Ireland’s weather in 2020 indicates further evidence of climate change, says Met Éireann
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
Today, the WMO published its Provisional Statement on the State of the Global Climate in 2020, on what is the 5th anniversary of the Paris Agreement. It stated that 2020 is on course to be one of the three warmest years on record worldwide. 2011-2020 will be the warmest decade on record.
Ireland’s meteorological data for 2020 also provides further evidence of a warming Ireland, according to Met Éireann. 2020 is on course to be the joint ninth warmest year on record in Ireland.
Met Éireann analysis of 2020 temperature and rainfall data from Ireland provides evidence of the country’s changing climate:
Furthermore, Ireland has felt the impacts of climate change this year:
Commenting on the data, Met Éireann Senior Climatologist Keith Lambkin said:
"As the WMO publishes its ‘Provisional Statement of the State of the Global Climate 2020’, it’s an opportunity to reflect on how 2020 compares to Ireland’s normal climate. Extreme weather experienced in Ireland in 2020 is likely to become more common into the future. Our analysis shows a wetter Winter and drier Spring than we have been used to. This pattern is in line with predicted climate change-related trends for Ireland. We saw the impact of such weather on our daily lives this year with the high level of flooding in February, particularly in the Shannon catchment. At the other end of the spectrum, a national hosepipe ban was introduced after parts of the East had its driest Spring on record. A number of significant storms during 2020, including Brendan and Ellen, caused the loss of electricity, affecting people and businesses throughout the country."
Lambkin, part of the team in Met Éireann that predicts and analyses Ireland’s climate, and a member of Ireland’s delegation at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Climate Dialogue this week, added:
"The warming we see globally is also observed here in Ireland and it is this warming that increases the risk of more extreme weather events. By providing the latest climate information and projections, Met Éireann and its partners continue to help Irish society to develop plans to adapt to climate change and future extreme weather."
This news comes as the WMO outline the stark reality of increasing extreme events due to global warming. Their key messages include:
As records continue to be broken globally, so too are records being broken in Ireland. The science is complex but the message is simple – to reduce the extremes we must reduce the warming.
Today, the WMO publishes its Provisional Statement on the State of the Global Climate in 2020, available here.
Its key messages included:
Detailed monthly descriptions of Ireland’s weather in 2020 can be found on Met Éireann’s Past Weather Statements webpage: www.met.ie/climate/past-weather-statements.
Some highlights include:
Four stations had their highest May temperature on record:
Highest Mean Sea Level Pressure (MSLP) ever recorded in March: 1051.2 hPa was observed at Malin Head, Co Donegal on 29 March 2020.
A report and further information on Irish climate projections is available at: www.epa.ie/pubs/reports/research/climate/researchreport339.
Short videos explaining Met Éireann’s work on climate change can be found here: www.met.ie/climate/climate-change.
For past reports, up to date data and news articles are available from the Met Éireann website: www.met.ie.
Further information on this virtual event (23 Nov – 4 Dec 2020) is available here: unfccc.int/cd2020.
ENDS