Make the most of any sunny spells... autumn is here
AS the meteorologist’s calendar turns the page from summer on to autumn, our minds instinctively switch to anticipating Keats’ mists and mellow fruitfulness. But in the real world it is more a case of storms and yet more storms. Hurricane Harvey may have moved on from Texas, but the devastation caused by as much as 50 inches of rain in some places will take months and even years to repair. In south east Asia, unusually heavy monsoon rains have driven millions out of their homes and killed 1,200 and in the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Irma is blowing west towards the Caribbean, bulking up at such a rate that it may soon become a hurricane.
Next to such tribulations, the ups and downs in our small corner of the weather map should seem trivial. After a summer of two halves – the hottest June day for 40 years, followed by flash floods in July, and an August that just about redeemed itself with a blistering bank holiday weekend – today will see rain and winds spreading in a band from west to east across the country. The high pressure that made yesterday pleasant and sunny in most parts will be replaced by a low, coming in from the Atlantic.
Northern Ireland and all parts west from Plymouth up to Stornoway will see rain from early on, and it will then steadily edge eastwards, though that side of the country may just escape the downpours until evening.
It will be a decent 66F (19C) in London and Norwich, down a notch or two everywhere else. And as the back-to-school (and work) week begins, that rain will linger on, with predominantly cloudy conditions in most places, though the best of any brightness will once again be on the east coast. That pattern should continue, with more rain heading in on westerly winds. Make the most of sunny spells in-between.
As for mists and anything even mildly mellow, you will have to be patient a while longer.