Finland sees warmer, exceptionally rainy August

Finland experienced warmer temperature than usual in August throughout the country, said the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) in a press release on Thursday.

The average temperature for the month varied between approximately 13 degrees Celsius in Northern Lapland and just under 18 degrees in the southern parts of the country.

The greatest deviation was observed in Lapland, approximately two degrees.

At several northern observation stations, the month is one of the warmest Augusts on record.

At the observation stations of Kilpisjärvi Village Centre, Kevo Utsjoki and Savukoski Village, August was record warm.

In Lapland, there were a few more hot days (temperatures exceeding 25°C) than average, whereas in the southern and western parts of the country, there were a few less than usual.

The largest number of hot days, or five days, was observed at the Kouvola observation station as well as in Nuorgam, Utsjoki, and Kirakkajärvi in Inari. In the whole country, ten hot days were measured in August, which is quite normal.

The highest temperature of the month, 33.6 degrees Celsius, was recorded at Pyynpää in Rauma on August 7 while the lowest temperature was minus 2.3 °C, and it was measured at the Tulppio station in Savukoski on the 22nd of the month.

There was plenty of rainfall all over the country in August. Especially in the western parts of the country and in Lapland, the precipitation was 1.5 to 2 times more than in an average August.

According to preliminary data, the highest precipitation was recorded at Tvärminne station in Hanko, 212.4 mm. The lowest rainfall was recorded at Punkaharju in Savonlinna, 40.4 mm.

The highest amount of daily precipitation, 92.5 mm, was recorded in Savonranta, Savonlinna, on August 13.

In August, the number of thunderstorms was lower than average. Approximately 10,000 cloud-to-ground lightning discharges were observed in Finland, which is only one third of the long-term average.

The sun was shining less than usual in the western parts of the country and in Western Lapland. In the east, however, the situation was quite close to long-term averages.

Significant weather events in August included the strong gusts in the west on Sylvia’s day on 8 August, and heavy rainfall in the west and gusts in the east on Tauno’s name day, 28 August.

Summer was record warm in Kilpisjärvi

In large parts of the country, the average temperature for the summer, or June–August, was 0.5 to 1 degrees Celsius higher than usual.

In Northern Lapland, the deviation from the average was more than one degree, while in North Karelia, it was close to average. In Kilpisjärvi, the summer was the warmest in the local measurement history. The previous record from 2002 was exceeded by two tenths and is now 11.6 degrees. Observations have been recorded in Kilpisjärvi since 1951.

The highest temperature of the summer, 33.6 degrees, was measured in Rauma on 7 August. The lowest temperature, minus 7.7 degrees, was measured at Saana Fell on 1 June. This is Finland’s new record for cold temperature in June.

There were 40 hot days (temperatures exceeding 25°C) in some parts of Finland between May and August, while the long-term average is 36 hot days. In terms of individual observation stations, the largest number of hot days from May to August, 22 in total, was recorded at the observation stations of Utti in Kouvola, Anjala in Kouvola and Lepaa in Hattula. There was a slightly higher number of hot days than average in the west, while the numbers were slightly lower in the east.

Summer was particularly rainy in the central part of the country, where it rained 1.5 times more than average in places. According to preliminary data, the highest amount of precipitation was recorded at Pirttiperä in Multia, 413.4 mm. The lowest level of precipitation in the summer was recorded at the Fagerholm station in Parainen, 100.9 mm.

When measured in terms of lightning, there were not that many thunderstorms in the summer. Approximately 72,000 cloud-to-ground lightning discharges were observed by the end of August. The long-term average is approximately 130,000.

In many places, there was slightly more sunshine than usual.