August had an autumn air, says the weatherman

The weather has been the main topic of conversation over the past few days, with global warming being blamed for one of the wettest and coolest Augusts on record. But the Met Office is more cautious, and while acting head José Antonio Guijarro admits that the month has been “atypical” he will not go so far as to blame it on global warming. He says that the climate changes very much from one year to another and no two years are the same. However, he did say that summer had been atypical, explaining that usually summer in the Balearics is dominated by high subtropical pressures, producing the typical summer anticyclone with clear blue skies and many hours of sunshine. But this year, there have been frequent invasions of cold air from the north, typical of the autumn, and August has had a decidedly autumnal character. However, he went on, as the climate is so variable from one year to another, it is hard to say if there has been a change in climate. Guijarro explained that if long climatological periods are studied, then an increase in temperatures has been noted in the chief observatories, although it is much more difficult to test the rain levels. Asked to analyse the heavy rains and flooding which have affected many parts of the world, he said that over the past few decades there has been more rain than normal in the highest lattitudes. Returning to Majorca, comparing this August with previous years, record amounts of rain have fallen in five areas of Majorca, namely Capdepera, Lluc, Sa Pobla, Son Sant Joan airport and Palma-Portopi. But no records were broken in Ibiza and Minorca. Lluc had the heaviest rain in 50 years. The worst of the heat is over, Guijarro said, and while there will still be sunny days, it will not be necessary to switch on the air conditioner or fans as much.