Coventry weather

 Coventry weather in the spring can seem reluctant to warm up, as gardeners in Coventry will tell you. The warming process over Great Britain is delayed by melting sea ice north of the British Isles and to the east. Coventry weather in the spring the features the least amount of rain of all the seasons but the days are not exactly shorts and t-shirt weather! However the spring brings plenty of sunshine but this is not necessarily accompanied by hot or even warm temperatures.

 
The year 2007 was one of the warmest springs on record for Coventry weather but this was followed by one of our wettest summers with flooding and poor yields for Coventry farmers and gardeners.

March is usually a lively month of Coventry weather after months of winter darkness and short days. With cold winds from the North Pole and hot winds from the Equator, and the British Isles in between these two extremes, the Coventry weather can suffer from extreme conditions. Early March can see frequent storms; while a week or so later can be much calmer. Night time temperatures can seem like a return to winter. In late March we can enjoy the first warm days of the year. However March can bring us heavy snow sometimes.
Coventry weather sees the days of March get longer and the temperatures rise. About seven days are classified as wet but we enjoy over 100 hours of sunshine in March.

April is a month which often brings a big contrast in Coventry weather. It is often a mixed bag of dry, cool weather with clear skies and northerly winds, with a good measure of enjoyable sunshine. However the nights are often frosty and we do not escape April showers in Coventry.
With Coventry being just five miles from Meriden - the centre of England, high maximum temperatures in April can be a feature of Coventry weather. In 1893 26.7°C was recorded, and in 2003, April's hottest day was 25.3°C. The more typical temperature for a warm April day in Coventry weather is on average 18.9°C.
Gardeners planting early are risking problems from a late frost. An overnight minimum of -2°C is usual on several April nights so it is prudent for gardeners to be patient. With Coventry weather April can still feel quite like winter on some days. Back in 1981 the weather in Coventry saw 150mm of snow in April.
April 2007 gave the impression that the Coventry weather was going to produce a hot spring and summer and people were enjoying record breaking barbeque weather. Coventry weather records going back to 1892 showed that this was the warmest and sunniest April on record for Coventry weather. However this spring optimism was dampened in a big way when the summer of 2007 proved to be cold and wet, bringing floods and mayhem for farmers and grower.
There are indications of significantly warmer April's in the 21st century in Coventry weather. The average April temperature for the first few years of the 21st century has been 1.3C higher than 100 years ago. April sunshine in Coventry is now 11% more than 100 years ago. April brings the start of the season for Coventry Bears Rugby League Club and they play at the Butts Park Arena the home of Coventry RFC.

The weather in Coventry can see early May disappoint people hoping for bright spring days at last. May can have cold and grey days carried inland on North Easterly winds. The coldest day in May on record was a depressing 4.9°C back in 1955 .
Come late May 26°C is not unusual, and the warmest Coventry weather in May was in 1947 with temperatures of 30.9°C.
The spring of 2007 was hot and sunny followed by a terrible summer. Farmers and growers know that we can still suffer from a hard frost during May - in 1938, Coventry weather recorded an overnight minimum of -5°C, more like winter weather in Coventry.
May is commonly the sunniest month in Coventry weather with over 200 hours. Coventry regularly enjoys 14 hours of sunshine in a late day in May. May also marks the end of the football season and a time for Coventry City FC to take stock and prepare for the next season.

Coventry summer weather can and often does feature some heavy rain. The summers in Britain can be affected by air masses from the Atlantic dominating over continental air streams from the east. Summer depressions are not as severe as winter however, so windy conditions are uncommon in June, July and August. Slow moving summer depressions will bring cool, dull and wet weather in Coventry persisting for weeks on end sometimes.
The summer air can hold more water vapour, and rainfall can be heavier than other times of the year. Thunderstorms can be frequent.
For a hot, dry summer we need anti-cyclonic conditions with air flowing in from the east. These are the conditions that gave us the hot dry summers of 1976, 1995, and 2003.
Summer in Coventry is our warmest season but average temperatures of 15.5°C reflect how cool a typical Coventry summer can be. Coventry weather in the summer will produce some days with a high of 26°C, but temperatures above 30°C make for media headlines. Coventry weather has produced these headline days on four occasions in 2003, and five occasions in 2006, which is the hottest summer on record for Coventry weather.
Summer is the sunniest season in Coventry weather with an average of 5.7 hours of sunshine per day and 15.9 hours is not unknown in late June and early July.
Frustratingly it is also wettest season in Coventry weather, but the summer also features the least number of wet days, and with thunder and lightening storms a dangerous feature.

Summer 2007 was the wettest summer on record for Coventry weather.
Overall the summer weather in Coventry is usually very pleasant and summer events in Coventry include gigs at the Ricoh Arena and the Godiva Festival

 
June Coventry weather records dispel the myth of flaming June. The 20th century recorded Only 10 warm and sunny Junes'. It is seldom the warmest month in Coventry weather even though June gives us our longest days. This is because the seas around the British coast are still rather cool.
June is the first summer month so Coventry weather brings average day time temperatures of 19°C, and the thermometer should hit 26°C during June in Coventry weather. The weather in Coventry saw the hottest June day on record on 26th June 1976 when the Mercury hit 32.4°C. In June 2005 Coventry weather saw 31.1°C recorded.
Air frost is not usually a feature of Coventry weather in June, but the risk of ground frost in the first week of June can still affect Coventry gardeners with squash, courgette and bean plants perishing in June frosts. The weather in Coventry has even seen snow falling on the 2nd June 1975 - we then had a heat-wave. Such is the fluctuating nature of Coventry weather.
Records indicate that early June weather in England is commonly dry and pleasant, and mid-June is often cooler and more unsettled with heavy rain. You only have to watch the Wimbledon Tennis Championships to witness that.
As already mentioned June 2007 was a remarkable month in Coventry weather. Following 12 dry days running at the begining of the month, the rain came and never seemed to stop. Coventry along with the rest of the UK, endured the wettest June since Coventry rainfall records were first kept in 1870 with 18 consecutive rainy days to end the month bringing 175mm of rain. This was the wettest June on record. Coventry weather records indicate that June was cooler by the end of the twentieth century than it was at the begining. The start of the 21st Century has seen Global warming responsible for warmer June weather in Coventry.

July in Coventry used to mean the start of the Coventry holiday fortnight when industry in Coventry would close down for two weeks and those who had work in Coventry would take their holidays. This very often coincided with rain, rain and yet more rain! However, the weather in Coventry has changed since the boom times in Coventry of the 1960's and 70's.
Coventry & Warwickshire is the centre of England and a consequence of our geographical position is that the weather in Coventry can bring more July thunderstorms than the British coastal areas because of higher inland temperatures. This means July can be a wet month with heavy rain. However July is reasonably dry usually. Gardeners in Coventry do not want a dry July but they do not want a monsoon either. Coventry gardeners want the right balance of sunshine and rain. Everyone else wants mostly sunshine with enough rain to keep the grass green. Most years the Coventry weather gives a good balance and the Coventry climate is enjoyable most years.
Daytime average temperatures of 21°C means that July is not cold, though early July can be disappointing, back in 1971 the daytime maximum was on average 10.8°C. The Coventry weather is usually good for 27°C on one or more days, and that often means that the weather in Coventry in July can produce the hottest day of the year in Coventry. July is the sunniest month usually and it is rare to have two dull days in succession. As already metioned, July 2007 was the wettest July in Coventry since 1936 with 139.7mm of rainfall.

The August weather in Coventry is likely to be wetter and cloudier than July, and the 8th month can be warm and humid. It is a relatively warm month and August should be a happy time for gardeners in Coventry but if humidity is high then the dreaded blight can destroy potato crops and tomato crops just when they are almost ready to harvest.
Depending on where the jetstream is, the high pressure from the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean gives us sunny August weather in Coventry. The sun is less powerful at this time of the year as we approach the end of summer. Towards the end of August there is a hint of autumn to the weather in Coventry. It can be a month that brings electric storms, due to the sultry conditions.
Autumn in Coventry is a usually a pleasant time of year with some very warm temperatures and is usually warmer than spring by at least 2°C. The autumn weather in Coventry has more rainfall than the springtime, but it is also sunnier. Autumn has got warmer in the past two decades, with 7 of the 10 warmest autumns on record occurring since 1990. The autumn weather in Coventry makes this a really pleasant time to be a visitor to Coventry. Autumn also sees the start of the sporting season for many of the sports clubs in Coventry such as Coventry Blaze ice hockey club Coventry City FC Coventry RFC. The Coventry heritage weekend is always held in the second weekend of September.

 Early September can seem like a continuation of summer and it is not unusual for the Coventry weather to produce hot days and more pleasant conditions than August. The hottest day recorded in September 2006 was 28.1°C which extended what had been a great summer.
September is frequently drier than any of the summer months and the 9th month often brings settled weather in Coventry as anticyclones keep the low pressure systems away from England. The price for this can be an early autumn ground frost as the nights are getting longer now, and autumnal fog start to appear.
The summer weather is likely to give way in mid September with a period of cooler, windy weather signalling that autumn has started.
September 2006 was the warmest September since before 1659, and the first September month for 50 years to be warmer than the previous month. September will see the arrival of fresher students in Coventry, eager and keen to get to know their new city and their university. There are two universities in Coventry - Coventry University and Warwick University.

October is the month when you know that autumn has arrived, even though Coventry weather often brings an "Indian summer". However, the seas around our coast are still warm and depressions from the west cross over the ocean. These depressions are more potent now, and heavy rain and stronger winds are common in October.
It is usual to wake up to a cold even frosty morning at this time of year. As the day goes on Coventry weather can produce 20°C on a few October days. We even enjoyed 27.1°C back in 1985 which proved to be the hottest day of the year. Come the end of October , the Coventry weather starts to cool and the high temperature is around 14°C.
The coldest Coventry weather in the month was recorded before 1919, while most of the warmest October weather has been in the last 20 years. The weather in Coventry during October has not been frosty since 2003, and no snowfall since 1974, but 2008 saw extraordinary October weather in Coventry.
In 2008 Coventrians were wondering what on earth was going on with Coventry weather when there was heavy snowfall on the 28th October and a hard frost on the morning of the 29th. Coventry woke up to October snow on the ground that morning for the first time since 1909.
The October sunshine total in 2008 was higher than that of either August or September of that year and that had not happened for 96 years.

The climate around the UK can be very frustrating. The seas around the British Isles are still relatively warm in November so the weather in Coventry in November tends not to be excessively cold. November tends to be damp and grey with dull, foggy days. High winds are now more common, but Coventry is sheltered from the direction of these storms, (northerly and westerly) and so this stormy Coventry weather does not usually cause severe damage in Coventry.
November weather in Coventry is not the coldest by some margin but none the less the colder temperatures are quite noticeable and with the days getting much shorter, winter is well and truly just around the corner. A late "Indian Summer" has become a feature of November weather in Coventry and we can get 15°C on a few odd days. In 1969 Coventry weather produced a November high of 20.8°C. There are some beautiful places to go in Coventry to enjoy the wonderful colours of autumn such as the War Memorial Park Coventry, Coombe Abbey Country Park, Allesley Park, Coundon Wedge, Ryton Pools, and Brandon Wood Nature Reserve.
Air frosts are now a feature and the temperature can drop to -3°C on the coldest night of the month and -7°C on the ground. Snow is still quite rare for Coventry weather in November but we usually get some sleet or wet snow.
The average November temperature for Coventry weather has been more varied than any other month since the late nineteenth century. Warm Novembers have been a feature of Coventry weather towards the end of the last century.
The biggest difference in today's November Coventry weather compared with 100 years ago is the November sunshine. The first decade of the 21st century has enjoyed 78% more sunshine, with a record 108.5 hours in 2006.

Coventry University holds it's graduation ceremony in Coventry Cathedral in November and the challenge for graduates and their family and friends is trying to keep the gowns from blowing around in the windy weather!

The Coventry Christmas lights switch on which is held in the third or last weekend of November, the Coventry weather forecast will probably indicate cold but dry conditions if recent years are an indicator. The Coventry Christmas lights switch on in 2010 was a chilly event but well attended by revellers enjoying Coventry Christmas shopping.

Winter is unsurprisingly Coventry's coldest season, with an average temperature of 4°C which is temperate compared to other parts of the UK and other countries on the same latitude. Night time average is 1.2°C. However the Coventry weather in the winter still brings around 33 air frosts over the season.
The winter does not produce the wettest weather in Coventry because with an average of 33 wet days this is less rain than a Coventry summer! But don't let that put you off visiting Coventry, we have more sunshine than many other parts of the UK.
The winter weather in Coventry brings with it the dullest time of year, with only 1.7 hours of winter sun per day.
Winters in Coventry have been getting warmer leading to some people claiming that global warming was here to stay. However the weather in Coventry in 2009, 2010 and the start of 2011 has seen some of the coldest weather in Coventry for 29 years. The weather in Coventry has produced an interesting winter statistic regarding the sunshine levels. Throughout the 20th century there has been a steady increase in winter sunshine. So far in this new century the first decade has resulted in 223.8 hours of winter sunshine which is 79% higher than the first decade of the 20th century (127.1hours), 100 years ago. Experts are in no doubt that this is because of the Clean Air Act and the huge decline in domestic coal fires and less pollution from industry following the pioneering Coventry Corporation Act of 1948 which saw Coventry City Council (Coventry Corporation) declared Coventry as the first smokeless zone in the UK. This led to Coventry becoming an Oporational Smokeless Zone on March 1st 1951. 

December is the dullest month but not the coldest. Even with the long nights and short days, December 1981 was the last very cold December with a minimum of -16.1°C on the coldest night of the 20th century in Coventry. December 2010 saw a return to severe winter weather in Coventry. Paradoxically the Coventry weather saw 1981 also produce the warmest ever December night at 12.6°C.
So far the average temperature for December in the 21st century has been 4.7°C which is warmer than the first decade of the 20th century (4.2°C). The Coventry weather in December 2010 was the coldest since 1981 and brought with it plenty of snow. This made Christmas in Coventry a white one in so far as there was snow on the ground over the Christmas time in Coventry. It did not snow on Christmas day in Coventry so it could not be declared as an official white Christmas.
The Coventry weather brings more water in August than in December. This has caused much frustration for gardeners with potato blight wiping out crops of potatoes and tomatoes just as the crop is nearing ripeness! The biggest change in December's Coventry weather over the past hundred years has been the large increase in the month's hours of sunshine, with the average more than doubling.

Coventry weather in January brings contrasting conditions with a mix of mild, wet spells and cold, frosty periods as well. January is Coventry's coldest month, but the past 30 years has seen February very similar.
In recent years the New Year bank holiday weather in Coventry has been very mild and unsettled. January would normally only have 13 wet days. Typically Coventry weather will produce a mid-month freeze. The warmest day of the month would normally be in the region of 11°C, and the coldest -6.0°C.
Coventry weather has produced cold Januarys, like 1940, 1963 and 1979 the result of easterly airflow, while the mild Januarys of 1974, 1983, 1990 and 2007 may have been the result of a westerly wind pattern from the Atlantic. With a mean monthly temperature of 1.4C, January 2010 was the coldest January in Coventry since 1987 when the mean was 0.8C.
January is the month when Coventry weather is most likely to produce snowfall in Coventry, with about 6 days of snowfall. Coventry weather is not usually severe enough to leave much snow lying on the ground so disruption is usually slight.
Experts point to the monthly sunshine statistics as the greatest evidence for climate change. The average sunshine total in Coventry during January so far this century has more than doubled since a hundred years ago.

In the last 20 years February has been milder and sunnier than a century ago. The Coventry weather in February by tradition is rather cold, stormy, dark and miserable. As the month moves on we are more likely to see cold frosty nights and a few bright days with sunshine as the days start to get noticeably longer as we move towards springtime.
Since 1990, which was the mildest February on record according to records of Coventry weather; the city has enjoyed mean February temperatures in the 21st century so far of 5.8C, over 2 degrees warmer than a hundred years ago.
February is the shortest and driest month of the year in Coventry weather with even the wettest day likely to record less than 10mm of rain, and about eight wet days on average. So fat this century, although only 10 years old, Coventry weather has seen a fall in February's rainfall total.

Spring arrives and we wonder what sort of weather in Coventry will lay ahead. For vistors and tourists the weather in Coventry will have some influence on what places to visit in Coventry and things to do in Coventry. Our city is 1,000 years old and has a facinating story to tell. So come and visit  historic  Coventry. Whatever the Coventry weather there will be    things to see and places to go in Coventry. Check it out on the most comprehensive Coventry guide.