Northern Ireland to enjoy week of better than average temperatures

Northern Ireland is set for another spell of warm weather this week with temperatures expected to hit highs of around 20 degrees.
Walkers on Bangor beach enjoying the recent extended spell of good weatherWalkers on Bangor beach enjoying the recent extended spell of good weather
Walkers on Bangor beach enjoying the recent extended spell of good weather

The sunny spell comes as more lockdown restrictions are eased at forests and country parks, where fish-and-chip vans and ice-cream vans are set to make a return during the summer sunshine.

Agriculture and Environment Minister Edwin Poots announced that amenities at forests and country parks owned by his department will return from Monday onwards.

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“I am opening these facilities as a further step to aid recovery and to provide a more complete experience for people visiting these fantastic outdoor venues,” Mr Poots said.

And this week’s warm weather comes after the sunniest spring ever recorded, according to Armagh Observatory who have been monitoring sunshine for 140 years.

The historic research institute also recorded the driest spring in 150 years.

While the temperatures aren’t expected to rise as highly as some of those recorded in May, the week ahead is still set to be warmer than usual.

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Martin Bowles, an operational meteorolgist with the Met Office in Exeter, said: “It’s going to be quite a warm week, all the way through.

“Temperatures will be above average, maybe two or three degrees above average for the time of year.

“In Belfast the average is about 17 Celsius as a maximum in the afternoons and we are expecting it to be around 20 Celsius in the next few days.

“A little bit less in the far west.”

He continued: “We’ve got warm air coming from the continent and right across the UK that’s keeping it quite warm.

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“In terms of the rainfall it’s a little bit hit and miss. There’s likely to be quite a lot warm sunshine but there’s a chance that will be interupted by showers, particularly in the afternoon on Monday.

“Tuesday looks very similar with lots of warm sunshine and light winds, but also the potential for some heavy showers or even thunderstorms in the afternoon.

“Wednesday looks like it will be drier but a little bit cloudy. Thursday looks rather similar but Friday might have some more persistent rain.”