By Philip Eden

August ended uncharacteristically with a chill northwest wind and subdued temperatures. Overall, last month was a warm one especially in southern Britain and there were two brief but intense heatwaves, the temperature reaching 32C locally. This was very m uch in character for summer 2001; there were five individual spells of great heat between mid-June and late-August, the mercury reaching the low-30s on each occasion.

The mean Central England Temperature for August was 16.9C which was 0.7 degC above the average for the standard reference period 1971-2000. There were only 14 warmer Augusts during the twentieth century, although nine of these occurred since 1975, and fou r since 1990. All four months from May to August have been warmer than average this year, the first time this has happened since 1989. The hottest days were the 15th and 25th when 32C was reached at several sites in East Anglia and the Southeast including London. The lowest reading to hand was 2C at Eskdalemuir, Dumfriesshire, early on the 28th

Rainfall last month was not far from the long-term mean for August taking the UK as a whole, although, as is usual during the summer, there were wide variations across short distances thanks to heavy localised downpours. Averaged over England and Wales th e total was 84mm, just 3% below the normal figure for 1971-2000. Scotland also had 84mm (7% above) while Northern Ireland had 91mm (12% above). At a more parochial level, Luton collected 109mm, roughly double the local average, whereas Swanage in Dorset r ecorded just 27mm which is less than half the normal amount there.

Rainfall last month was not far from the long-term mean for August taking the UK as a whole, although, as is usual during the summer, there were wide variations across short distances thanks to heavy localised downpours. Averaged over England and Wales th e total was 84mm, just 3% below the normal figure for 1971-2000. Scotland also had 84mm (7% above) while Northern Ireland had 91mm (12% above). At a more parochial level, Luton collected 109mm, roughly double the local average, whereas Swanage in Dorset r ecorded just 27mm which is less than half the normal amount there.