The highest UK-wide monthly temperature range for May
appears to be 38.4 degC (actually 69 degF), from minus
5.6°C to 32.8°C in 1944.

This month, assuming the extremes are confirmed as
minus 6.3°C at Tulloch Bridge on the 18th and 31.4°C at
Herne Bay on the 27th, the range will be 37.7 degC.
With lots of stations not reporting till well after the end
of the month (and then being generally unavailable to the
likes of us), that record could yet go.

May's record is one of the smaller ones. March is
probably the biggest: 46.7 degC(*) in 1965 and 39
degC as recently as 2001. December 1995 managed
42.7 degC, and November 1985 38.6 degC. August
2003 easily set a new record for that month with a range
of 37.9 degC (based on limited data).

(*This uses the published value of 25.0°C at Wakefield
on the 29th which was so far out of alignment with adjacent
stations that it is very probably wrong. Even without the
Wakefield max, though, the range was still almost 46 degC.)

Philip Eden

Philip Eden wrote:
The highest UK-wide monthly temperature range for May
appears to be 38.4 degC (actually 69 degF), from minus
5.6°C to 32.8°C in 1944.

This month, assuming the extremes are confirmed as
minus 6.3°C at Tulloch Bridge on the 18th and 31.4°C at
Herne Bay on the 27th, the range will be 37.7 degC.
With lots of stations not reporting till well after the end
of the month (and then being generally unavailable to the
likes of us), that record could yet go.

May's record is one of the smaller ones. March is
probably the biggest: 46.7 degC(*) in 1965 and 39
degC as recently as 2001. December 1995 managed
42.7 degC, and November 1985 38.6 degC. August
2003 easily set a new record for that month with a range
of 37.9 degC (based on limited data).

(*This uses the published value of 25.0°C at Wakefield
on the 29th which was so far out of alignment with adjacent
stations that it is very probably wrong. Even without the
Wakefield max, though, the range was still almost 46 degC.)

Philip Eden

Philip,

Just out of interest, what is the lowest for any month? I remember
October 2004 having a very low range here (lower than at least one day
this month) and I remember December 1995 (and December 2000, here) for
their large temperature swings.

Thanks,

Edmund

"Edmund Lewis" wrote in message
oups.com...


Philip Eden wrote:
The highest UK-wide monthly temperature range for May
appears to be 38.4 degC (actually 69 degF), from minus
5.6°C to 32.8°C in 1944.

This month, assuming the extremes are confirmed as
minus 6.3°C at Tulloch Bridge on the 18th and 31.4°C at
Herne Bay on the 27th, the range will be 37.7 degC.
With lots of stations not reporting till well after the end
of the month (and then being generally unavailable to the
likes of us), that record could yet go.

Just out of interest, what is the lowest for any month? I remember
October 2004 having a very low range here (lower than at least one day
this month) and I remember December 1995 (and December 2000, here) for
their large temperature swings.

I can't answer that, Edmund. Last October's range using a
limited network was 22.9 degC ...I had a look at half a dozen
or so suspects which sprang to mind, and the lowest of those
were just 21 degC in October 1974 and 22 degC in December
1988. I suppose it's just about possible to get a UK monthly
range below 20 degC, say a consistently mild winter month
with an absolute max of, say, 14, and an absolute min of -6, or
a consistently cool summer month with a abs max of 24 and
an abs min of 4.

Philip Eden

Philip Eden wrote:
"Edmund Lewis" wrote in message
oups.com...


Philip Eden wrote:
The highest UK-wide monthly temperature range for May
appears to be 38.4 degC (actually 69 degF), from minus
5.6°C to 32.8°C in 1944.

This month, assuming the extremes are confirmed as
minus 6.3°C at Tulloch Bridge on the 18th and 31.4°C at
Herne Bay on the 27th, the range will be 37.7 degC.
With lots of stations not reporting till well after the end
of the month (and then being generally unavailable to the
likes of us), that record could yet go.

Just out of interest, what is the lowest for any month? I remember
October 2004 having a very low range here (lower than at least one day
this month) and I remember December 1995 (and December 2000, here) for
their large temperature swings.

I can't answer that, Edmund. Last October's range using a
limited network was 22.9 degC ...I had a look at half a dozen
or so suspects which sprang to mind, and the lowest of those
were just 21 degC in October 1974 and 22 degC in December
1988. I suppose it's just about possible to get a UK monthly
range below 20 degC, say a consistently mild winter month
with an absolute max of, say, 14, and an absolute min of -6, or
a consistently cool summer month with a abs max of 24 and
an abs min of 4.

Philip Eden

Thanks for that Philip, you've given me an idea of what it's likely to
be, and how last October fits in. October 1974 is before my time, but
I've heard it was cold. December 1988- can't say I remember any notable
weather events then (unlike the previous month), I thought July 1988
might be another candidate though.

Thanks very much.

Edmund

"Edmund Lewis" wrote in message
ups.com...

Thanks for that Philip, you've given me an idea of what it's likely to
be, and how last October fits in. October 1974 is before my time, but
I've heard it was cold. December 1988- can't say I remember any notable
weather events then (unlike the previous month), I thought July 1988
might be another candidate though.

I've just completed three weeks of tedium ... keying in my
monthly composite record for Luton extending back to 1901 -
something I've been meaning to do for years. So what was
the first automated job I tried? ... yes, monthly temperature
ranges.

The mean for 1901-2005 is 21.2 degC
Highest we 35.0 degC in March 1965
33.9 degC in Sept 1906
32.8 degC in August 2003
32.7 degC in May 1944
and 32.2 degC in Sept 1911
(also 30.9 degC in May 2005)

Lowest were 10.6 degC in Feb 1972
12.2 degC in Dec 1926
12.2 degC in Feb 1951
and 12.5 degC in Jan 1990

The exercise also revealed two keying errors ... I'm sure there
are many more!

Philip Eden