Warmer and Sunnier June Ushers in Summer with First Heatwave of the Year

• With a mean air temperature of 26.3°C, June was warmer than the climatic norm of 24.2°C
• The highest temperature reached 35.6°C, while the lowest dropped to 15.8°C
• The first heatwave of the year was recorded between the 24^th and 27^th of June

As we were gradually able to trade in our raincoats for swimsuits last month, June proved to be warmer and sunnier than average this year, with the first summer heatwave recorded in Malta just as the month drew to a close.

June was markedly hotter than usual, with air temperature lingering at an average of 26.3°C, which is 2.3 °C above the climatic norm, throughout the month. The hottest day was recorded on the 9^th of June, with a temperature of 35.6°C, while the coolest day of the month was the 1^st of June, when a temperature of 15.8°C was recorded.

The start of the astronomical summer also brought with it the first heatwave of the season, lasting for four days between the 24^th and 27^th of June. A hot period is considered to have reached heatwave status when the average maximum temperature is at least 5°C higher than the monthly norm (in this case 28.8°C) for three or more days. Temperatures reached 34.2°C on the 24^th, 35.3°C on the 25^th, 35°C on the 26^th and 35.2°C on the 27^th of June, respectively.

The seas also didn’t see much reprieve from soaring temperatures, with the mean sea surface temperature reaching 25.1°C in June, which is higher than the climatic norm of 22.0°C.

The start of summer also brought with it a dramatic increase in sunshine, with June seeing an increase of 40.2 hours of bright sunshine above the norm throughout the month. In total, there were 374.3 hours of bright sunshine, with the climatic norm usually at 334.1 hours. This means we enjoyed an average of 12.5 hours of bright sunshine per day last month, or roughly 1.3 hours of daylight more than the norm per day.

The brightest day of the month was the 2^nd of June, which experienced 13.4 hours of bright sunshine, while the dullest day was the 20^th of June, which only saw 8.1 hours of bright sunshine. June also proved to be less cloudy than usual, with the mean cloud cover only reaching 0.6 oktas, which is less than the norm of 1.9 oktas.

With higher-than-average temperatures and brighter and longer days, June was also unseasonably dry, measuring absolutely no precipitation at all, where it usually accumulates a norm of 5.8mm.

Wind was also somewhat more diminished than usual in June with the average windspeed measuring 5.6 knots, which is lower than the climatic norm of 7.6 knots. The highest maximum gust was seen on the 4^th of June, when an east-southeast wind blew at 22 knots.

 

Published on: 15.07.25