Hi, all –
Last October my partners and I emigrated from Daly City, California USA to Dublin, Ireland. The Dublin 2029 Bid Committee thought it might be good to have someone inform you folks from the States as to what to expect when you visit Ireland and so they tapped this recent emigré for my insight.
The Weather – of course!
This is the first of several columns highlighting what to expect, so I’ll start with that thing that everyone talks about (and no one can do anything about): the weather. You’ve heard that Ireland is cool and wet. That’s kinda true… but, as you’ll see, there’s a twist.
Dublin in early August is cool-temperate – the typical high is below 20 Celsius (that’s 68F for those of you still in the thrall of imperial [storm trooper] units). It might get a handful of degrees warmer or cooler. Nighttime lows are typically 4-8C (double that for F) below the daytime highs.
You will not see much nighttime. We’re very far north and sunrise will be before 6 AM and sunset after 9 PM.
Air quality will be great – Dublin has really clean air. But what about rain? It’s likely not what you thought. Dublin gets lots of showers, but they’re mostly brief and light. It’s rare to have a day with no sun. Last January there was a record-breaking string of storms moving though and the sky was a sunless overcast for about two weeks – the locals just about went mad.
On just about any day that rain is predicted, you can also expect sun. But when? That’s the 64,000 euro question! The answer is anyone’s guess… and the guesses are often wrong.
There are three competing forces of nature vying for dominance here. There’s stuff that’s coming in from the west-southwest from the Atlantic, there’s stuff that blows down from the arctic north, and there’s stuff that blows in from the European mainland to the east. The conditions are in constant flux and totally precise weather prediction is just about impossible, even a few hours ahead! I am not exaggerating.
The official weather app is that of Met Éireann, who of course supply everyone else with the data.
The most popular weather app and website here is Yr. — Dagens værvarsel for ditt sted — that’ll give you weekly, daily and hourly predictions and has a really nifty map that shows the where the precipitation will be for about the next day and a half. Sometimes it’s even right.
My most reliable source in the States was Weather Underground — Local Weather Forecast, News and Conditions | Weather Underground — so I still use it here. It will also provide both long-range and hourly forecasts although it lacks Yr’s supercool map.
At times Met Éireann, Yr and Weather Underground agree. Oft-times they don’t. Sometimes they’re all right. Sometimes they’re all wrong. Understand that this can be on the scale of a few hours – what the apps tell you before lunch may not hold true by afternoon tea.
There’s a fine app and website called Windy — Professional weather forecast — that puts up a map of current winds (and a whole lot more). Sometimes it’s right, too.
But, as I said, the rains are typically brief and light. Unless you inherited Wicked Witch of the West genes, a small portable umbrella and/or a water-resistant hat and jacket ought to do you fine. Or just wait an hour for the weather to change. It very likely will.
pax
