August warmer than average

Malta's average maximum temperature throughout August was 28.7°C, slightly warmer than the mean for the past 30 years, Malta International Airport said today.

The lowest recorded temperature was 19.6°C which was recorded on August 21 when a thunderstorm hit the island, while the highest temperature, 34.7°C, was recorded on August 7.

In total, August saw 320 hours of bright sunshine.

The mean maximum temperature for the past 30 years was 26.3°C, which means August 2013 was 1.2°C warmer than usual (27.5 Celsius).  The warmest August recorded was in 1999 which registered a mean maximum of 29.3°C and a high of 43.8°C on August 9.

Two heat advisories were issued by the Malta Airport Met Office to the Health Authorities between August 5 and 8, but no significant heat waves were registered.

The average sea surface temperature was 26.5°C. This is 1.0°C higher than the average value for August.

August also saw a mean relative humidity of 70 per cent, which is lower than the 30-year mean climate average of 73 per cent.

August also opened the rainy season with 26.4mm of rainfall recorded at Malta International Airport.