Forecast issued at: Monday 17th March 2025 11:00
Rain
Over the last seven days, rainfall amounts were well below normal nationwide. The highest accumulation of 3.3mm was at Belmullet, Co Mayo which is 15% of average. It was driest at Roches Point, County Cork, where 0mm was recorded. With high pressure remaining in charge for the coming days, there will be low amounts of rainfall until (at least) Friday. On Friday and Saturday, a gradual transition to more unsettled weather will occur. Rainfall amounts will increase closer to average, especially across southern parts of the country but should remain below normal in parts of the north.
Temperatures
Over the past week, air temperatures were near or below average across the country with the coolest temperatures along the east coast. Mean values ranged from 4.5 degrees in Dublin airport to 7.5 degrees at Valentia Observatory. Soil temperatures were generally 1 to 2.5 degrees above normal ranging from 6.3 to 8.4 degrees. With conditions set to turn milder as the week goes on, mean air temperatures are set to become up to 2 degrees above average across the country. Soil temperatures will remain above normal.
Sunshine
The past week has been sunny and so sunshine amounts were above normal nationwide. Over 30 hours of sunshine were recorded at all stations this week. The lengthiest sunshine was at Shannon Airport (42.7 hours) which is nearly twice the norm. With high pressure dominating for much of this week, sunshine amounts are likely to stay near or above normal.
Drying Conditions
Drying conditions will initially be moderate this week because despite there being plenty of dry weather, temperatures will be on the cool side and winds will be light to moderate. However, temperatures will increase from midweek so there will be better drying conditions then.
Spraying
There will be some good opportunities for spraying over the coming days as high pressure dominates the weather scene keeping the weather mainly dry and the winds mainly light to moderate.
Field Conditions
Most soils have soil moisture deficits (SMDs) of +5 to +15mm, although poorly drained soils have SMDs of 0 to 10mm. With plenty of dry weather for most of the week, SMDs are likely to increase, but there will be some deterioration on Friday and into the weekend as the weather changes and becomes a little more unsettled. Some poorly drained soils will become saturated and locally waterlogged in parts of the west and southwest.
Forecast maps and meteograms can be found on Blight Forecast.
