Weather forecast for May 2022: Cold ice saints possible - "goes pretty much back and forth"

Created: 04/21/2022, 14:46

By: Martina Lippl

flowers in the frost.

© KJPeters/imago

Spring goes into the next round.

How will the weather be in May 2022?

The first forecasts for the merry month show a trend, but everything seems to be in there.

Munich – Summer temperatures, cold shock with the ice saints or finally land rain?

“May may also be quite dry and warm.

At least that's what the current May forecast from the US weather service NOAA says," predicts meteorologist Dominik Jung from

.

"Too warm and too dry" - weather forecast for May 2022

The NOAA trend forecast predicts a temperature deviation of 1 to 2 degrees above the climate mean (1991 to 2020) for May 2022.

In the west and northwest, the values ​​are 0.5 to 1 degree higher.

There are also differences in precipitation.

The north is said to be a little too dry, as is the south.

Only in the Alps could it get a little wetter, explains the weather expert.

In the rest of Germany, the values ​​correspond to the climate mean, explains Jung.

Weather trend for May 2022

With the long-term weather models, there is of course still plenty of scope for concrete weather forecasts in May 2022. However, the models indicate a trend in terms of temperatures and precipitation.

They give an outlook on how the weather situation could develop.

A blocking high-pressure weather situation is currently determining the weather in Germany.

There is a high in the north of Europe and a low in the south.

The high pressure area over Scandinavia deflects all lows to the south.

It's snowing in Spain right now.

Apparently not much is changing that quickly overall.

The high seems very stable, according to meteorologist Jung.

This "high-over-low weather pattern" is rather unusual.

Normally there is a low pressure system between Iceland and Scandinavia and a high pressure system over southern Europe - between the Azores and the Mediterranean region.

According to meteorologist Paul Heger from

the NOAA model forecast also points to a strong low-pressure system over south-western Europe in May, "which also taps into warm air from South Africa".

If the low-pressure system takes root, there could also be quite cold ice saints.

There are two very different air masses facing each other.

"And depending on which air mass prevails in Germany, things go back and forth quite a bit." Heavy summer thunderstorms included.

Weather phenomenon: when are the ice saints in 2022?

Icy polar air from the north is particularly feared by gardeners.

Late frosts and cold in spring can harm plants.

The Ice Saints are among the so-called meteorological singularities - a specific weather situation that is very likely to occur.

In northern Germany, the ice saints begin with the name day of Mamertus on May 11th.

In these weather conditions, the cold air from the north penetrates southern Germany later.

That's why the ice saints are important there from May 12, explains the German Weather Service (DWD).

And so May 14 (Boniface) and May 15 (cold Sofie) are added, whereas May 11 (Mamertus) is not valid.

Incidentally, the ice saints are not to be confused with the sheep cold.

Whether there will be a cold snap in May 2022 remains to be seen.