One summer (or one winter) does not a climate make – but ……..
The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) has posted its summary of the 2102 summer.
In summary, one can say that the summer of 2012 was the year when “hot air avoided Sweden with uncanny precision.”
The summer of 2012 was not one of the wettest and coldest, but was probably still a disappointment for most vacationers. There was not a single extended period of warmth, sunshine and clear blue skies throughout the summer. It is twelve years since it happened last. Previously, this type of summer occurred more frequently. 1987, 1993, 1998 and 2000 are examples.
Otherwise, there was absolutely no shortage of hot air over the Northern Hemisphere. But it avoided Sweden with uncanny precision.
Temperature
This summer’s average temperature was in most of the country a little lower than normal. In the inner parts of northern Sweden, this year’s summer was the coldest since 1993, 1995 and 1998. In southern Norrland, Svealand and Götaland the summer was the coldest since 2000. In southern Götaland, which was closest to the hot air further south in Europe, it is enough to go to 2004 to find a summer with a lower average temperatures.
Precipitation
In the case of rainfall, it was uneven, as so often in the summer. In most places in the country at least one of the previous three summers were wetter than this year’s summer. But for example Stockholm and Linköping have to go back to 1960 to find a summer with higher rainfall.
In southern Sweden, it did not rain much during the summer and in Blekinge and southeastern Småland, there have been occasional problems with low water levels.
Month by month
The summer began with the month of June and for the country as a whole was the coldest since 1991. It also rained heavily. In Stockholm, Västerås and Skara , June rainfall was at record levels.
July continued in the same style. Most rain was during the weekend of 7-8 July. In eastern Småland rainfall of about 100 mm caused flooding in the area around the river. Locally, the water levels were at their highest in over 50 years. Even in parts of Dalarna rainfall was very heavy. The rest of July was predominantly rainy, but it was not quite so violent. Some localities were affected by flooding in storm-water systems.
As with many other summers in recent decades, August was – relatively – the most stable summer month. There was high-pressure –like weather in the middle of the month. But it was very patchy with a lot of cloud off and on. The high pressure was followed by a few days when really warm air came in over southern Sweden. On 20th July Lund registered its maximum summer temperature of 32.1 ° C.
Tags: climate, SMHI, summer weather, Sweden
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