May 2025 Cooler and Gloomier Than Usual
Only at the beginning and end of the month was it above average warm for a few days, reported Geosphere Austria on Monday. The number of sunshine hours this May was 19 percent below the long-term average. The month was thus again relatively dull, as has mostly been the case since 2013.
"For the recent past, May 2025 was somewhat too cool: It was 0.9 degrees Celsius below the average of the climate period 1991 to 2020 in the lowlands of Austria and 0.8 degrees Celsius on the mountains," said climatologist Alexander Orlik from Geosphere Austria. "A few decades ago, this would have been a slightly above-average mild month: Compared to the climate period 1961 to 1990, May 2025 was 0.5 degrees above the average in the lowlands and 0.7 degrees on the mountains."
Only four summer days in May
Typical for a May, there was late frost and the first heat: The lowest temperature was measured on May 10 in Liebenau in the Mühlviertel at -7.3 degrees, the highest on May 31 in Innsbruck at 31.5 degrees. Overall, it was significantly less often summery warm than in an average May of the recent past: In May 2025, there were an average of four summer days (at least 25 degrees) below 500 meters above sea level across Austria. This is 35 percent less than the long-term average. In altitudes from 500 to 1,000 meters above sea level, there were only three summer days, which is 25 percent less than the long-term average.
The amount of precipitation in May 2025 was approximately in the average range in the nationwide evaluation, but there were significant regional differences: 15 to 50 percent more precipitation than in an average May occurred mainly from the Rätikon in Vorarlberg across large parts of North Tyrol to East Tyrol and Upper Carinthia as well as in the Pinzgau, Pongau, and Lungau. In the eastern half of the country, however, it was somewhat too dry. Especially from the Flachgau across the Mühlviertel, Waldviertel, and Weinviertel as well as in the Vienna area and in southern Styria, there were deviations in precipitation amounts of 15 to 65 percent compared to an average May.
Early development of nature
The cool May slightly dampened the development of nature, but the lead of nature is already large due to the very mild previous months. For example, the flowering start of the black locust in Austria on average was on May 1, 2025, and thus eleven days earlier than the average of the period 1991 to 2020. Compared to the period from 1961 to 1990, it was even 23 days earlier.
(APA/Red)
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