This September was the warmest in the history of instrumental observations in Lithuania (i.e. the least since 1961, and in Vilnius since 1778)! The average monthly air temperature in Lithuania was 16.8 °C (or 4 degrees warmer than average). September of 2023 (16.5 °C) was in second place, while September 1975 (14.9 °C) was in third place.

Both last year and this year, September saw no shortage of new heat records. In 2023, there were six daily maximum temperature records for the whole month, and this year there were seven more. There were also a few more days when the new record was very close to being broken.

The meteorological summer of 2023 ended late, as late as 4-5 October. And this year it ended a little earlier, on 28-29 September (or 3.5 weeks later than average). As a reminder, the average end of meteorological summer (1991-2020) is 4 September.

The graph shows the average air temperature in Lithuania for the period 1991-2020, in September 2023 and 2024. Note that almost all days in September 2023 and 2024 were warmer than the long-term average. Average daily air temperatures were often even in line with values for midsummer.