Warm day for Sydney, storms sweep south through Finland

It was quite a warm winter's day in Sydney today. Moderate northerly winds pushed the temperature at the Airport up to 23.9C by the middle of the afternoon. That is the highest temperature of the month so far and the highest temperature since the 25.2C recording on May 28.

Today's maximum was also the 5th warmest July temperature recorded at the Airport since 1993. The highest temperature on record for a July day is 26.7C, recorded on July 24 back in 1990. A 25.5C recording from July 22 in 2009 is the 3rd highest.

The overnight minimum was also up on figures from the past few weeks. The 12.5C recording was the month's highest as well and the highest since June 14. The measurement made it the 4th minimum above 10C for the month, still the lowest figure for Julys since 2009.

Very dangerous storms developed over central parts of Finland just after midday today. They preceded a cold front that had been sweeping south across the country since yesterday. Temperatures were already dropping in Lapland yesterday afternoon as a result of the front. The front brought storm activity and widespread rain to the north and today was the southern half of the country's turn.

Storms had been forecast and just before midday small cells began appearing on the rain radar. They developed quickly, at first near Suonenjoki, to Jyväskyla's east, and moved in an easterly direction. More development appeared just north of Jyväskylä and also north west of Tampere.

The cold front was clearly visible as storms moved south east. This was the radar image at 1:45pm on July 29
Source: Finnish Meteorological Institute

The storms began moving in a more south easterly direction not long after. Around 12:30pm the first drops of rain could be seen in Jyväskylä as the sound of distant rumbling soon became sharp, crackling bangs. Lightning Maps showed several lightning strikes close to the city centre and rain bucketed down from about 12:40pm to 1pm. Tikkakoski didn't receive any rainfall at this point due to the fact that the storm intensified slightly south, closer to the city.

Isolated storm activity continued around Jyväskylä until the late afternoon. Tikkakoski did eventually receive some rain, although it was only the small amount of 1.1mm between 3pm and 6pm. This was still the highest daily total of the past 2 weeks.

Heatwave continues in Finland

Recent warm summer weather continued in Finland over the weekend. Heat warnings have been in place for the last few days across most of the country as temperatures soared above 30C. The record for the hottest temperature in Jyväskylä this year was set once again on Friday, while the new national record was set on Saturday.

The temperature has hovered around 30C in Jyväskylä since last Wednesday. The somewhat magic milestone of going above 30C was achieved on Friday July 25. It reached 30.3C then. Saturday followed that up with a top of 30.2C. Yesterday fell just short with another 29.9C recording. Saturday was also responsible for breaking the national record for 2014. A recording of 32.5C was measured near Kouvola at Utti Airport in the country's south east.

The view north from Juurikkasaari in Säynätsalo just south of Jyväskylä on July 26

The heat barrier for Finland, known as 'helle', is broken when the temperature climbs above 25.1C. Today made it 12 consecutive hellepäivät (päivä = day) at Jyväskylä Airport. While the extremes of 2010 still haven't been seen this summer in Finland (temperatures reaching up to and above 35C), the prolonged heat has been very unusual. To put into perspective how unusual and remarkable this is, the record summer of 2010 saw a highest streak of 10 days at Jyväskylä Airport above 25C. This current streak could possibly last another 2 or 3 days as well.

Today also made it 18 consecutive days in Jyväskylä above 20C. Since 2009, the longest run above 20C came in 2010; 26 days between June 28 and July 23. Current forecasts show this current run lasting at least another 9 days, stretching the streak to at least 27. Of recent years, 2012 had the lowest overall streak of days above 20C, a run of only 10.

Storm clouds building over Jyväskylä during the afternoon of July 28

This afternoon saw storms build across most of the country and move north east. Only 0.2mm had been recorded by 8pm at Tikkakoski, but some locations elsewhere have seen very heavy falls. In addition to the heat warnings, there have been storm and rain warnings in place throughout the southern half of Finland since yesterday.

Cooler temperatures closer to 25C are expected later this week, but extended forecasts show a return to hot weather next Monday. There have been some reports that it could reach as high as 35C in parts of Finland then.

Hottest day for Jyväskylä yesterday, similar conditions for Sydney

The recent spate of warm summer weather has continued this week with Jyväskylä recording its hottest day of the year yesterday. It only just failed to top 30C, getting to 29.9C in the late afternoon. That beats the record of 29.3C set on both May 19 and 24. The national record for the year was also set yesterday with a 31.4C recording at Mustasaari near Vaasa on Finland's west coast.

Temperatures above 30C are quite rare for Central Finland. In the past 6 years there have only been 7 days above 30C, with 6 of those occurring during the record summer of 2010. Last summer recorded 1 day above the mark.

The deeper we've gone into this July, the more similar it has looked to 2010's edition. While 2010 was and will remain slightly warmer, July 2014 now has the second highest number of days above 25C since 2009. 2010 saw 21 days above 25C, and including today, 2014 has 12. Based on current forecasts, we could see that number possibly climb to 19.

Today also makes it 8 consecutive days above 25C. Again, according to current forecasts, that streak could continue to as many as 14 or 15. Since 2009, the highest streak above 25C was recorded in 2010; a run of 10 days.

Cirrus clouds over Jyväskylä in the early afternoon of July 23

Winter weather has continued in Sydney this week in the same style seen recently. Today top's of 19.8C was actually the warmest in a week. Monday through to Wednesday saw daily maximums around 17C at the Airport.

Colder minimums around 6C haven't been seen since the start of last week, but they have still been below 10C. That has meant that the number of daily minimums above 10C this month remains at 2. Of the previous 5 Julys, 2009 recorded the lowest number with 6. If the current average minimum remains the same, it will be the lowest since 2008.

It hasn't been very warm but it has been quite calm since the weekend. Including today, the strongest gust since Monday is only 33km/h. Yesterday's strongest gust was a northwesterly at only 22km/h, the weakest since May 18. Dry conditions have also carried on with no rain being recorded in the past couple of days.

Weekend wrap-up

The few days either side of today are considered to be on average the warmest for the Northern Hemisphere and the coldest for the Southern Hemisphere, and weather in both Sydney and Jyväskylä over the weekend stuck true to that theory.

Sydney saw a rather cold weekend. After a top of only 15.8C last Friday at Sydney Airport, Saturday and Sunday were even colder. Both days failed to go above 15C; Saturday was the cooler of the two reaching only 14.3C with Sunday getting to 14.8C. July 13 still holds the lowest daily maximum of month and year so far with 14.1C. Overnight temperatures were fairly average for this time of year with 7.7C on Saturday and 9.9C yesterday.

The idea of 'dry July' could be applied to the weather seen in Sydney this month. The current monthly rainfall total is a measly 4.4mm and forecasts show only a slight chance of rain in the coming week. If the month ends with no additional falls it will be the 4th driest July since 1930. July in 1970 saw no rain at all at the Airport.

Observatory Hill has seen only 4.0mm. That would also be the 4th driest on record if no more rain falls. Records there date back to 1858.

The excellent summer weather seen in Jyväskylä continued over the weekend. There were a few scattered storms and showers around on both days, but temperatures climbed over 25C again. Both days were very similar with minimums of 14.6C and 13.5C, and maximums of 26.4C and 26.1C respectively.

Clouds building over Laukaa during the afternoon of July 19

Isolated storms and showers developed during both afternoons. A good indicator of how isolated and scattered these storms were can be seen by the photo below. It absolutely poured for around 10 minutes in the city area of Jyväskylä and led to minor flooding in the city. However, the weather station at Tikkakoski received no rainfall across the whole weekend.

Heavy rain fell in the city area of Jyväskylä in the evening of July 19

This week will see a continuation of the current warm spell. Temperatures could even climb a couple of degrees higher to 28C or 29C on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Current forecasts show this weather continuing into early next week.

First half of July sees low minimums but warm highs

Now that we're into the second half of July, let's look at how the month so far compares to other years.

Both Sydney and Jyväskylä have seen some fairly warm weather relative to their respective season. Daytime temperatures have been quite high, but it's interesting to see that overnight lows have been a bit lower than the past couple of years.

The graph below shows the progressive average minimum for July in Jyväskylä from 2009 up until July 16 2014. While most of the past 6 Julys have held an average minimum above 10C, 2014 has mostly hovered just under the mark. Up until yesterday there had been only 8 days with a minimum above 10C, the equal lowest number, with 2009, in the past 6 years.

Progressive average minimum for July at Jyväskylä Airport for the period 2009-2014

July 2014 started off with a couple of cooler days for Jyväskylä, but since then there has only been 1 day with a maximum below 20C. The average maximum now stands as the second highest of the 6 year period after 16 days of the month. The record summer of 2010 is unlikely to be surpassed, but based on current forecasts, 2014 has a good shot of being within the top few warmest Julys on record.

Progressive average maximum for July at Jyväskylä Airport for the period 2009-2014



In Sydney the average minimum is also quite low. After 17 days of July 2014 it is clearly the lowest of the past 6 Julys. So far only 2 days of the month have had a minimum above 10C, the lowest of the past 6 years up to the same date
.

Progressive average minimum for July at Sydney Airport for the period 2009-2014 plus the long term average

Despite the lower minimums, Sydney has still managed to maintain the second highest average maximum since 2009. After 17 days, only 1 day has failed to go above 15C. This is the equal lowest for the same point of Julys since 2009. 2009, 2010 and 2011 had all had 4 days entirely below 15C by July 17.

Progressive average maximum for July at Sydney Airport for the period 2009-2014 plus the long term average

Like Jyväskylä, Sydney is unlikely to beat the July record, this time from 2013. Currently at 18.5C, it could become the second warmest on record by beating the 18.7C recorded in the Julys of 1946, 1975 and 2005. Current forecasts don't support that happening though. The next 4 days have predicted tops at 18C or lower.

Stormy afternoon in Jyväskylä

Most of southern Finland was under threat from storm activity today. This afternoon Jyväskylä saw heavy rain, the first rainfall in over a week, as well as lightning and localised gusty winds.

Storms were already seen overnight on Finland's west coast, but this morning around 10am more storms began to develop on a ridge from between Hämeenlinna and Lahti down to Porvoo on the southern coast. The first group moved north west towards Tampere before more activity developed around Lahti after 11am.

Storms were in the forecast and storm warnings had been in force since yesterday afternoon so what came next wasn't too surprising. The developing activity north of Lahti spawned a stronger cell that included lightning and heavy rain. The storm developed further over Lake Päijänne while moving north and by 2pm dark clouds were visible south of Jyväskylä.

Storm clouds approaching Jyväskylä during the afternoon of July 14

The sky gradually darkened over the city as the clouds drew closer

Heavy rain eventually arrived leading to the highest daily total at Tikkakoski in almost 7 weeks

As seen in the images, rain did arrive along with the storm. Tikkakoski saw just over 17mm in the hour between 2pm and 3pm, although all of that fell some time after 2:30pm. The daily total reached a bit above 23mm, making it the third wettest day of the year and the wettest day since May 26. Power was knocked out in a few areas of Jyväskylä due to a few ground strikes within the city area. Localised flooding was also seen.

Temperatures didn't quite get to the forecast top from yesterday of 27C, but it was a very humid and sticky day with humidity levels holding above 70%. The next couple of days could see similar conditions to today. It shouldn't be too warm, staying below 25C, but it'll be humid and the threat of storms will in the air for tomorrow and Wednesday.

Cold in Sydney, warmth continues in Jyväskylä

Not long after most of Sydney saw its coldest temperatures in over a year, today saw the coldest day of 2014 at the Airport. The mercury only reached 14.1C, recorded in the morning, while the majority of the afternoon saw it hover just under 14C.

The 14.1C maximum of today was the first below 15C for the year. This was the third latest date in the year for such an occurrence. It was also the coldest day since August 8 last year when it only got to 13.3C. The overnight low was also quite cold. It dropped to 6.2C this morning, making it the fourth coldest minimum of the year (including July 14). 

Seeing as it was already below 10C just after midnight a few hours ago, there have now been 15 consecutive days with a minimum below 10C. How does this compare to recent years? Well, considering 2014 now holds the record for the latest date for the first minimum below 10C, it's quite surprising to see that the current run of 15 days is the equal second longest since 2009. The winter of 2009 saw 21 straight days below the mark. 2010 and 2011 saw a longest streak of only 11.

The low maximum in Sydney today meant it was a good chance for Jyväskylä to record its first day of the year where the Jyväskylä minimum was higher than the Sydney maximum. And it has done just that. It only dipped just below 15C not long after midnight, and remained above the 14.1C reading at Sydney Airport for the rest of the day. This is not a common thing to happen. In 2009 it didn't happen once, and between 2010 and 2013 it happened only 16 times. The record summer of 2010 was responsible for 8 occurrences. Typically this happens during July, but it has been seen in late June and early August also.

Not only did the temperature remain just above 15C today, it went all the way above 25C, for the 11th time this year. Jyväskylä is currently experiencing a rather good run of summer weather. Of the last 11 days, only 1 has failed to go above 20C. The 14.9C minimum today is also the highest of the year so far. 

Another good indicator of how warm it has been recently is the increase in water temperatures. Surface temperatures for larger lakes in most of the southern two-thirds of the country are now around 21-22C, while smaller lakes could be as high as 24-25C.

Cirrus clouds over Jyväskylä in the afternoon of July 12

As predicted last week, temperatures this week should also stay in the warm range. Today made it 9 days straight without rain, but showers and storms are likely to affect Central Finland at some point this week. Tomorrow and Wednesday are the most likely days according to the current forecast.

Weather more typical of the season arrives

It has been a strange summer for Finland so far. There have been quite a few distinctly warm and cold periods and the past few days has seen the arrival of the third warm period of the season.

The daily maximums in Jyväskylä have been climbing on a daily basis since last Friday. Monday went above 25C for the first time since June 6, getting to 26.3C. Yesterday reached 27.6C while today has got to about 29C.

Before today, the highest temperature seen throughout Finland this year was the 30.8C recorded in Heinola on May 19. Temperatures came very close to breaking that mark on Monday. It reached 30.7C in the very far north at Utsjoki. Jyväskylä hasn't broken to 30C barrier just yet but temperatures should hover above 20C, with some days in the high 20s, for at least the next week and a half.

Another blast of cold air hit Australia's south-east yesterday. Despite the cooler air not reaching Sydney until this evening, this morning saw the coldest temperature at many of Sydney's weather stations in more than a year. Temperatures at the Airport dropped to 5.7C a bit before 7am, the lowest since the 5.2C recording on July 7 last year.

Other minimum readings in Sydney this morning included 1.6C at Sydney Olympic Park, 0.1C at Penrith, while it went below zero at Badgerys Creek, Richmond and Camden with respective figures of -1.5C, -2.7C, -3.4C.

The cool start made way for a fairly warm winter's day. It reached 21.7C at the Airport a bit before 3pm. Very strong and gusty winds arrived around 7pm. The temperature dropped to 12.9C at 7:07pm while gusts above 80km/h hit the Sydney region. The change also brought some brief showers. The Airport recorded 1.2mm, the first rain since June 16.

Down south, the NSW and Victorian ski fields are receiving more snow. Strong winds are also being experienced there. The Top Station at Thredbo saw winds gusts up to 124km/h in the early hours of this morning.

Tomorrow will see strong winds again in Sydney. It's quite possible for tomorrow to be the coldest day so far this year. A top of only 16C is forecast.

Warmer weather returns to Finland, fairly stable and dry in Sydney

After almost 3 weeks of cool summer temperatures, the end of last week finally saw the mercury rise above 20C in Jyväskylä. The run below 20C ended at 21 days, far longer than the 13 days in 2012, the previous longest streak since 2009.

Since Thursday every day has gone above the mark as a new wave of warm air finally arrived to Finland. Yesterday's top of 24.2C at Jyväskylä Airport was the highest in a month and the coming week is forecast to reach similar and higher maximums.

Minimums have also been up. The final 3 weeks of June saw an average minimum of 4.8C. The first week of July has seen a figure of 9.4C. Friday July 4 also saw the highest minimum in almost a month at 12.1C.

Thursday and Friday last week saw some isolated storms and showers throughout most of Finland. A total of 1.6mm fell at Tikkakoski on Thursday. Friday saw heavier falls with 9.9mm recorded. The monthly total after the first week stands at 19.9mm.

Showers rolled east towards Jyväskylä on the afternoon of July 4

It was clear to see that rain was falling in isolated patches

The dry and reasonably warm weather seen in Sydney in June has continued into the first week of July. While only the 4th has seen a maximum above 20C so far, the remaining 6 days have been fairly similar, between 17C and 19C.

The Airport still hasn't seen a maximum below 15C yet this year. The coldest so far is the 15.9C recorded on May 3. Since 1939 only 6 years, all since 1980, hadn't recorded a maximum below 15C at this point in the year. 1988 holds the record for the latest date at August 6. It was also late for 2005, the first date being August 5. 2014 is currently on track to have at least the 3rd latest date.

Dry conditions have also continued. Today made it 3 weeks since the last rainfall at the Airport. This is the longest dry streak so far this year. Anyone hoping for rain might have to wait a bit longer as well as the current forecast doesn't show any confident predictions for wet weather in the coming week.

June 2014 Review - Sydney

Once again Sydney experienced an above average month in terms of temperature. June 2014 at Sydney Airport ranked as one of the warmest in its 76 year history with both the overall minimum for the month and lowest maximum the highest on record. Rainfall dominated the first half of the month but dry conditions were experienced from June 17 onwards.

The graph below shows the June averages since 2009 plus the long term average.

June averages at Sydney Airport for the period 2009-2014 plus the long term average

As seen in the graph, the averages from last month rank as the highest or second highest in the years since 2009. The long term average is well below figures from the past 6 years. The 19.4C average maximum ranks as the equal 4th highest since 1939. The very warm June of 1957 holds the record at 20.4C. The average minimum was also quite high, ranking as the 6th warmest.

Winter minimums have been gradually increasing over the past couple of decades in Sydney. June 2014 further highlighted this with the month's overall minimum of 8.0C recorded on the 9th. This was the highest June minimum on record, beating last year's 7.6C. The 8 highest June minimums since 1939 have all been recorded in the years since 2001.

Cold days were few and far between. The lowest maximum of 16.4C was recorded on June 6. This was also the highest figure on record beating the 15.9C recorded in both 1991 and 2003.

The month's highest temperature came late in the month, a recording of 23.2C on June 28. While fairly warm for June, it is not within the top 90th percentile of all June records. The highest minimum of 14.8C was recorded on June 5.

Despite not recording the highest average maximum on record, June 2014 saw 14 days go above 20C. This is the third highest number since 1939. As shown in the graph below, the number of days that were entirely above 10C was the highest figure on record. Only 8 days recorded a minimum below the mark.

Number of June days with a minimum above 10C at Sydney Airport since 1939

June 2014 saw a monthly rainfall total of 109.0mm, making it the second wettest month so far this year. It was below the long term average of 122.8mm though, and far below June 2013's measurement of 305.6mm.

The month's wettest day was the 5th. A total of 55.2mm was recorded then and it is currently the highest daily total this year. June 4 through to the 11th all saw rain, the longest streak of the month. Of the first 16 days, 13 recorded rain. June 17 saw dry weather return and it stayed dry for the remainder of the month.

Daily rainfall totals during June 2014

The trend of weaker wind gusts for most of this year continued at the start of the month. June 13 was responsible for the weakest monthly gust of 24km/h. A strong low pressure system moved east across Australia's south-east from June 23, however, and brought very strong and gusty winds to the region. June 24 saw a strongest gust at the Airport of 81km/h, the 25th a 85km/h gust, before the 28th recorded the equal strongest gust since at least the start of last year, a westerly at 94km/h.

June 2014 Review - Jyväskylä

Where did summer go? That was the question on the lips of everyone in Finland for the second half of June in 2014. Some very warm days seen in May made way for a cooler close to the month, and June started in similar fashion. A brief 6 day period of 20C-plus temperatures brought summer back within the first week, but it disappeared just as quickly as it arrived. The rest of the month was mostly cold and cloudy with a bit of rain and even snow thrown in as well.

As expected, the average temperatures for the month were below long term figures. The following graph shows the averages of the previous 6 Junes.


June averages at Jyväskylä Airport for the period 2009-2014

Despite the cool weather, the average maximum of 17.7C was still above that of 2012. The average minimum, on the other hand, was the lowest of the past 6 years. The Finnish Meteorological Institute reported an overall average of 12.3C for the month (compared to my 12.1C). The figure for 2012 was 12.7C (12.1C). Using FMI's figures, June 2014 was the coldest June since 2004, and the 7th coldest since 1961.

The highest temperature of the month for Jyväskylä was 28.9C recorded on June 5. The days either side of that, June 4 and 6, both recorded the highest minimum of 13.9C. Both of these extremes were in the middle of the equivalent figures for the past 6 years.

The month's lowest temperature of -1.4C was recorded on the 18th. It is not very common for sub-zero temperatures in June in Jyväskylä and this was the lowest June temperature seen in at least the past 6 years. The coldest day was June 17. It only reached a top of 9.8C, making it the 4th coldest June day since 2009.

Liperi, west of Joensuu, recorded the month's national high of 30.5C on June 6. Enontekiö, in the far north, took the month's overall low of -6.2C on the 17th. This wasn't too far off the all time record of -7.0C. FMI reported that for many locations the second half of the month was the coldest such period since at least 1961. Everywhere in Finland recorded a monthly average below the respective 1961-2010 figure.

As mentioned already, there was a brief period of warm weather from June 4 onwards. Discounting the warmest 3 days, however, the monthly average maximum would have been 1C lower at 16.7C. The second half of the month was especially cold. The average daily temperatures shown in the graph below highlight this.



Average daily temperatures for June at Jyväskylä Airport in the years 2009-2014

The orange line signifying 2014 is clearly the lowest line for most of the month beyond June 14.

Rainfall was below average despite the mostly cloudy conditions. It wasn't because there weren't many rain days, there were actually 19 days on which precipitation was recorded, but there were hardly any days on which heavy rain was experienced. In fact, with 12.9mm, June 13 was the only day with a 24 hour total above 10mm.

The monthly total ended up at 46.7mm by my count. FMI reported 48mm. Last year's figure was almost double at 95mm while the 1981-2010 average is 67mm. The longest streak of rain days was 9 between June 12 and 20 and accounted for 27.5mm of the monthly total. June 25 to 29 saw no rain and was the longest run of dry days.