Sunny Southeast Shines

While most of Ireland faced unsettled weather and above-average rainfall over the past week, the southeast emerged as the sunniest region in the country, according to Met Éireann.

Johnstown Castle in Co. Wexford recorded the highest sunshine levels, with 44.6 hours of accumulated sunshine—109% of the average for this time of year. This stands in contrast to the northwest, where Malin Head, Co. Donegal logged just 33.1 hours, or 94% of the seasonal norm.

Despite the bright spells in parts of the southeast, the overall trend across the country was for sunshine totals to remain close to or slightly below average.

With unsettled Atlantic conditions forecast to persist into the coming week, meteorologists warn that sunshine amounts are likely to fall further below average nationwide.

Cloud cover is expected to dominate, with only brief sunny intervals anticipated. The limited sunshine, coupled with continued rainfall and poor drying conditions, will also impact agriculture, reducing opportunities for spraying and further saturating soils, particularly in western and northern counties.

Although the southeast has enjoyed more brightness than most regions, the national outlook suggests that Ireland is in for another mostly grey and damp week.