Warm couple of days for both cities

Jyväskylä has continued its warm spring weather. Yesterday topped 17.1C at Jyväskylä Airport. It was the earliest date for a temperature recorded above 15C in the past 6 years, beating 2011's mark of April 23. Yesterday's minimum of 4.2C was also the second earliest date for a minimum above 4C. 2011 retains its hold on that figure thanks to a 4.3C recording on April 17.

In addition to the above average temperatures, it has been quite dry throughout this month. Other than the 3 days of April 11, 13 and 14 which accounted for 22.1mm of rain, the rest of the month has only seen 1.8mm.

Warm temperatures have seen lake ice disappear almost completely. Tuomiojärvi, one of the lakes just north of the city, was pretty much devoid of ice yesterday. You'll only find a few signs of snow and ice in places hidden from the sun. Plants and trees have started coming to life as well, and I even spotted a few bees around yesterday for the first time this year.

Catkins on a goat willow in Jyväskylä on April 21

The yellow flowers of coltsfoot have also started to appear

Sydney has enjoyed some warm autumn weather in the past couple of days. It reached 25.4C this afternoon at the Airport after tops of 24.0C and 23.7C on Sunday and Monday. Despite that, minimum temperatures have been at their lowest for several months; the past 3 days have recordings below 13C.

Another observation that is somewhat surprising is that today was the sixth consecutive day at the Airport without rain. This was after a run of 7 days with rain recorded. Sydney hasn't observed a 6 day period without rain in the past 2 and a half months. January 29 to February 3 was the last time.

The next couple of days should be quite nice with daily maximums of 26C and 27C forecast along with mostly sunny conditions. It is possible that showers might return during the weekend though.