By Vincent O’Shea,
senior meteorologist
Back-to-school woes are often greeted with a positive change in the weather.
A smashing sunny May and June coincided with exam times earlier this summer and now there are strong signals of a return to prolonged settled conditions in the coming weeks.
After a disappointing July and a near-average August in terms of sunshine duration and rainfall here in West Cork, all the indicators suggest something like an ‘Indian summer’ in the offing for September.
Nonetheless, while emphasis has been on the extreme weather events affecting Europe and the Americas, ranging from heatwaves and wildfires to hurricanes and rainstorms, we can consider ourselves very fortunate in this neck of the woods.
It was the stubborn nature of the jet stream, displaced south of Ireland and forming a heat dome, which resulted in the excessive temperatures over Mediterranean countries this summer. The latest medium-term computer model output from the European Copernicus weather model tells us the circulation pattern will migrate to the north from this weekend.
This will mean the developing Azores’ high pressure system will send a lengthy spell of dry, settled weather over us.
While not a true ‘heatwave’, we can expect a lot of dry, placid and warm conditions through the next week or two, at least.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the US east coast braces for the hurricane season with its first major storm, Idalia, having formed over very high sea surface temperatures in the Gulf. Climate change is once again the driver.
Here at home, there is still a chance to redeem a lost chance to enjoy the outdoors, in albeit fading evening sunlight, and to savour a nice harvest and more civilised weather in daytime temperatures into the low 20s here in lovely West Cork. Sea temperatures, still in the high teens, should permit an occasional dip on our less-crowded beaches.
