Monthly Reviews

The average maximum temperature during March 2018 in Malaga was 18.6 Celsius (66F), and that was 0.4 Celsius (<1F) below normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 11.2 Celsius (52F), and that was normal for March.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 22.8 Celsius (73F) on the 27th, but there were 6 other days when the temperature rose above 20 Celsius (68F). There were 4 consecutive days, from the 26th, when maxima were above 20 Celsius (68F), including a further 2 days, the 28th and 29th, when the temperature peaked above 22.0 Celsius (72F). On most days, the highest temperature was between 17 and 20 Celsius (63-68F), but there were 5 days when the maxima stayed below 17 Celsius (63F). The period between the 20th and 23rd contained 3 of these cooler days, with the lowest temperature of 15.3 Celsius (60F) recorded on the 20th.

There were no particularly mild nights during March, but minimum temperatures were above 12 Celsius (54F) on 8 nights. Only 3 of these milder nights had lows above 13 Celsius (55F), including 2 with minima above 14 Celsius (57F). On the 29th, a low of 14.3 Celsius (58F) was recorded, but the mildest night was the 10th when a reading of 14.6 Celsius (59F) was logged. There were no especially cool nights during March, although temperatures fell below 10 Celsius (50F) on 6 occasions. On 3 of these cooler nights the temperature dipped below 9 Celsius (48F). The coolest spell was between the 20th and 22nd, and included a low of 7.8 Celsius (46F) on the morning of the 21st.

The sea temperature, around 15 Celsius (59F) at the beginning of the month, soon fell to 14 Celsius (57F), where it remained for the rest of the month, except for a brief interlude of 13 Celsius (55F), commencing at the end of the third week.

There were 170.3 millimetres (6.7 ins.) of rain during March, over 3.5 times the monthly average. This was the wettest March at this site since records began in 2006. It was the wettest March in the area since 2004. Rain fell on 17 days, and that was a new record for any month. The average number of rain days for March is 7. There were 12 wet days*. Showers, or longer spells of heavy rain, gave 55.6 millimetres (2.2 ins.) on the 1st. In fact, the monthly average of 49 millimetres (2 ins.) had been exceeded by midday! Although the afternoon was dry, further heavy rain occurred during much of the 2nd. By the end of the second day of March the total had risen to 98 millimetres (3.9 ins.) Further heavy rain occurred at times during the following week, and totals included 12.4 millimetres (0.5 ins.) on the 4th, and over 10 millimetres (0.4 ins.) on the 8th. The last rain of this spell occurred on the 11th, when 4.8 millimetres (0.2 ins) were measured. It brought to an end a record-breaking 15 consecutive days of rain, during which a total of over 170 millimetres (6.7 ins.) fell. Although the worst of rain was over by the middle of the second week, the weather remained fairly unsettled. On the 15th, almost 8 millimetres (0.3 ins.) of rain were measured, with nearly 7 millimetres (0.3 ins.) on the 18th. On the 24th, a further 3.6 millimetres (0.12 ins.) were added to the total, but the overnight fall of 0.8 millimetres (<0.12 ins.) proved to be the last measurable rain of the month.

There were 3 slight thunderstorms during March, these occurring on 2 days. The first storm was around dawn on the 1st, followed by another rumble of thunder mid-morning on the same day. Thunder also occurred during a shower early in the afternoon on the 10th.

Northwesterly winds dominated on 26 days during March, with sea breezes from either the southeast or southwest occurring very infrequently. The northwesterly land breeze was often quite strong, and gusts exceeded 20 knots (23 mph) on 14 days. The highest gust was 30 knots (34 mph) and this was recorded on both the 5th and 24th.

There was no fog observed in west Malaga during March.

Reporting Station	Highest Temp	Lowest Temp	Rain Total (mm)	Wettest	Rain days
Malaga Airport	24.8	7.1	192	69	13
Granada Airport	24.4	-0.1	193	32	24
Almeria	23.5	6.6	55	12	12
Seville	26.5	3.8	148	34	20
Cordoba	25.4	0.8	222	27	24
Jerez de la Frontera	25.1	2.7	263	27	23
Murcia	29.3	5.2	12	5	12

Climatology for March

Reporting Station	Extreme High Temp	Extreme Low Temp	Average Rain (mm)	Extreme Wettest day (mm)	Average Rain days
Malaga Airport	31.4	-1.2	49	102	4
Granada Airport	30.0	-7.6	30	43	5
Almeria	27.2	2.6	15	36	3
Seville	30.8	-2.0	38	75	5
Cordoba	30.6	-4.2	40	80	5
Jerez de la Frontera	30.6	-2.4	42	60	5
Murcia	33.6	-4.2	30	46	3

The average maximum temperature during February 2018 in Malaga was 16.8 Celsius (62F), and that was 0.3 Celsius (0.5F) below normal for the time of year. It was identical to the average maximum temperature during January. The average minimum temperature was 8.6 Celsius (48F), and that was 1.3 Celsius (2F) below normal for February.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 21.8 Celsius (71F) on the 17th. There were 3 other days when the temperature rose above 20 Celsius (68F), the 11th, 21st and 27th. The warmest of these 3 days was the 27th with a high of 20.8 Celsius (69F). On most days the temperature rose to between 15 and 20 Celsius (59-68F), but early in the month there were several cool days. On 7 of the first 9 days of February the temperature failed to reach 15 Celsius (59F), with 3 of these cooler days having maxima below 13 Celsius (55F). In fact, the coolest days were the 5th, 6th and 7th, with the coolest of all the 7th. On this day the temperature only struggled to 12.5 Celsius (55F).

There were no particularly mild nights during February, and minimum temperatures were only above 10 Celsius (50F) on 11 nights. Only 2 of these milder nights occurred before mid month, with the 4 mildest nights (minima above 12 Celsius (54F)) occurring after the 20th. The last night of the month provided the sole minimum temperature above 13 Celsius (55F) with a reading of 13.8 Celsius (57F).

The sea temperature stayed around 15 Celsius (59F) throughout the month.

There were 22.4 millimetres (0.9 ins.) of rain during February. At the turn of the month rain fell, but it was light and confined to the early hours of the 1st. The total was a mere 0.5 millimetres (0.02 ins.). Showers occurred on the 4th, but less than 2 millimetres (0.08 ins.) of rain were recorded. It then stayed dry until the 19th when showery rain overnight added another 0.8 millmetres (0.03 ins.) to the monthly total. The rest of the rainfall occurred on the last 4 days of February. The first 3 of these rain days had a combined total of 2.8 millimetres (0.1 ins.), but the last day of the month was markedly different. Heavy rain in the afternoon and evening accounted for over 70% of the February total with 16.5 millimetres (0.65 ins.) measured.

No thunderstorms were observed in west Malaga during February.

The wind through February was mainly from the northwest with only limited afternoon sea breeze formation. The breeze was often quite strong, with gusts exceeding 20 knots (23 mph) on 8 days. The windiest weather occurred during the second week with gusts above 20 knots (23 mph) on 4 days. However, the highest gust, 25 knots (29 mph) was recorded on the 2nd. Towards the end of the month winds from an east or southeasterly direction became more prominent and there were a few days with somewhat lighter breezes.

There was no fog observed in west Malaga during February.

Reporting Station	Highest Temp	Lowest Temp	Rain Total (mm)	Wettest	Rain days
Malaga Airport	22.2	1.6	29	21	6
Granada Airport	21.1	-4.2	16	6	6
Almeria	20.6	5.4	9	4	4
Seville	22.4	-0.6	15	13	4
Cordoba	22.9	-3.1	22	12	5
Jerez de la Frontera	22.3	-1.9	22	12	7
Murcia	22.9	0.6	16	12	5

Climatology for February

Reporting Station	Extreme High Temp	Extreme Low Temp	Average Rain (mm)	Extreme Wettest day (mm)	Average Rain days
Malaga Airport	30.0	-3.8	55	151	5
Granada Airport	26.2	-10.0	38	35	6
Almeria	25.7	0.2	21	51	3
Seville	28.0	-5.5	54	68	6
Cordoba	27.8	-5.0	53	61	6
Jerez de la Frontera	29.0	-5.0	60	77	7
Murcia	29.4	-3.9	28	68	3

The average maximum temperature during January 2018 in Malaga was 16.8 Celsius (62F), and that was 0.1 Celsius (<0.2F) below normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 9.6 Celsius (50F), and that was 0.3 Celsius (0.5F) above normal for January.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 22.4 Celsius (72F) on the 21st, but there were 5 other days when the temperature rose above 20 Celsius (68F). A mild start to the year saw 3 out of the first 4 days having maxima above 20 Celsius (68F), and 3 consecutive days, beginning on the 20th, also had highs in excess of 20 Celsius (68F). On many days (9) the temperature rose to between 17 and 20 Celsius (63-68F), but there were also several cool days. On 8 days the temperature failed to rise above 15 Celsius (59F), and they included 3 days during the first fortnight with maxima below 12 Celsius (54F). The coolest day was the 8th when the temperature only reached 9.8 Celsius (50F).

Many of the mildest nights in January occurred at the beginning of the month, with 4 out of the first 5 nights having minimum temperatures above 12 Celsius (54F). These included a low of 13.9 Celsius (57F) on the night of the 3rd/4th. There were 2 other nights when the temperature stayed above 12 Celsius (54F). These occurred at the beginning of the fourth week, with the mildest night of the month occurring on the 20th/21st. The minimum on this night was 14.1 Celsius (57F). There were several cool nights during January, and 9 nights had minima below 8 Celsius (46F). All of these cooler nights occurred before the 19th, and most of them were confined to the second week of January. On 3 nights, the 8th/9th, 12th/13th and 15th/16th, temperatures fell below 6 Celsius (43F). The coolest night was the 15th/16th with a low of 5.1 Celsius (41F).

The sea temperature was around 15 Celsius (59F) throughout the month.

There were 42.4 millimetres (1.7 ins.) of rain during January. This was about 25% below the monthly average. Rain fell on 10 days, and that was 3 days above the January normal. the first rain of the year fell on the 6th. Heavy rain in the morning totalled 11.7 millimetres (0.5 ins) with further showery rain falling on the afternoon of the following day. Outbreaks of rain, heavy at times, occurred on the 8th, mainly during the morning. It was the wettest day of the m onth with 19.8 millimetres (0.8 ins.) recorded. Rain also occurred late on the 9th and during the early hours of the 10th, but much of this rain was light. Over 2 millimetres (0.1 ins.) of rain fell on the afternoon of the 14th, but it then stayed dry until the 24th. Sea mist was wet enough to produce measurable rain on the 24th, with light rain producing o.3 millimetres (0.01 ins.) again on the evening of the 25th. A similar amount was measured late on the 27th, with patchy rain on the 28th giving another 4.8 millimetres (0.2 ins.)

Thunder was widespread along the Costa del Sol, including Malaga, on the morning of the 8th.

The wind through January was mainly from the northwest with only limited afternoon sea breeze formation. The breeze was often quite strong, with gusts exceeding 20 knots (23 mph) on 8 out of the first 11 days of the month. Gusts were also above 20 knots (23 mph) between the 20th and 22nd, with further gusty winds occurring during the last week of the month. On the 28th a remarkable levant wind developed. On the morning of the 28th, a typical west-northwesterly breeze was blowing with speeds of 10 to 15 knots (11-17 mph). During the early afternoon the west-northwesterly breeze decreased to 5 to 10 knots (6-11 mph) but the sea became rough.. At 1330, the wind abruptly swung easterly and increased to 10 to 15 knots (11-17 mph). The easterly wind dramatically increased from 16 knots (18 mph) at 1425, to a gale force 34 knots at 1430 to a severe gale force 40 knots at 1435. Gale or severe gale continued until 1635 with a gust of 51 knots (58 mph) recorded. This was the second highest gust recorded since records began in 2005, the highest being 57 knots (65 mph) measured in November 2010. The wind stayed strong through the evening, before moderating around 2140. Remarkably, at 2225 the wind fell flat calm, and by 2250 a gentle land breeze (west-northwesterly) began to blow. However, this was not the end of it. At 0250 on the 29th the land breeze died away and at 0255 a 15 to 20 knot (17-22 mph) east-southeasterly breeze began to blow. This wind increased through the following hour to strong to gale force 30 to 35 knots (34-40 mph), and blew unabated for the following 24 hours, before dying away as suddenly as it arrived.

There was fog during the evening of the 23rd and the morning of the 24th was very misty. There was also misty low cloud on the following morning.

Reporting Station	Highest Temp	Lowest Temp	Rain Total (mm)	Wettest	Rain days
Malaga Airport	22.6	3.3	45	22	7
Granada Airport	21.1	-2.3	24	13	9
Almeria	20.5	5.2	7	3	5
Seville	19.8	2.9	70	23	9
Cordoba	21.6	-0.4	46	17	10
Jerez de la Frontera	20.2	0.6	44	21	10
Murcia	26.0	0.7	56	39	7

Climatology for January

Reporting Station	Extreme High Temp	Extreme Low Temp	Average Rain (mm)	Extreme Wettest day (mm)	Average Rain days
Malaga Airport	26.8	-2.6	81	121	6
Granada Airport	24.6	-14.2	41	36	6
Almeria	24.4	1.9	23	59	3
Seville	24.2	-4.4	65	66	5
Cordoba	22.9	-8.4	64	79	7
Jerez de la Frontera	25.3	-5.4	89	112	7
Murcia	25.8	-7.5	25	76	3

The average maximum temperature during December 2017 in Malaga was 17.5 Celsius (63F), and that was 0.4 Celsius (<1F) above normal for the time of year. The average minimum temperature was 9.2 Celsius (49F), and that was 1.1 Celsius (1.5F) below normal for December. The nights were, on average, the coldest in December for 9 years.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 21.2 Celsius (70F) on the 15th, but there were 2 other days when the temperature rose above 20 Celsius (68F), the 8th and 10th with highs of 20.1 Celsius (68F) and 20.4 Celsius (68F) respectively. There were only 8 other days when the temperature rose above 18 Celsius (64F), with 5 of these warmer days, perhaps surprisingly, occurring right at the end of the month. On each of the last 4 days of December the temperature rose above 19 Celsius (66F). There were no particularly cold days during the month, but on 6 occasions the maxima were below 16 Celsius (61F). However, only 2 of these cooler days had highs below 15 Celsius (59F). On the 3rd a maximum temperature of 14.7 Celsius (59F) was recorded, but the following day was cooler with av high of 14.5 Celsius (59F).

The mildest nights in December generally occurred in the latter part of the month. There were 12 nights when the temperature stayed above 10 Celsius (50F), but only 2 of these milder nights were recorded during the first fortnight of December. There were 5 nights when the temperature remained above 14 Celsius (57F). The 9th and 10th had minima of 14.8 Celsius (59F) and 14.5 Celsius (59F) respectively, the 15th had a low of 14.7 Celsius (59F) and the 28th had a minimum of 14.3 Celsius (58F). However, the mildest night was the 29th with a low of 15.7 Celsius (60F). This was the mildest December night for 7 years. There were many cool nights during December. On 14 occasions the temperature fell below 8 Celsius (46F) including the first 8 days of the month. However, there were only 7 nights when minima were below 7 Celsius (45F), including 3 consecutive nights from the 20th. The only 2 nights with minima below 6 Celsius (43F), were the 13th with a low of 5.5 Celsius (41F) and the 4th when 4.3 Celsius (40F) was recorded.

The sea temperature was 15 or 16 Celsius (around 60F) throughout the month.

There were 14.5 millimetres (0.6 ins.) of rain during November. This was only 18% of the monthly average and culminating in a year that only had 60% of it’s average rainfall. After 10 almost completely sunny days, there was heavy rain on the morning of the 11th. A total of 14.2 millimetres (0.6 ins.) fell, but it then stayed dry until the 25th. A light shower during the afternoon of the 25th was not enough to trouble the rain gauge, and further rain around lunch-time on the 26th was also too light to measure. Showery rain mid morning on the 27th produced 0.3 millimetres (0.01 ins.) of rain and this was the last rain of the year.

There were no reports of thunder in west Malaga during December.

The wind through December was mainly from the northwest with only limited afternoon sea breeze formation. In fact, only 2 days, the 5th and 24th, had southeasterly winds for the majority of the day. The northwesterly wind was often quite brisk, especially during the mornings, and gusts exceeded 20 knots (23 mph) on 6 days. Gusts of 29 knots (33 mph) were recorded on both the 9th and 27th, but the windiest day of the month was the 11th when a gust of 34 knots (39 mph) occurred.

No fog was observed in west Malaga during December.

Reporting Station	Highest Temp	Lowest Temp	Rain Total (mm)	Wettest	Rain days
Malaga Airport	21.7	2.8	13	13	2
Granada Airport	16.6	-4.6	32	10	7
Almeria	20.7	5.4	2	1	2
Seville	21.0	2.4	28	24	4
Cordoba	20.5	-1.5	29	18	5
Jerez de la Frontera	21.3	-1.0	32	22	5
Murcia	24.2	-0.5	3	3	2

Climatology for December

Reporting Station	Extreme High Temp	Extreme Low Temp	Average Rain (mm)	Extreme Wettest day (mm)	Average Rain days
Malaga Airport	24.6	-0.8	88	133	6
Granada Airport	24.5	-9.2	53	42	7
Almeria	29.2	2.0	23	48	3
Seville	24.5	-4.8	95	81	8
Cordoba	22.6	-7.8	85	120	6
Jerez de la Frontera	26.8	-5.4	89	101	8
Murcia	25.8	-6.0	21	43	4