North sees sunshine, duller in the south and east

Sunshine figures for the past seven days reveal it has been duller than normal across Ireland.

The north of Ireland fared best with the highest amount of sunshine recorded at Malin Head in County Donegal, where 29 hours were recorded. This represents 78% of average sunshine hours expected for the time of year.

Met Éireann says it was dullest in parts of the south and in the east with just 16.3 hours of sunshine recorded at Cork airport (43% of average) and with just 17 hours recorded at Casement in Dublin (47% of average).

Sunshine amounts will come in above average for the coming week as high pressure builds over Ireland.

According to Met Éireann, “Mean air temperatures over the last seven days were generally around normal or a little above, though slightly below normal in the far north, with mean air temperatures ranging from 8 to 10.3 degrees. It is expected to become milder over the next seven days, with mean air temperatures rising to 12 or 13 degrees, which is 4 or 5 degrees above average.”

High pressure will build over Ireland and Britain, dominating our weather into the start of May.

Temperatures will gradually rise from 15 to 17C early next week to 18C to 21C later in the week. For farmers, drying conditions will improve considerably as next week progresses.

In its latest farming forecast, Met Éireann says all soils will become drier by the end of the coming week, with soil moisture deficits increasing to between 5 and 17mm for moderately drained and well-drained soils.