According to data released by the Malta Meteorological Office, 2022 was the second-driest year of the past decade, having registered just 368mm of rain.
The year clocked a much higher than average amount of sunshine, totalling 3,124 hours. The amount of sunshine far outmatched the amount of rainfall, making 2022 the second driest year of the island in the past 10 years.
December broke any hopes that the onset of the meteorological winter would bring the rainfall measured throughout the previous 11 months of the year closer to the normative 543mm. December saw just 6.4mm of precipitation, with 1.0mm of said precipitation descending in the form of dew.
December 2022 became the driest one since 1922, as well as the 8th consecutive drier-than-average December. December mornings saw mist, fog and heavy dewfall, particularly during the latter half of the month.
These resulted from clear skies, light and variable winds as well as evaporation from surfaces that were still water-charged with November’s above-average rainfall. This accounted for 41% of the year’s total precipitation. November was both the wettest month as well as the stormiest one, with six thunderstorms out of a total of 17 which battered the island.
Meanwhile, May, July and September were all wetter than normal as the rest of the months produced less rain than the monthly quotas. February saw 4.0mm of precipitation rather than the expected 69.0mm, making it one of the driest on the records.
The first four months of 2022 were all colder than expected, with the first three months each having a day with hail. January 2022 was the coldest January in Malta since 2019 (with the lowest temperature of the year at 4.2°C.
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