Record rain in February... but at least it was warm!
SEVEN Irish weather stations had their warmest February on record, while the whole of Ireland saw above-average rainfall, Met Éireann has confirmed.
The national forecaster said it had been a mild, Atlantic-dominated month, with new records set for the warmest February days in up to 125 years.
It said temperatures had been above average everywhere, and were highest in the southwest.
Seven stations had their warmest ever February, based on records dating back between 19 and 84 years. Valentia Observatory in Co. Kerry, with a mean temperature of 9.25C, had its warmest February on record in its 125-year data series. This beat its previous highs of 9.2C in 1961 and 9.19C in 2019.
The other stations that broke records included Sherkin Island, Moore Park, Cork Airport and Roches Point, all in Co. Cork, together with Oak Park in Co. Carlow and Mount Dillon in Co. Roscommon. Five other stations in the midlands and east, including Dublin Airport, Mullingar and Johnstown Castle, Co. Wexford, had their warmest February since 1998.
Temperatures rose above the average by between 1.4C, as seen in Malin Head, Co. Donegal, and 2.5C at Moore Park.
Temperatures ranged throughout the month from a low of -2.2C to a high of 14.7C. All stations reported ground frost during the month, but less than half reported air frost.
The sunshine levels were highest in the southeast, with the highest number of daily sunshine hours recorded last month at Johnstown Castle, Co. Wexford, which saw 9.5 hours on Monday, February 26.
However, that same location also recorded the highest daily rainfall total, of 36.4mm, on Thursday, February 8, which was its highest ever daily fall for the month based on records dating back 21 years.
Nine stations had over 150% of their long-term average February rainfall, and two stations in the southwest had over 200% of their average.
The percentage of monthly rainfall values ranged from 87% at Finner, Co. Donegal, to 222% at Roches Point, where 166.1mm of rain fell last month. Monthly rainfall totals ranged from 64.9mm at Casement Aerodrome in Co. Dublin to 197.5mm at Newport, Co. Mayo.