October 2021 was the third wettest October since 1922.
The Meteorological Office in Hal Luqa has the hefty job of recording all the whacky weather the Maltese islands experience throughout the year…
As it turns out, 2021 brought along many meteorological, so, here are some of the most memorable weather moments from last year!
December closed off 2021 on a sunny but cooler-than-average note. As a result, the mean air temperature that month was 0.6°C lower than the climate norm of 14.3°C.
It was also an unusually dry December, with the month producing just 32 per cent of the expected rainfall. On the bright side, this gave the sun plenty of time to shine, as 18.2 more hours of sun were recorded throughout the month.
Similarly, January and February went down as the driest on record.
January also recorded a max temperature of 25.8°C – the highest January temperature recorded since 1923.
Of course, this was far from the highest temperature recorded in 2021...
That spot is saved for June, which saw temperatures rise to a sweltering 41.5°C. The Islands sizzled in that 12-day heatwave, which extended all the way into July.
The country was hit with yet another heatwave towards the end of July, which stretched all the way into August. At 33.8°C, the latter month had the highest mean temperature of 2021.
It's safe to say that last summer was hotter and drier than usual, with temperatures exceeding the 1981-2010 climate norm by 2°C. Only 1.6mm of rainfall were recorded during the summer months.
September brought about some much-needed relief, with the temperature dropping to 26.3°C. That month also brought along some showers – although the 18.4mm of rain was still under the monthly norm.
This was promptly rectified in October, which saw 246.2mm of rainfall over the Maltese islands. This made it the third-wettest October since 1922. The rainy streak continued into November, with precipitation levels reaching 413.2mm.
The Maltese islands hadn't experienced such wet autumn in 22 years.
Despite these wet months, 2021’s total precipitation was still 10.8mmm below the average of 567.0mm.
The lowest registered temperature for 2021 was 5.8 °C, recorded on 15th Februar.
2021 was a sunshine-filled year with a whopping 2,913 hours of sunshine. July was the sunniest month, having brought about 364.7 hours of sunshine.
Do you prefer sunshine or rain?