And so June continues the mild start to 2014, being some 1.0°c warmer than average, but as with May, it did not enjoy any notable warmth by day or indeed warm spell. The days and nights just tended to be pleasantly warm throughout the month with no particular peaks or troughs and the second half of the month was also notably dry with just 2.0 mm of rain from the 15th.

   The month was generally mixed up to the 10th with no pressure pattern becoming established, but thereafter it became settled with high pressure dominant during the 10-26th and with other shorter periods of high pressure ridging in over the UK it saw MSLP of 1018.6 Mb, some 3.2 Mb above average. Subsequently the number of days (12) when rain was recorded was low and a final total of 47.1 mm was just 58% of average here at Maulds Meaburn.

   Generally a quiet month and even when the high pressure finally gave way on the 27th the main bands of rain stayed to our south and thus we remained dry.

   Overall a mean minimum of 9.41°c and a mean maximum of 18.67°c saw the temperature some 1.0°c above the 1981-2010 average, making it the warmest June since 2006. The highest maximum temperature recorded was 24.2°c (18th), the lowest minimum 4.4°c (6th).

   It was the driest June since 2010 and rainfall locally was typically between 50-60% of the average for June, but markedly lower and well below average at both Brothers Water (36.5%) and Seathwaite (15.2% and no rain at all after the 14th) in the Lake District. At Newton Rigg (34.2 mm - EA gauge) in a series back to 1914, it was the 23rd driest June (3 years of incomplete data).

   Figures from the Environment Agency’s rainfall sites were, (figure in brackets being the monthly average for 1961-90)   ‘Data kindly provided by the Hydrometry and Telemetry team of the Environment Agency (Penrith)’:

   Kirkby Thore 28.4 mm (42.2 mm)

   Brothers Water 47.8 mm (131 mm)

   Nunwick Hall 27.6 mm (55.0 mm) and

   27.8 mm at Seathwaite Farm (Borrowdale - 183 mm).

   1st    A weak ridge of high pressure (HP) saw the month start dry and settled with plenty of sun and which was pleasantly warm at 19.7°c.

  2nd - 4th    Low pressure (LP) then arrived from the Atlantic overnight into the 2nd but which gave little rain as its associated fronts were weakening 'upper fronts'. The 4th then saw several areas of LP both over and adjacent to the UK with the main area tracking north out of Biscay. This brought more organised bands of rain, totalling 7.0 mm and at just 13.2°c (55.8°f) this was the month's coldest day.

  5th - 6th    HP then briefly ridged in from the southwest during the 5th and gave a fine and sunny day on the 6th and which at 21.1°c (70°f) was just about ideal. This was after starting with the month's lowest temperature of 4.4°c (39.9°f).

  7th - 10th    Back to an unsettled theme as LP once again pushed in from the southwest with a trough and cold front preceding that LP that gave a spell of heavy rain (12.2 mm) during the afternoon, this being the month's wettest day.

   The LP then sat out in the Atlantic to our southwest pushing troughs and fronts over the UK. This saw a showery day on the 8th and an occluded front with yet more troughs on the 9th brought 11.2 mm of rain.

   Whilst pressure would start to rise during the 10th with the fronts from overnight 9/10th slowly clearing, a trough line during the evening of the 10th gave a brief spell of thunder and lightning with a moderately heavy shower, totalling 8.2 mm.

  11th - 26th    Pressure rose from the southwest during the period, finally settling to our west in the Atlantic, giving an anomalous northerly low and whilst we enjoyed plenty of dry and settled weather there were a number of pesky troughs and weak fronts that brought plenty of cloud and the odd shower, especially during the 13-15th.

   After some heavy showers overnight 10-11th, the 11-12th were dry and fine days with the HP firmly over the UK. The HP then slowly migrated west and the 13-15th saw several weak frontal systems lingering over the UK and bringing more cloud and a few outbreaks of patchy rain.

   But come the 16th when clear of any fronts, with the HP now centred in the Atlantic and giving a light northerly flow, the days became pleasantly warm and enjoyed plenty of sun - these were perfect summer days, sunny and warm but not too hot.

   The 17-23rd all saw temperatures just over the 20° mark with the 18th the stand out day for warmth and sun, reaching a month's high of 24.2°c (75.6°f). From the 19th the temperature fell back a few degrees, but still it was good summer weather and which continued over the summer solstice weekend and into the following week.

   The HP started to give way on the 26th with cloud increasing as LP to the west of the UK pushed in.

  27th - 28th    LP then briefly returned, but whilst it became cooler and cloudier, apart from a few light showers during the 28th, the main bands of rain stayed to our south.

  29th - 30th    The month ended with a weak area of HP to the north west of the UK and which ridged south maintaining the settled conditions with the 30th seeing more in the way of sun and a subsequent recovery in the temperature.

   Rainfall totalled 47.1 mm for the month, with rain recorded on 12 days of which 7 were 'Wet days' (1.0mm +).

   The Mean Temperature for the month was 14.04°c      --      The Mean Max' was   18.67°c     --      The Mean Min'   9.41°c.

   We had 0 Air Frosts in the month (year 12)                  --      Grass frosts totalled 0 (year 49).

   The 1 foot soil temp ranged from a low of 14.0°c on the 1st        to      a high of 17.6°c on the 19th     --      with a monthly mean of 15.8°c

   The 1 meter soil temp ranged from a low of 11.4°c on the 1st     to      a high of 13.6°c on the 26-29th     --     with a monthly mean of 12.6°c

COMPARISONS:-

   * June 2014 rainfall was 57.5% of the June average for 2007 - 2013

   * June 2014 was 1.21°c warmer than the June average for 2009 - 2013 and 1.0°c warmer than the local long term average 1981-2010

 * The 3 month mean for April/May/June 2014 is                    TEMP'    11.42°c         --          RAIN    190.5 mm


  *                     April/May/June 2013 was                   TEMP'     9.53°c         --          RAIN    216.2 mm

  *                     April/May/June 2012 was                   TEMP'     9.37°c         --          RAIN    331.3 mm

  *                     April/May/June 2011 was                   TEMP'    11.01°c         --          RAIN    222.1 mm

  *                     April/May/June 2010 was                   TEMP'    10.33°c         --          RAIN     65.8 mm

  *                     April/May/June 2009 was                   TEMP'    10.85°c         --          RAIN    151.2 mm

  *                     April/May/June 2008 was                                            --          RAIN    170.4 mm


        ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                             * 2014     To Date                   TEMP      8.38°c         --         RAIN    738.2 mm

                             * 2013  Jan - June                   TEMP'     5.96°c         --         RAIN    392.9 mm

                             * 2012  Jan - June                   TEMP'     7.20°c         --         RAIN    491.0 mm

                             * 2011  Jan - June                   TEMP'     7.68°c         --         RAIN    599.3 mm

                             * 2010  Jan - June                   TEMP'     6.28°c         --         RAIN    206.4 mm

                             * 2009  Jan - June                   TEMP'     7.61°c         --         RAIN    450.5 mm

                             * 2008  Jan - June                   TEMP'                    --         RAIN    621.1 mm