Clearing skies over Ireland as high pressure builds

A large area of high pressure building near Ireland has created more settled and drier conditions across the island, a welcome change after a week of exceptional rainfall. A NASA MODIS image captured at midday on Sunday illustrates the clear skies.

Showers, carried on a cool northerly airflow, were seen drifting down over Ulster and Connacht, while much of the rest of the country enjoyed largely clear skies.

According to Met Éireann, the past week saw significantly above-average rainfall, with totals ranging from 118% to an exceptional 371% of the seasonal norm. The wettest station was Johnstown Castle in Co Wexford, which recorded 77.8mm of rain, while Dublin Airport saw the least with 28mm.

Despite the recent deluges, high pressure is expected to dominate the weather in the coming days, bringing drier-than-average conditions. This high pressure to the northeast will keep most areas dry through the working week.

Light rain or drizzle may occur at times, mainly in the northwest and west in the latter half of the week. It will be a cool week with some overnight frost, but temperatures are expected to turn milder by Friday and the weekend as Atlantic fronts attempt to push through.