Climate - Scotland

Index

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• Introduction
• Seasons
• Highlands
• When to go
• What to pack

Introduction

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In Scotland, a nation that occupies the northern part of Great Britain, the climate is oceanic, that is, very cool, damp, rainy, and windy most of the year.

The temperatures do not vary much throughout the year. In the lowlands, the daily averages in January and February are 4 °C (39 °F) in the Shetland Islands, 4.5 °C (40 °F) in the Orkney Islands, and 5 °C (41 °F) in the Hebrides, and as for the cities, 3.5 °C (38.5 °F) in Inverness and 4 °C (39 °F) in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
In July and August, the averages range from 12.5 °C (54.5 °F) in the Shetland Islands, to 13.5 °C (56.5 °F) in Orkney and the Hebrides, to 14.5 °C (58 °F) in Aberdeen, and to 15 °C (59 °F) in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Here are the average temperatures of Glasgow.

Precipitation is more abundant on the western side and on the highlands, where it even exceeds 1,500 mm (60 in) per year, while it's less abundant on the eastern side, where it drops to 600/700 mm (24/28 in): so Glasgow, located on the western side, is rainier than Edinburgh. However, the rains are common everywhere, and even in the summer months, there are at least 10 days of rain per month on average.
Here is the average rainfall in Edinburgh.

The wind is more common in the western and northern side and on the islands: it's no coincidence that the main cities (Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, Edinburgh) lie in the eastern or southern sides, which are relatively sheltered. However, when the most intense low pressure systems occur, the wind can be strong everywhere.

Fog can be formed in inland areas at night, in the rare periods in which an anticyclone dominates, in autumn and winter. In the Highlands, the landscape is often foggy due to the passage of low clouds. Instead, from April to September, sea fogs can form on the eastern coasts.

The sun is rarely seen in Scotland. However, the sun is relatively more frequent in May and June, when the days are also very long. From November to January, also due to the very short days, the sun is almost never seen.
On average, there are just 1,150 hours of sunshine per year in the Shetland Islands, which in this ranking are beaten at the European, and perhaps world level, only by the Faroe Islands. Further south, there are approximately 1,200 hours of sunshine per year in the Orkney Islands, 1,250 hours in the Hebrides and in Inverness, which is located on the north coast, and 1,350/1,450 hours in the main cities.
Here are the average sunshine hours per day in Dundee.

Given the latitude of Scotland (from almost 61 degrees north latitude in Shetland to just over 54 degrees in the south), the length of the days varies greatly between the different months of the year. And so, from November to January, the days are very short, while from May to July, they are very long. The "white nights", in which it is not completely dark even at midnight, occur from May 11th to August 1st in Shetland, which is located more to the north, and from June 2nd to July 10th in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The sea in Scotland is not so cold in winter, at least if we consider the latitude, while it remains cold in summer. Here are the average water temperatures at Aberdeen.

Seasons

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The Gulf Stream makes the Scottish winter fairly mild, at least in comparison with other countries located at the same latitude: as we have seen, in the plains, the average temperature in January and February is a few degrees above freezing. However, the northern location makes Scotland prone to cold winds from Greenland, which can bring snow showers and frosts, especially on the highlands, but these periods don't usually last long, and after a short time, the westerlies start to blow again.
Sometimes, however, there may be cold waves more intense than usual. In the islands, cold records are not that low (for example, -9 °C or 16 °F in Lerwick, in the Shetland Islands, -7 °C or 19.5 °F in Balivanich, in Benbecula, and -8 °C or 17.5 °F in Kirkwall, in Orkney). In the main cities, cold records generally range from -17 °C or 1.5 °F (see Dundee) to -20 °C or -4 °F (see Glasgow). In inland areas, there are some valleys where even lower values have been reached: the cold record, which applies to all the British islands, is -27.2 °C (-17 °F), recorded both in Altnaharra, a northern village, in December 1995, and in Braemar, a town located 10 km (6 mi) from Balmoral Castle, in January 1982.

In spring, the temperature rises very slowly, so that it's still cold in April, when the maximum temperature is around 10/12 °C (50/54 °F). In return, spring is the sunniest season, albeit slightly.

Summer is cool: the average maximum temperature in July and August ranges from 14/15 °C (57/59 °F) on the Shetland Islands, to 16 °C (61 °F) on the Orkney and Hebrides islands, to 19 °C (66 °F) in the main cities.
In Scotland, even the summer is a pretty rainy season, and sunshine in mid-summer (July and August) is even rarer than at the beginning of the season (June).
However, quite rarely, there may be periods, usually short-lived, with sunny weather and pleasantly warm temperatures. On the warmest days of the year, the temperature typically reaches 25/26 °C (77/79 °F) in the main cities, though it can sometimes reach higher values.
The record heat in Scotland is 35 °C (95 °F), set in July 2022 at Floors Castle, in the south-east, near the border with England, while the previous record was 33 °C (91.5 °F), set in Greycrook, a location in the vicinity. For the rest, the highest recorded temperature are around 23 °C (73.5 °F) on the Shetland Islands, around 25 °C (77 °F) on Orkney and Hebrides, and 30/31 °C (86/88 °F) in the main cities of Scotland.

Autumn is cold, windy and rainy. The wind in Scotland is frequent, and sometimes can be very strong, especially in autumn and winter.

Highlands

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In the Highlands, the weather is obviously colder, and snowfalls often occur in winter. Snow cover duration is remarkable because the temperature is not much higher in the other seasons. The wind in the Highlands is also more intense and frequent, as generally happens in mountainous regions.
For example, here are the temperatures of Glen Ogle, located at 565 meters (1,855 feet) above sea level.

At higher altitudes, temperatures are even lower, as can be seen from the data of Cairngorm Mountain, at 1,245 meters (4,085 feet), where there is also a ski lift. Here, the wind can exceed at the worst moments 200 kph (95 mph), especially from November to March. Also, the temperature can sometimes drop to freezing even in summer.

The highest peak in Scotland is Mount Ben Nevis, 1,344 meters (4,411 feet) high.

When to go

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The best time to visit Scotland is the summer, from June to August.
As mentioned above, the sea is cold even in summer.

What to pack

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In winter: pack warm clothes, such as a sweater, a coat, a wind jacket, and a raincoat. For the Highlands and for colder periods: pack gloves, a hat, and a scarf.
In summer: pack clothes for spring and autumn, but also a jacket and a sweater, and a raincoat or umbrella.

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