Grantham’s Stone Bridge

As in the month before, temperatures remained near normal. The second week was warm. There were 13 frosts: the usual number. The early morning dew point on the 25th was a new low record for June.
There were only two rain days. The wetter registered 4.4 mm (estimated) on the 28th.

Comparing June months

In recent June months, the mean temperature has hardly changed from 11°. However, moisture has varied a lot. June 2013 was very cloudy, and June 2016 very rainy. This month was very dry, not only with little rain, but also with the lowest June early morning dew point (-0.9°). Warm days (18.8°) and cool nights (3.1°) made for a wide daily temperature range (15.7°).

The rainfall total of 5.2 mm was at the 9th percentile. This very low value has carried rainfall totals for two months, three months, and four months down to become extreme shortages. Such shortages have not been seen here since 2002.

Developing Drought

The rainfall shortages that have now become extreme are covered in other posts, such as “Rainfall Shortages up to June 2018”.

Data. A Bureau of Meteorology automatic rain gauge operates in the museum yard. From 17 March 2017, 9 am daily readings are published as Manilla Museum, Station 55312.  These reports use that rainfall data when it is available.  The gauge, which had last reported on 24 September 2017, came on line again on the 16th of March. During the month of June three daily readings were blank, including that on the wettest day. I have substituted my own gauge readings for those days.

All other data, including subsoil at 750 mm, are from 3 Monash Street, Manilla.