reaching 12.4C at Penzance, also 11.0C at St James Park, London; then a low of 14.4C at Plymouth on the morning of the 10th. The maximum at Plymouth on the 10th was 18.9C - the warmest January day in the UK for a few years. Colder air started slowly spreading from the east on Sunday 12th, although it wasn’t a particularly cold easterly. On the 24th, Anticyclone Eowyn hits the British Isles. It's the opposite of a weather bomb, where central pressure rises by more than 24 mbar in 24 hours; it's generated in a very inactive jet stream. Many places have average wind speeds of less than 5 mph, and there is some severe frost overnight.

 

CET 6.2 (+1.4)