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was in all probability the driest three-month period for England and
Wales in general back to 1785, it is not surprising to find that Hampstead
has had no comparable spell of drought at any season since 1858,
when measurements of rain were first made in the Borough.
November rivalled March for unseasonable warmth. Its mean
temperature of 481 deg. surpassed the normal by 58 deg. and the
previous highest for that month in the Observatory records by 1 deg.
The maximum of 68.2 deg. on the 5th outstripped by the wide margin
of 6 deg. any hitherto registered after the end of October, and was
within 1¼ deg. of the July average.
April and May, on the other hand, were both cold months. The
former gave ground-frost on as many as 21 nights, and the latter a
grass-minimum temperature 11 deg. below the freezing-point early on
the 8th. The summer (June to August), though rather warmer than
usual and notably dry, was very dull. As compared with the respective
averages over 25 years, temperature was in excess to the extent of
0.5 deg., and rainfall in defect by 3 22 in. (45 per cent.); yet the mean
daily duration of sunshine was subnormal by nearly 50 minutes.
To the end of September, 1938 was extremely dry. The next
three months were all wet, together yielding, in fact, 1.41 in. more rain
than had fallen between February 1st and September 30th and raising
the year's total to 22 31 in. This is 5 35 in. short of the 1910-1934
average, and is, with three exceptions, the smallest annual measurement
yet recorded at the Observatory. The monthly aggregates ranged
from 015 in. in April to 413 in. in December. Days with measurable
rain (or other forms of " precipitation ") numbered 165—16 fewer than
usual. According to the trace of the automatic gauge, which does not
record thin drizzle or very light showers, the year's fall was spread
over 4957 hours, or just under three weeks. November 25th, with
103 in., was the wettest day.
The sun shone during 1938 for 1,406 3 hours, 72 hours less than
the 1910-1934 average. Notwithstanding this deficiency, the year was
notable for its freedom from wholly sunless days. There were only
60 of these, against the normal of 75 and the previous smallest number
of 63, in 1929. June was the brightest month, with 205 2 sunny hours