The weather for the month of March was unusually wet and dull, with above-average rainfall seen in nearly every part of the country, says Met Éireann.
Most parts of the country saw rainfall levels soar, with several records broken or exceeded.
Rainfall at Dublin Airport in March was the highest seen since 1947 at 119.3mm, up a massive 227% on the long-term average.
The highest daily rainfall level seen was 34.7mm at Cork Airport on Thursday 9 March, the highest daily rainfall at the observatory since March 2013.
The number of rainy days in March ranged from 22 days at Claremorris, Co Mayo, to 28 days at Oak Park, Co Carlow, meaning there was rain on nearly every day of the month in the southeast county.
Records broken
Four Met Éireann weather stations had their wettest March on record.
These were Athenry, Co Galway, with 185.9mm (record length of 32 years), Mace Head, Co Galway, with 151.2mm (18 years), Mount Dillon, Co Roscommon, with 169.8mm (18 years) and Casement Aerodrome, Co Dublin, with 109.3mm (59 years).
Farmers struggled with wet conditions last month. \ Jack Caffrey
Along with Dublin Airport, Dublin's Phoenix Park also had its wettest March since 1947, with 121.3mm.
Claremorris, Co Mayo, had its wettest March since 1978, with 164.5mm, and Cork Airport, Co Cork, had its wettest March since 1981, with 211.3mm.
High pressure
Explaining the weather seen in March 2023, a Met Éireann spokesperson said that high pressure to the north of Ireland at the beginning of March pulled away towards Greenland, allowing Atlantic low pressure systems to push in from the southwest and dominate for the rest of the month.
They said this led to heavy rain, accompanied by strong easterly winds, which then turned to sleet and snow.
Wet March weather made grazing conditions and turnout difficult for many farmers. \ Donal O'Leary
“It became milder towards the middle of the second week, as another Atlantic low-pressure system brought frontal rain and a tropical maritime air mass over the country from the southwest.
"This pattern continued for the rest of the month, with Atlantic low pressure systems to the west and southwest, steering numerous bands of rain, interspersed with showers, sometimes thundery, over the country in a relatively mild cyclonic airflow,” the spokesperson said.
Read more
Southeast rainfall three times higher than normal
Recovering from a wet March
The weather for the month of March was unusually wet and dull, with above-average rainfall seen in nearly every part of the country, says Met Éireann.
Most parts of the country saw rainfall levels soar, with several records broken or exceeded.
Rainfall at Dublin Airport in March was the highest seen since 1947 at 119.3mm, up a massive 227% on the long-term average.
The highest daily rainfall level seen was 34.7mm at Cork Airport on Thursday 9 March, the highest daily rainfall at the observatory since March 2013.
The number of rainy days in March ranged from 22 days at Claremorris, Co Mayo, to 28 days at Oak Park, Co Carlow, meaning there was rain on nearly every day of the month in the southeast county.
Records broken
Four Met Éireann weather stations had their wettest March on record.
These were Athenry, Co Galway, with 185.9mm (record length of 32 years), Mace Head, Co Galway, with 151.2mm (18 years), Mount Dillon, Co Roscommon, with 169.8mm (18 years) and Casement Aerodrome, Co Dublin, with 109.3mm (59 years).
Farmers struggled with wet conditions last month. \ Jack Caffrey
Along with Dublin Airport, Dublin's Phoenix Park also had its wettest March since 1947, with 121.3mm.
Claremorris, Co Mayo, had its wettest March since 1978, with 164.5mm, and Cork Airport, Co Cork, had its wettest March since 1981, with 211.3mm.
High pressure
Explaining the weather seen in March 2023, a Met Éireann spokesperson said that high pressure to the north of Ireland at the beginning of March pulled away towards Greenland, allowing Atlantic low pressure systems to push in from the southwest and dominate for the rest of the month.
They said this led to heavy rain, accompanied by strong easterly winds, which then turned to sleet and snow.
Wet March weather made grazing conditions and turnout difficult for many farmers. \ Donal O'Leary
“It became milder towards the middle of the second week, as another Atlantic low-pressure system brought frontal rain and a tropical maritime air mass over the country from the southwest.
"This pattern continued for the rest of the month, with Atlantic low pressure systems to the west and southwest, steering numerous bands of rain, interspersed with showers, sometimes thundery, over the country in a relatively mild cyclonic airflow,” the spokesperson said.
Read more
Southeast rainfall three times higher than normal
Recovering from a wet March
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: