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2004: Weather in Malta & Gozo
Meteorologist Mark Vella Gera from MaltaWeather.com
reports on the weather events that characterised
2004.
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Cool but dry January
There was nothing special to
report for January 2004, which was a typical January.
However, it was cool and rather dry with practically no
rain from the 6th to the 21st of the month! In fact, there
was only 46.2mm of rain this month (49% of average).
January 2004 was also cooler than average The mean temperature at Balzan was 12.4°C, which is
0.8°C below
the normal mean temperature for January. The highest
temperature was 19.8°C on the 19th, while the lowest was
5.8°C on the 31st. The mean monthly maximum
temperature was 15.2°C
(0.9°C below average), while the mean monthly minimum temperature
was 9.6°C (0.5°C
below average).
There were 14 days of rainfall (mostly light) and just 2 days
with thunderstorms. The highest wind gust was 66.6km/h during
gale force winds overnight from the 29th to the 30th.
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February, another dry month!
February 2004 turned out to be
another dry month, making this month the second
consecutive dry month after January 2004. In fact, the
February rainfall at Balzan was just 20.1mm, which is 32%
of average. There were only a few days with rain and the
highest 24 hour rain total was just 6.6mm.
Temperature-wise, February 2004 was average, with the mean
monthly temperature of 13.3°C being just 0.2°C above
average. The warmest day was of 23.4°C
on the 20th (caused by very warm southerly winds), while
the coldest night was of 5.3°C on the 14th. There were 12
days with precipitation (most of them dew) and just one
day with thunderstorms. The highest wind gust was of
58.3km/h on the 22nd. |
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A cool but dry March!
March 2004 turned out to be
another dry month, making this month the third
consecutive dry month after January 2004. Again the main
reason for the fine weather experienced this month was the
high pressure systems covering the central Mediterranean
for most of the time. In fact, the
March rainfall at Balzan was just 7.0mm, which is 19%
of the average March rainfall of 36.6mm. There were only 7 days
of rain and the
highest 24 hour rain total was just 3.6mm. Temperature-wise, March 2004
was cold, with the mean monthly temperature of 14.3°C being
0.3°C below average. The warmest day was on the 26th when
the maximum temperature went up to 22.3°C. This however is 1.2°C below
average and is also lower than the highest temperature
last month! The coldest night was of 8.1°C on the 2nd.
There were 7 days with precipitation above 0.1mm and no
thunderstorms. The highest wind gust was of just 47.4km/h
on the 9th. There were 7 days with blood rain. This is
more than 5 days above average! Blood rain is when when
rain mixes with Sahara desert sand and falls down as a
brownish rain. This month there was also a very rare
meteorological phenomenon on the last 2 days of the month,
when the cloud cover was so low that Rabat and other hilly
areas of Malta and Gozo were shrouded in cloud, thus
producing fog at these places. |
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An average April
April 2004 turned out to be
an average month, with rainfall this time even being
slightly above average! In fact, the
April rainfall at Balzan was 31.0mm, which is 8%
above the average April rainfall of 28.8mm.
Coincidentally, this April rainfall was more that the
combined rainfall for February and March! There were 7 days
of rain and the
highest 24 hour rain total was 12.6mm on the 25th. There
were 2 days of thunderstorms, one of which was severe on
the 25th. Temperature-wise, April 2004
was average, with the mean monthly temperature of 16.6°C being
exactly the average temperature expected in April. The warmest day was on the
9th when
the maximum temperature went up to 26.3°C. The coldest night was of
9.7°C on the 5th.
The highest wind gust was of 51.5km/h
on the 20th. There were 4 days with a desert sand haze or blood rain.
Blood rain is when when rain mixes with Sahara desert sand
and falls down as a brownish rain. |
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Coolest May in 13 years!
With an average temperature of 18.7
deg C last month was the coolest May since 1991. This is
1.6 degrees cooler than the average for the month. One
reason for this could be that for about a third of the
time the wind was from the Northeast to the Southeast
quadrant associated with a series of low pressure systems
forming over the North African desert and moving into the
Central Mediterranean. These winds tend to keep the
temperature down as they pass over a sea that, at 17.7 deg
C, is still rather cool at this time of the year. The
highest temperature reached last month was 26.7 deg C
recorded on the 4th. The highest May temperature ever
recorded since records began in 1987 at Malta’s most
accurate weather site, that at Balzan, was 34.5 deg C in
1994. On the 11th of the month the thermometer reached its
lowest point at 12.0 deg C. At the same time, very close
to the ground, at grass height, the lowest temperature
there was 6.5 deg C. The coolest night since records began
in 1987 was that of the May 1992 when the temperature hit
a low of 10.5 deg C. 3.1 mm of rain were recorded at
Balzan – this is only a third of what would normally be
expected in May. The wettest May since 1985 was that of
1993 with 34.3 mm – however there were several years when
the only rain we had in May were only a few drops. The
average wind speed last month was 10.8 kilometres per hour
and the highest gust reached 44.4 kilometres per hour from
the ENE on the 25th of the month. Thunder was heard on the
3rd of the month.
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Coolest June since 1996
 June, continuing the cool trend set by
May, with an average temperature of 23.5°C was the
coolest June since 1996.
Last month was also a far cry from June last year
which, with an average temperature of 26.5°C, was a good
three degrees warmer. However, this is no reason for
speculation that this is going to be a cool summer as
seasonal predictions from the major climatic model
centres do not give a consistent forecast scenario.
However, there are indications that this summer will be
a normal one.
The highest temperature reached last month was 32.3°C
recorded on June 26. The highest June temperature ever
recorded since temperature records began in 1987 at
Balzan was 39.8°C on June 13, 1997.
On the very first day of the month the thermometer
hit its lowest point at 16.1°C. At the same time, very
close to the ground, at grass height, the lowest
temperature stood at 11.3°C.
The coolest June night since records began was in
June 1990 when the temperature hit a low of 14.8°C. 4.4
millimetres of rain were measured - this is about two
millimetres more than the average for the month. The
wettest June since 1985 was June 2003 when 28.9mm of
rain was recorded.
The average wind speed last month reached 9.7
kilometres per hour and the highest gust reached 49.0
kilometres per hour from the west southwest on June 17.
The most frequent direction was the northwest. |
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Cool summer
July 2004 was the third cool month on
the trot, continuing the cool trend set by
May and June. July had an average temperature of 26.9°C
which was 0.2°C below average.
This July was also a far cry from July last year
which, with an average temperature of 29.3°C, was a good
2.4°C warmer. As predicted by us many months ago it does
seem that this year we are in for an average summer, and
definitely much cooler that last summer. The mean
maximum for July 2004 was 31.1°C (0.6°C below average),
while the mean minimum temperature for July 2004 was
22.7°C (0.1°C above average).
The highest temperature reached was 36.2°C
recorded on 24th July. The highest July temperature ever
recorded since temperature records began in 1987 at Balzan was
43.1°C in July 1988.
Last month the thermometer
hit its lowest point at 20.5°C on 16th July. The coolest July night since records began was in
July 1992 when the temperature hit a low of 17.4°C. No
rain was measured last month but this is normal for
July. The
wettest July since rain records began in 1985 was July
1990 when 2.0mm of
rain was recorded.
The average wind speed last month reached 9.3
km/h at Balzan and the highest gust reached 57.5
kilometres per hour in Nadur from the northwest on 13th
July.
The most frequent direction was the westnorthwest.
August 2004 was practically an average
month, although slightly cooler than average, with an average temperature of 27.6°C
which was 0.2°C below average.
August 2004 was also a far cry from August last year
which, with an average temperature of 29.3°C, was a good
1.7°C warmer. As predicted by us many months ago it does
seem that this year we are in for an average summer, and
definitely much cooler that last summer. The mean
maximum for August 2004 was 31.5°C (0.6°C below average),
while the mean minimum temperature for August 2004 was
23.6°C (0.1°C above average).
The highest temperature reached was 37.1°C
recorded on the 11th August. This was the hottest day
this summer. The highest August temperature ever
recorded since temperature records began in 1987 at Balzan was
43.0°C in August 1999.
The thermometer
hit its lowest point at 20.6°C on the 29th August 2004. The coolest
August night since records began was in
August 1997 when the temperature hit a low of 18.0°C.
Only 0.1mm of
rain was measured, which is only 1% of the average
August rainfall of 6.8mm. However, this is still normal
as quite often August has no rain whatsoever. The
wettest August since rain records began in 1985 was
August
1997 when 38.6mm of
rain was recorded.
The average wind speed last month reached 7.9
km/h at Balzan and the highest gust reached 69.2
kilometres per hour in Nadur from the west-northwest on
27th
July.
The most frequent direction was the west-northwest. |
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Tornado in Malta
An uncommon weather phenomenon was witnessed on the afternoon of
Wednesday 8th September 2004 as dark clouds hid the blue skies
and the strong sunrays that characterise the Maltese
summer season.
The tornado was seen spinning around dust, soil and
other dirt at around 1600CET. It was noticed from
Siggiewi, Birkirkara, San Gwann and various other
localities mainly in the central and southwestern parts
of the island.
Damage was caused to various retaining walls and some
homes.
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Coolest September on record
September 2004 broke all
records for the coldest September since records began at
Balzan in 1987, with an average temperature of just 24.0°C
which is 1.1°C below average. This is also 0.3°C below
the previous coldest September of 1996.
September 2004 can also be said to
have been similar to that of September 2003 since
extreme weather was also reported this month. Besides
some torrential rain and flooding in certain parts of
Malta on the 20th September we also had quite a few
tornadoes this September. At least 2 tornadoes were seen
at Ta' Qali and Zebbug on the 8th September and another
2 were seen at Cirkewwa on the 18th September. These
tornadoes were quite large although they only caused
some light damage to houses and hotels. However, it is
very rare for Malta to have tornadoes, so having at
least 4 tornadoes in 10 days is exceptional! These
tornadoes were caused by very unstable conditions and
also due to strong upper winds opposing the surface
wind. We are also proud to say that we also issued
tornado warnings on both days.
The mean
maximum for September 2004 was 27.4°C (1.3°C below average),
while the mean minimum temperature for September 2004 was
20.5°C (0.9°C above average). The highest temperature reached was 32.3°C
recorded on the 16th September. The highest September temperature ever
recorded since temperature records began in 1987 at Balzan was
39.2°C in September 1990.
Last month the thermometer
hit its lowest point at 15.4°C on the 28th September.
This was also the coldest night ever recorded in
September since records began in 1987. The previous coolest
September night since records began was in September 1997 when the temperature hit a low of 16.2°C.
In September 2004 46.7mm of rain was
measured. This is about 64% of the average September
rainfall of 72.6mm. The wettest September since rain
records began in 1985 was September 2003 when 390.3mm of
rain was recorded, as we all remember!
The highest gust at Balzan reached 53.1km/h (Force 7)
while in Nadur the highest gust was of 69.2km/h (Force
8). |
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Warm October
 October 2004 broke the
trend these past few months as it was warmer than
average, although it was far from breaking any records
of course! The average temperature this month was of 23.0°C
which is 0.4°C above average. The warmest October ever
since records began at Balzan in 1987 was that of
October 1990 when the average temperature was of 23.9°C.
The mean
maximum for October 2004 was 26.5°C (0.9°C above average),
while the mean minimum temperature for October 2004 was
18.7°C (just 0.1°C above average). The highest temperature reached was 30.6°C
recorded on the 10th October. The highest October temperature ever
recorded since temperature records began in 1987 at Balzan was
33.5°C in September 1991 and 1999.
Last month the thermometer
hit its lowest point at 15.6°C on the 28th October.
The previous coolest
October night since records began was in October 1996 when the temperature hit a low of 11.3°C.
October 2004 was a dry month with
only 26.3mm of rain. This is only 39% of the average
October
rainfall of 67.0mm. The wettest October since rain
records began in 1985 was October 1994 when 233.0mm of
rain was recorded!
The highest gust at Balzan reached 46.7km/h (Force 6)
while in Nadur the highest gust was of 62.7km/h (Force
7). |
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November: 3 inches of rain in 24 hours!
The 3rd of November 2004 marked the
wettest day so far after the summer, with 74.2 mm -
almost three inches - of rain being measured at Balzan.
It was a considerable amount of rain in a 24-hour
period, though nothing close to the extremes.
Considering the mean monthly rainfall
for November is 119.4 mm, 74.2 mm of rain in just one
day was quite a lot. Despite the fact that September was
quite wet and saw some good rains, these were scattered
throughout the month, while October was rather dry,
meaning that yesterday was the wettest autumn day so
far.
During the last 24 hours, cold air,
first in the upper atmosphere and then in the lower,
reached the central Mediterranean, with the result that
the atmosphere became very unstable and towering clouds
and thunderstorms, which characterised the weather on
Tuesday night and early morning yesterday, shot up.
With the arrival into the central
Mediterranean of cold air, the temperature plummeted to
a maximum of 19.5 degrees, which, compared to Tuesday's
25.6 degrees, marked quite a drastic difference. |
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Bad weather strikes the Maltese Islands, again
 Eight motorists had to be rescued by the Civil
Protection Department on the morning of the 15th November as force eight
south westerly winds and sudden outbursts of rain hit
the country, leaving a trail of destruction. Nobody was
injured however as the 32 personnel on duty at the CPD
dashed from one rescue operation to the other to try and
contain the damage.
Zurrieq boatmen seemed to be worse
off, as they woke to find their craft smashed to bits by
the sea, which had engulfed the area where they are
usually kept on land when not in use. Zurrieq boat
owners got a nasty surprise when they found their boats
battered against the rocks at Wied Iz-Zurrieq, where
they usually ferry tourists to the Blue Grotto for sight
seeing. A restaurant owner in the area said that some 15
boats, most costing in the region of Lm700 each, and
owned by fishermen and the pleasure trip operators, were
actually on shore but were swept away into the sea by
the huge waves which swept the area. A restaurant at
Wied Iz-Zurrieq also sustained damages.
The same fate also visited a number
of leisure boats and a cabin cruiser at Mgarr Harbour in
Gozo. "In 40 years at sea, I've never seen the winds
whip up such waves at Mgarr," one Gozitan fisherman
said.
In what could have been a
catastrophic incident, a large piece of the rock-face
crashed into the sea in the vicinity of Ghar Hasan,
brought down by the pounding waves. An AFM spokesman
said that the rock, some 50 metres in diameter, was
carved away from the land, early in the morning,
probably as a result of the huge waves, each of which
would have sent tens of tons of seawater smashing into
the rock face. Luckily, there were no persons in the
vicinity.
Back on land, Maltacom cables came
crashing onto the road near Burmarrad valley, while an
electricity pole near the Luqa primary school was
damaged. Several trees were uprooted in different parts
of the country, including Ghaxaq, Qala and Ta' Qali. The
CPD had to intervene after a tree was torn down at the
Marsa Sports Ground and lodged itself in one of the main
water culverts, which if left unattended to would have
exacerbated the flooding problem in the area.
 Thousands were frustrated when they
found out that the Gozo ferry service was suspended
because of the rough sea. A huge funnel cloud also
formed on Friday morning (12 November 2004) at around 10.30 close to Nadur.
November 2004 was
cool, wet and dull. Rain fell on half the days of the
month with a total of 158.6 millimetres of rainfall
recorded at Balzan. The night of the 2nd and 3rd
November, 2004 had the heaviest rainfall of the month
with 74.2 millimetres.
Such heavy downpours are not exceptional in November;
however they seem to be occurring more frequently in the
last 20 years. The wettest November day since records
began at Balzan in 1985 was 10th November 1988 with a
total of 193.1 millimetres. The wettest November was
that of 1999 with 383.4 millimetres of rainfall -- the
driest being that of 1992 with just 6.9 mm.
The average temperature last month was 17.2 degrees
Celsius -- the coolest since 1998 and considerably
cooler, by 0.9 of a degree, than the average temperature
since 1987. The warmest day was the first day of the
month with 28.4 degrees Celsius and the coolest night
was that of the 26th/27th when the temperature dropped
to 8.0 degrees Celsius.
The warmest November day since 1987 was in 1990, with a
high of 28.9 degrees Celsius, whilst the coolest
November night on record was in 1995, with a low of 5.7
degrees Celsius.
Last month was characterised by the diversity of the
weather systems that passed in the vicinity -- various
low pressure systems formed over North Africa,
especially, in the first days of November, which
subsequently migrated towards the central Mediterranean,
producing the bulk of the rainfall -- however other
depressions that formed in the northern Mediterranean
during the month resulted in showery weather and cooler
air masses from the Northwest. On a few days an
anticyclone sat on top of the Maltese Islands giving
them bright sunshine and very light winds.
The average wind speed was 9.1 kilometres per hour and
the most frequent direction was SSE.
The highest wind gust was of 64.3 kilometres per hour at
Balzan and 78.8 kilometres per hour at Nadur. |
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