Better late than never as summer arrives in September
AFTER a summer washout, the chill of a late September sunrise may prompt many to reach for a sweater.
But it’s a little too early to pack away your T-shirts just yet, as experts predict Scotland will bask in a fortnight-long Indian summer.
Although a lack of cloud cover will send the mercury plummeting to single figures by night, daytime temperatures are set to rebound to 66f (19c) in much of the country.
The run of mainly warm, dry, sunny days could last into mid-October thanks to a mass of high pressure lodged over the UK.
However, there is a chance of coastal flooding because tides will be at their highest point of the moon’s 18.6-year cycle.
Stargazers who stayed up the early hours of this morning would have witnessed a ‘blood supermoon’, a rare occurrence which hap- pens when a lunar eclipse combines with the Moon reaching the closest point of its orbit to Earth. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency said: ‘Higher tides mean a small increase in flood risk to coastal regions.’
Meanwhile, after a weekend that saw many Scots head for beaches and beer gardens, temperatures are expected to stay well above average, with the North-East enjoying the best weather.
Frank Ralston of the Met Office said: ‘This coming working week is looking promising with lots of dry, warm weather. It’s close to being classed as an Indian summer.
‘High pressure and warm-ish temperatures look like holding on until into the middle third of October. The only exceptions are the Far North, which will be colder with light rain, and the Western Isles, which will see winds picking up and heavier cloud cover.
‘ Elsewhere, there will be plenty of prolonged warm and sunny spells, although the nights are likely to be quite chilly due to the lack of cloud cover. Glasgow Airport got down to 1c (34f) last night, for example.’