Dublin Airport had more hours of sunshine in October than in July or August this year, according to Met Éireann, while Shannon Airport had its sunniest October on record.
The forecaster’s weather report for October indicates Dublin Airport had 120.6 hours of sunshine last month, more than in July, when it had 104 hours, or August, when it had 97 hours.
Shannon Airport had 120.9 hours of sunshine in October, more for the month than at any other time in the past 75 years.
Levels of sunshine were in fact above their long-term averages everywhere in Ireland for the month. Monthly sunshine ranged from 103 per cent (104.9 hours) of the long-term average at Casement Aerodrome in Dublin, to 134 per cent (126.9 hours) of the long-term average at Cork Airport. The highest daily number of sunshine hours recorded was 10.3 hours at Cork Airport on Friday, October 2nd.
The number of dull days recorded in October ranged from three days at Shannon Airport to eight days at Malin Head, Co Donegal.
Rainfall
Meanwhile, the highest level of rainfall for the month, some 228.1ml, was recorded at Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry, making last month the wettest October there since 2008. The lowest rainfall was recorded at Dublin's Phoenix Park, where 80.4ml fell over the course of the month, or 101 per cent of the station's long-term average for October.
Temperatures across the country were below average during the month. The highest average monthly temperature was 11.7 degrees Celsius, recorded at Sherkin Island, Co Cork.
Monthly average wind speeds ranged from 6.6 knots (12.2km/h) at Ballyhaise, Co Cavan, to 17.4 knots (32.2km/h) at Mace Head, Co Galway. Gales were reported on 12 days during October, with strong gales reported on the 20th, 21st, 23rd and 24th and storm force winds reported on the 31st during Storm Aiden.
The number of days with gales ranged from zero days at a few stations to seven days at Mace Head, Co Galway. Five stations in the southwest, including Cork Airport, Valentia Observatory, Roche’s Point in Co Cork, Sherkin Island, and Moore Park in Co Cork had their highest mean wind in October for more than 10 years.
