Finding the days with the lowest recorded relative humidity in the British Isles

[Metwatch]

I've had a screenshot from an article which shows the lowest RH values up to June 2001 for a number of years, and I was wondering if anymore could be found. The majority of these seem to happen in April / May, during a light easterly wind with high pressure closeby.

For most of this century I haven't found any data and I was curious if anyone, especially those who record weather, knows their lowest humidity reading in either this century or since they began taking measurements.

2 examples I can think of this decade are 19th July 2022, the hottest day on record with RH dropping to around 15-13% in Lincolnshire and April 5th 2021; a very cold and dry northerly which brought RH to around 25% for parts of central southern England.

Edited November 3, 2023 by Metwatch

[Rain All Night]

On 03/11/2023 at 18:28, Metwatch said:

I've had a screenshot from an article which shows the lowest RH values up to June 2001 for a number of years, and I was wondering if anymore could be found. The majority of these seem to happen in April / May, during a light easterly wind with high pressure closeby.

For most of this century I haven't found any data and I was curious if anyone, especially those who record weather, knows their lowest humidity reading in either this century or since they began taking measurements.

2 examples I can think of this decade are 19th July 2022, the hottest day on record with RH dropping to around 15-13% in Lincolnshire and April 5th 2021; a very cold and dry northerly which brought RH to around 25% for parts of central southern England.

Great idea for a thread, I hope it eventually gets fulfilled.

I was curious to see the chart for 24th May 1901, so here it is...

Edit: Here's that more recent one in June 2000...

Edited December 10, 2023 by RainAllNight

[Metwatch]

Ah I was going to add another date to this today, that's the 17th of February where 7% humidity was seen on Great Dun Fell, not sure how reliable that is, but is mentioned on the Trevor Harley site.

 

The setup does show an anticyclone just to the east of the UK, so perhaps with the inversion subsiding beneath the fell top it may have been possible, but 7% is seriously low!

Edited December 10, 2023 by Metwatch

[Weather-history]

On 03/11/2023 at 18:28, Metwatch said:

I've had a screenshot from an article which shows the lowest RH values up to June 2001 for a number of years, and I was wondering if anymore could be found. The majority of these seem to happen in April / May, during a light easterly wind with high pressure closeby.

For most of this century I haven't found any data and I was curious if anyone, especially those who record weather, knows their lowest humidity reading in either this century or since they began taking measurements.

2 examples I can think of this decade are 19th July 2022, the hottest day on record with RH dropping to around 15-13% in Lincolnshire and April 5th 2021; a very cold and dry northerly which brought RH to around 25% for parts of central southern England.

I have seen a report in the Guardian of 12th April 1990 saying the lowest humidity  recorded in the UK was 6% recorded at Glasgow in 1984.

Annoyingly no specific date was given

[BruenSryan]

2nd March 2011. Great Dun Fell had a RH of 6%