Air Temperature

Highest Maximum 27.6°C 4th and 5th
Lowest Maximum 18.4°C 29th
Highest Minimum 21.4°C 1st 
Lowest Minimum 13.9°C 21st

 

Mean Maximum 23.5°C
Mean Minimum 17.7°C
Mean 20.6°C

 

Relative Humidity

Lowest Relative Humidity 48% 15th

 

Mean Relative Humidity 78.0%

 

Atmospheric Pressure

Highest Atmospheric Pressure 1029.6hPa 20th
Lowest Atmospheric Pressure 1008.0hPa 14th

 

Mean Atmospheric Pressure 1017.3hPa

 

Wind

Highest Gust 49.9km/h 16th

 

Mean Wind Speed 7.2km/h
Mean Gust Speed 16.8km/h
Mean Wind + Gust Speed 11.6km/h
Most Frequent Wind Direction South Southeast

 

Precipitation

Total Rainfall During October 2021 241.0 mm
Total Rainfall Since Last 01/09 250.6 mm

 

Highest 24 Hour Total 69.5 mm 3rd

 

Rain Days 20 days
Thunderstorm Days 10 days
Hail Days 2 days

 

Rainfall Events

02/10/2021 32.1 mm Thunderstorm; Hail
03/10/2021 69.5 mm Thunderstorm; Hail
05/10/2021 2.4 mm P.M. Isolated Thunderstorm
06/10/2021 3.0 mm A.M. Isolated Thunderstorm
07/10/2021 1.2 mm Isolated Showers
08/10/2021 2.1 mm Isolated Showers
09/10/2021 0.3 mm Isolated Showers
10/10/2021 3.7 mm Isolated Showers; Distant Thunder
12/10/2021 0.4 mm Isolated Showers
14/10/2021 34.5 mm Steady Rain; Thunder
15/10/2021 0.5 mm Isolated Showers
16/10/2021 0.2 mm Light Rain
18/10/2021 1.0 mm Isolated Showers; Distant Thunder
25/10/2021 24.1 mm P.M. Steady Rain; Thunder
26/10/2021 39.7 mm A.M. Steady Rain; Thunder; P.M. Showers
27/10/2021 11.9 mm Showers
28/10/2021 2.8 mm Showers
29/10/2021 4.6 mm Light Rain
30/10/2021 0.3 mm Light Rain
31/10/2021 6.7 mm Light Rain; P.M. Steady Rain

 

October 2021 Compared to the Climate Means

  Climate Mean October 2021 Anomaly
Mean Maximum Temperature 24.8°C 23.5°C -1.3°C
Mean Minimum Temperature 17.9°C 17.7°C -0.2°C
Mean Temperature 21.4°C 20.6°C -0.8°C
Mean Relative Humidity 78% 78.0% /
Mean Atmospheric Pressure 1017.6hPa 1017.3hPa -0.3hPa
Mean Wind Speed 14.1 km/h 11.6 km/h -2.5km/h
Total Rainfall 83.3 mm 241.0 mm +157.7 mm
Total Rainfall Since Last 01/09 138.8 mm 250.6 mm +111.8 mm
Total Rain Days 10 days 20 days +10 days
Total Thunderstorm Days 5 days 10 days +5 days
Total Hail Days 1 day 2 days + 1 day

 

October 2021 One of the Wettest Ever

October 2021 turned out to be noticeably cooler than average. With a mean temperature of 20.6°C, last month was a solid 0.8°C cooler than the climate norm. Last month started off on a relatively warm note. This was short-lived, however. Successive pockets of cooler air from over Europe, coupled with the cooling effect of rain on a staggering 20 days, ensured a pattern of consistently cooler than average temperatures. A 13.9°C low, the coldest for October 2021, was registered on the 21st. This was measured at around dawn, after a night of cooling under anticyclonic conditions. The very warm days at the start of the month were brought about by southerly winds which fanned hot air from north Africa towards the central Mediterranean. Last months warmest temperature of 27.6°C was measured on two days, the 4th and 5th.

The 241.0 mm of rain measured last month was almost three times more than the 83.3 mm expected in a typical October. This made October 2021 the third wettest October since record keeping began a century ago. Rain fell on 20 days last month, with rainfall events having been evenly distributed, bar for a brief dry spell in the third week of the month. Thunder was heard on 10 days. Hail was observed on 2 days. Total 24-hour rainfall exceeded 25 mm on 4 days. The wettest day was the 3rd, when 69.5 mm of rain were recorded. Much of this rain fell in a few minutes in the very early hours, during an intense thunderstorm that packed rainfall rates of over 300 mm/hr, winds of up to Force 7 and dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning. Xlendi, notable for frequent in storms, bore the brunt of it all. The valley system that empties in Xlendi collects run-off from the localities which received the most rainfall from these thunderstorms. Cars were carried to the sea and debris littered the streets. Rainfall during the thunderstorm was most intense between 3:28 a.m. and 3:39 a.m. when a staggering 37.8 mm of rain were dumped in just 11 minutes.

October 2021 turned out to be noticeably cooler than average. With a mean temperature of 20.6°C, last month was a solid 0.8°C cooler than the climate norm. Last month started off on a relatively warm note. This was short-lived, however. Successive pockets of cooler air from over Europe, coupled with the cooling effect of rain on a staggering 20 days, ensured a pattern of consistently cooler than average temperatures. A 13.9°C low, the coldest for October 2021, was registered on the 21st. This was measured at around dawn, after a night of cooling under anticyclonic conditions. The very warm days at the start of the month were brought about by southerly winds which fanned hot air from north Africa towards the central Mediterranean. Last months warmest temperature of 27.6°C was measured on two days, the 4th and 5th.

The 241.0 mm of rain measured last month was almost three times more than the 83.3 mm expected in a typical October. This made October 2021 the third wettest October since record keeping began a century ago. Rain fell on 20 days last month, with rainfall events having been evenly distributed, bar for a brief dry spell in the third week of the month. Thunder was heard on 10 days. Hail was observed on 2 days. Total 24-hour rainfall exceeded 25 mm on 4 days. The wettest day was the 3rd, when 69.5 mm of rain were recorded. Much of this rain fell in a few minutes in the very early hours, during an intense thunderstorm that packed rainfall rates of over 300 mm/hr, winds of up to Force 7 and dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning. Xlendi, notable for frequent in storms, bore the brunt of it all. The valley system that empties in Xlendi collects run-off from the localities which received the most rainfall from these thunderstorms. Cars were carried to the sea and debris littered the streets. Rainfall during the thunderstorm was most intense between 3:28 a.m. and 3:39 a.m. when a staggering 37.8 mm of rain were dumped in just 11 minutes.

 

 

Rainfall Totals around the Maltese Islands in October 2021 (and since last September 1st):

Għarb – 241.0 mm (250.6 mm)

Marsalforn – 259.3 mm (274.5 mm)

Victoria – 253.5 mm (271.9 mm)

Xewkija – 205.6 mm (220.4 mm)

Nadur – 236.1 mm (249.0 mm)

Mellieħa – 177.4 mm (194.2 mm)

Buġibba – 207.2 mm (241.5 mm)

Naxxar – 197.0 mm (231.3 mm)

Dingli – 185.5 mm (231.7 mm)

Mġarr – 226.3 mm (252.2 mm)

Mosta – 165.5 mm (190.5 mm)

Msida – 227.4 mm (250.2 mm)

Sliema – 213.5 mm (238.9 mm)

Valletta – 140.5 mm (161.6 mm)

Imqabba – 262.8 mm (276.1 mm)

Żabbar – 292.5 mm (305.1 mm)

Birżebbuġa – 212.2 mm (224.3 mm)

NATIONAL MEAN – 218.0 mm (239.2 mm)