Last month marked the driest November for the Isle of Man in over a decade, with just 53.5mm of rain recorded in the rainfall gauge at Ronaldsway during the month.

And that figure is only around half the 30-year average rainfall level for the Isle of Man.

This makes November 2024 the island’s fifth driest on record.

More than half of the month's rainfall occurred on a single morning, November 23, during the impact of Storm Bert.

The storm brought heavy rain and peak gusts of 52 knots (60 mph) at Ronaldsway, resulting in localised flooding.

Following the storm, the month was largely calm, with a mean wind speed of 11.1 knots, the third lowest on record.

Temperatures above average but with a wintry interlude

The 24-hour average temperature for November was 9.1°C, slightly above the long-term average.

The month began with mild and settled conditions, characterised by persistent cloud cover that kept nighttime temperatures higher than usual.

However, a colder spell mid-month brought a touch of winter.

On November 21, daytime temperatures peaked at just 5.4°C, while early morning recorded a chilly -1.3°C.

Storm Bert later introduced warmer tropical maritime air, with the month's highest temperature of 15.0°C recorded on November 10.

Record-breaking lack of sunshine

November’s skies were notably overcast, with only 43.5 hours of sunshine—a sharp drop from the average of 67 hours.

The dull conditions culminated in a new record for the Isle of Man: an 11-day streak without any sunshine from October 30 to November 9, surpassing the previous record of 10 sunless days set in March 1969.

A mild and calm Autumn overall

Looking at the Autumn as a whole, the Isle of Man experienced slightly less rain and wind compared to averages, while temperatures and sunshine hours remained near normal.

The season saw 224mm of rain, below the seasonal average of 278mm, and 330 hours of sunshine. Winds were relatively calm, with a mean speed of 11 knots.