By Philip Eden

A very disturbed southwesterly type persisted until the 13th, followed by a brief anticyclonic interlude. A changeable west to northwesterly airflow controlled the UK's weather from the 18th onwards.

The Central England Temperature (CET) for February 2002 was 7.1°C, which was 3.1 degC above the mean for the standard reference period 1971-2000. In the last 100 years there were only two warmer Februarys (those of 1990 and 1998), although two were equally as warm (1903 and 1945). Frost was infrequent, but there were one or two very cold nights in the Scottish highlands during the last week of February, the lowest figure to hand being -12.4°C at Altnaharra on the night of 24th/25th. The were a number of very mild days with maxima widely approaching 15°C on several occasions, but the highest temperature known so far was 15.5°C reported from Worcester on the 8th.

Rainfall (up to 9am on the 28th), averaged over England and Wales, was 120mm which is 175% of the average for the standard reference period 1971-2000. During the last 100 years, only 9 Februarys were wetter while 91 were drier. It was the wettest since February 1990 (144mm), and well short of the total recorded in February 1833 (159mm) which was the wettest in the entire record. In the main population centres in Scotland the provisional monthly total for February 2002 was 130mm, some 248% of the normal, while the Northern Ireland total was also 130mm and this was the equivalent of 220% of the long-term average there.

The dominant southwesterly and westerly winds again meant that west-facing slopes were very wet, while the east-coast lowlands were relatively dry. Capel Curig in Snowdonia recorded a monthly total of 599mm compared with just 32mm at Clacton in Essex. Sunshine over England and Wales totalled 78 hours during February 2002, about 13% below the long-term average for the month. The equivalent figure for Scotland's main population centres was 66 hours (6% below), and for Northern Ireland 75 hours (4% above). Monthly aggregates ranged from 43 hours at Saughall in Ayrshire to 109 hours at Torquay in Devon.

High winds were frequent, and there was widespread gale damage on the 1st, the 22nd and the 26th. Snow fell heavily in Scotland and upland parts of northern England on the 23rd, with severe drifting especially in Caithness, Sutherland and Wester Ross, but a rapid thaw ensued on the 25th. Hail and thunder occurred widely during the last few days of the month.