Mild, dry and dull first half, cooler, wetter and windier second half
- The average national temperature for November 2024 (using the Island of Ireland dataset*) was 8.95 °C, which is 0.99 °C above the most recent 1991-2020 long-term average (LTA) and 1.89 °C above the 1961-1990 LTA. November 2024 was the 10th warmest November on record since 1900.
- The warmest November on record was in 1994 with an average temperature of 10.1 °C and the coldest November was in 1919 with an average temperature of 3.90 °C.
- Provisional gridded rainfall data suggests November 2024 averaged at 118.5 mm (93% of the 1981-2010 LTA), the 39th driest November in 84 years. The driest November remains in 1942 and the wettest in 2009.
November 2024 Climate Statistics
On Average November 2024 was mild, dry for most, and dull. The first ten days were marked by anticyclonic gloom, with high pressure bringing very mild, cloudy and mostly dry conditions. On Sunday 10th, weak weather fronts crossed the country from the west, introducing light rain followed by a cooler, clearer airmass with high pressure staying in control for the remainder of the second week. However, pressure began to drop during the third week as high pressure moved away to the northwest. Initially dry and mild, the weather turned cooler and wetter as Atlantic low pressure arrived, bringing frontal rain. By Tuesday 19th, a cold Arctic maritime airmass moved south over the country, causing precipitation to turn wintry in places. The following afternoon, a frontal trough arrived from the west and introduced rain that quickly turned to sleet and snow in some areas, with accumulations in parts of the West, Midlands, South, and Southwest by the morning of Thursday 21st. The fourth week was dominated by storm Bert, a deep Atlantic depression named by Met Éireann, which brought the wettest and windiest period of the month, marking the end of the cold spell. Heavy rain, preceded by snow in the Northwest, and strong winds moved across the country from the Southwest late on Friday 22nd, leading to flooding incidents, particularly in the South, West, and Northwest. Storm Bert continued to affect the country until the 25th, when it moved northeast. A brief period of high pressure brought cooler, drier weather with night frost and fog before milder air and rain returned towards the end of the month.
Rainfall: Driest in the East and Northwest. Wettest in the Southwest
The majority of monthly rainfall totals across the country were below their 1981-2010 Long-Term Average (LTA). Percentage of monthly rainfall values ranged from 56% (75.4 mm) at Belmullet, Co Mayo (its driest since 2013) to 135% (128.5 mm) at Roche’s Point, Co Cork. Monthly rainfall totals ranged from 54.2 mm (74% of its LTA) at Dublin Airport, Co Dublin to 196.3 mm (116% of its LTA) at Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry. The highest daily rainfall total was 57.4 mm at Knock Airport, Co Mayo on Saturday 23rd (its wettest November day on record (record length 27 years)). The number of rain days* ranged from 15 days at Casement Aerodrome, Co Dublin to 23 days at Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford. The number of wet days* ranged from 7 days at Dublin Airport, Co Dublin to 19 days at Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry. The number of very wet days* ranged from 1 day at a few stations to 7 days at Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry. Two stations had dry spells* between Monday 28th October and Friday 15th November. These were Belmullet, Co Mayo lasting 15 days and Claremorris, Co Mayo lasting 19 days. Along with Knock Airport, two other stations had their wettest November day on record on Saturday 23rd during storm Bert. These were Oak Park, Co Carlow with 41.7 mm (length 20 years) and Finner, Co Donegal with 41.2 mm (length 13 years). Two other stations had over 50 mm of rainfall on Saturday 23rd. These were Cork Airport, with 52.4 mm (its wettest November day since 1991) and Roches Point, Co Cork with 55.6 mm (its wettest November day since 2006). Ten stations had over 40 mm on Saturday 23rd.
Rainfall % of 1981 – 2010 Monthly Average for November 2024 (Provisional) Total Monthly Rainfall (mm) for November 2024 (Provisional)
Temperature: Mild everywhere, warmest in the Southwest
All mean air temperatures across the country were above their LTA for the month. Deviations from mean air temperature ranged from 0.4 °C (7.7 °C mean temperature) at Ballyhaise, Co Cavan to 1.5 °C (10.8 °C mean temperature) at Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry. Mean temperatures for the month ranged from 7.4 °C (1.2 °C above its LTA) at Knock Airport, Co Mayo to 10.9 °C (1.4 °C above its LTA) at Sherkin Island, Co Cork. The month’s highest temperature was reported at Phoenix Park, Co Dublin on Wednesday 6th with a temperature of 19.2 °C (its highest daily max temp for November since 1961). Both the month’s lowest air and grass minimum temperature were recorded on Wednesday 27th at Markree, Co Sligo. The lowest air minimum was -4.8 °C while the lowest grass minimum was -9.7 °C. All stations reported ground frost during the month. The number of days with ground frost ranged from 4 days at both Mace Head, Co Galway and Roche’s Point, Co Cork to 15 days at Markree, Co Sligo. More than half of stations reported air frost. The number of days with air frost ranged from zero days at four stations to 9 days at Dunsany, Co Meath. Eleven stations reported their highest November maximum temperature on record on Wednesday 6th (see table 1).
Table 1. New station November maximum temperature records in 2024
Sherkin Island, Co Cork Temperature: Daily mean departure from LTA for November 2024 based on 09-09hr Max/Min values.
Dublin Airport, Co Dublin Temperature: Daily mean departure from LTA for November 2024 based on 09-09hr Max/Min values.
Sunshine: Dull everywhere
All available monthly sunshine totals were below their LTA. Percentage of monthly sunshine values ranged from 58% (34.8 hours) at Shannon Airport, Co Clare to 80% (52.3 hours) at Casement Aerodrome, Co Dublin. Monthly sunshine totals ranged from 33.3 hours (no LTA comparison*) at Belmullet, Co Mayo to 53.8 hours (no LTA comparison*) at Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford. The highest number of daily sunshine hours recorded this month was 7.8 hours at Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford on Wednesday 13th. The number of dull days* ranged from 14 days at Malin Head, Co Donegal to 20 days at Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford.
Hours of Bright Sunshine observed at nine stations for each day of the month of November 2024, grouped by province relative to the highest number of hours possible by end of month (shaded box)
Wind: Storm force winds reported during storm Bert
Monthly mean wind speeds ranged from 4.9 knots (9.1 km/h) at Ballyhaise, Co Cavan, Mount Dillon, Co Roscommon to 14.0 knots (25.9 km/h) at Malin Head, Co Donegal. Gales were reported on the 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th. Strong gales were reported on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th during storm Bert. Storm force winds were reported on Saturday 23rd during storm Bert. The number of days with gales ranged from zero days at Dublin Airport, Co Dublin to 4 days at both Mace Head, Co Galway and Malin Head, Co Donegal. The number of days with up to strong gales ranged from zero days at most stations to 2 days at Mace Head, Co Galway. The number of days with storm force winds was 1 day at Malin Head, Co Donegal. Both the month’s highest gust and 10-minute mean wind speed was reported at Malin Head, Co Donegal on Saturday 23rd during storm Bert. The highest gust was 62 knots (115 km/h) while the month’s highest 10-minute mean wind speed was 48 knots (89 km/h).
Airmass Analysis chart 12 UTC 23 November 2024: Storm Bert close to the Northwest coast of Ireland bringing storm force winds and heavy rain.
The full report is available here.
Extreme values for November 2024 at synoptic stations
*Issued by Met Éireann on Tuesday 3rd December 2024. This report is based on available preliminary data from 25 principal weather stations operated by Met Éireann. Synoptic station data is midnight to midnight UTC. Long-Term Averages (LTAs) and “average” refer to the period 1981-2010 unless stated. A rain day is a day on which 0.2 mm or more of rainfall is measured. A wet day is a day with 1.0 mm or more of rainfall. A dull day is a day with less than 0.5 hours of sunshine. A very wet day is a day with 10.0 mm or more of rainfall. Climatological dry periods – An absolute drought is a period of 15 or more consecutive days to none of which is credited 0.2 mm or more of precipitation. A partial drought is a period of at least 29 consecutive days, the mean daily rainfall of which does not exceed 0.2 mm. A dry spell is a period of 15 or more consecutive days to none of which is credited 1.0 mm or more of precipitation (i.e. daily tot < 1.0 mm). A heatwave occurs where there are 5 consecutive days or more with maximum temperature over 25°C (that is, a daily maximum screen air temperature > 25° C). The Island of Ireland dataset is 125 years long and runs between 1900 and 2023. For this dataset the long term averages from the 1961-1990 reference period are used for comparison as is standard for long-term climate change assessments. *Sunshine data is from the Autosol Network. LTAs for these sites are currently not used for comparison purposes. For more information, contact Met Éireann at 01-8064200 or e-mail: enq@met.ie