Sunshine tables flipped as Valentia sees the light

The normally sunny southeast was the most overcast region of Ireland during the past week.

Johnstown Castle in County Wexford recorded the least amount of sunshine of Met Éireann‘s 25 synoptic stations.

Only 16.6 hours of sunshine were recorded at the station, equating to 61% of normal sunshine amounts.

Unusually, the southwest was the sunniest region of Ireland.

Met Éireann reports that Valentia Observatory in County Kerry recorded 29.3 hours of sunshine, which is almost 20% higher than the seasonal average.

Wetter in the south

Almost 30mm of rain fell at Cork Airport, making it Ireland’s wettest spot over the past seven days. Overall rainfall values for the month are well below average, however.

Only 42.8mm has fallen there since the beginning of the month, which is just over 50% of its seasonal average.

It was driest in Dublin, where Dublin Airport recorded just 6mm of rainfall.

Mean temperatures across Ireland ranged from 8.2 to 10.1 C, which is between 1 Cand 2.6 C above normal.

Ireland is well accustomed to a “March of Many Weathers”, but this March has proven to be free of dramatic twists and turns in conditions.

The below average rainfall totals across Ireland this March are in stark contrast to recent years.

March 2023 was the wettest on record, while March 2024 was also in the top ten wettest months since records began.