Sheffield weather record smashed in dullest June ever

A sunshine drought made June in Sheffield the dullest in more than a century, according to new weather figures.
June was a wet monthJune was a wet month
June was a wet month

Residents have clung to their coats during the miserable summer so far.

Now data recorded at the Musuems Sheffield weather station at Weston Park has shown there were just 91.9 hours of sunshine in June, compared to an average of 177 hours, which is the lowest on record since 1882.

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There was 120.4mm of rainfall recorded, compared to an average of 67mm, making it the wettest June since 2012 when 154.5mm fell.

“We always associate June with being warm and pleasant but every four years or so it is decidedly not,” said Alistair McLean, curator of natural sciences at Museums Sheffield.

Research of the station’s records has also shown that ‘cloud bursts’, where more than 50mm of rain fell in a single 24-hour period, happen more often in June in Sheffield than any other month.

One theory is that the El Niño climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean – which is some 5,000 miles away from England – is to blame for the recent spell of wet weather.

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Alistair added: “The weather systems are all interconnected – El Niño does have a major effect on international weather.”

The average temperature for June in Sheffield was 14.9C, just above the average of 14.2C.

There were some hot and humid days when brollies could be left behind, with the highest temperature reached during the entire month being 25.3C.

The wettest June on record was in 2007, when 285.6mm of rain fell, the same year floods swept the region.

The weather station is now using an electronic sunshine recorder, more advanced than methods used in previous years, and working on a formula to reconcile any slight discrepancies.