June warmer than the norm

June was slightly warmer than the climate average for the month, figures released by Malta International Airport show.

The mean air temperature last month was 23.4°C, which is 0.4°C above the norm.

The warmest June on record was 2003 with a mean temperature of 26.1°C and the coolest was way back in 1933, with 20.9°C.

With the exception of June 8 and 9, the mean temperature last month was consistently below the climate norm for the first 18 days of the month. The air temperature then steadily increased to a level above the norm by the end of the month. The highest air temperature of 32.6°C was reached on June 29 but this came nowhere near the record 40.1°C registered on June 13, 1997.

Last month’s average minimum temperature of 18.9°C was also warmer than the climate norm by half a degree. The lowest minimum temperature, 16.4°C, was recorded on June 15. The coolest June night since 1947 was that of June 7, 1975, with a low of 12.6°C.

The average sea surface temperature last month was 22°C.

A total of 4.4mm of rain was recorded, which is higher than the climate norm of 3.2 mm.

June had an average of 10 hours and 51 minutes of sunshine a day, normal for the time of the year.