The weather in Germany in June 2016 Summer replaced by severe weather with thunder, lightning and heavy rain

Offenbach, 29 June 2016 - In June, largely wet and only moderately warm air masses defined the weather in Germany. Minimal differences in air pressure resulted in little change, yet there were often severe thunderstorms, accompanied in many areas by very high and sometimes catastrophic rainfall, at times with hail and even tornadoes. For just a brief period, hot air from north-west Africa reached Germany and left a first impression of high summer. Overall, this resulted in a relatively warm June, with far too much precipitation and sunshine duration that was slightly below average. This is what the initial analysis by the Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) of data from its around 2,000 weather stations shows.

Generally a warm, brief period of high summer during the last third of the month

During the first summer month of the year, the nationwide average temperature for Germany was 17.0 degrees Celsius (°C), which is 1.6 degrees higher than the long-term average for the international reference period 1961–1990. Compared to the reference period 1981–2010, the deviation was +1.2 degrees. The lowest night-time temperatures of just above freezing, with some places even recording ground frost, ushered in the period known as the “Sheep's cold snap” at the end of the first ten days of the month. On 7 June, Barth to the west of Stralsund recorded a temperature of just 2.5°C. For a brief period during the last ten days of the month, a southern stream brought temperatures typical for high summer nationwide. On 24 June, for example, the temperature in Berlin-Kaniswall was a hot 36.4°C.

Many violent thunderstorms – enormous amounts of rain recorded in very many places

With around 115 litres per square metre (l/m²), precipitation in June was around 134 per cent of the long-term average (85 l/m²), which is far too wet for June. Slow-moving thunderstorms, often with heavy rain and hail, sometimes with hailstones of up to 6 cm, resulted in enormous amounts of rain within a short time, causing severe damage. The region around the small town of Simbach/Inn in Lower Bavaria was particularly severely affected and several people died in the floods. In western and southern Germany, some places saw twice the monthly average within just a few days: water remained in the fields for days. Rainfall in the areas affected by the severe weather was often more than 250 l/m² to the end of June. Offenbach, the place where the Deutscher Wetterdienst has its headquarters, has seen more precipitation since the start of the year than the total for all 12 months of 2015. The highest daily rainfall in Germany of 150.7 l/m² was recorded on 23 June in Groß Berßen in the Emsland. However, some areas were drier than normal: in parts of Western Pomerania, the Altmark and eastern Hesse, precipitation was only around 50 per cent of the long-term average.

Sunshine in the north-east slightly positive, but clearly negative in the south

The nationwide figure of about 181 hours of sunshine for June 2016 was around nine per cent below the normal 198 hours. However, there were sharp contrasts between the different areas. With up to 300 hours, the Island of Rügen in north-eastern Germany enjoyed the most sunshine. The south and west saw considerably less sunshine, such as, for example, some areas in the northern Eifel Mountains where only around 105 hours were recorded in some places.

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