The three months of the meteorological spring were both drier and hotter than the climatic norm, the Malta Meteorological Office said on Tuesday. 

Between March and May, rain fell 42.4 mm short of the climatic norm, while first heatwave of the year rounded out the spring season, with temperatures exceeding 32°C.

March was significantly drier than the climatic norm, while April offered a taste of summer with temperatures reaching 29.4°C, and May brought with it the year's first heatwave, spanning from the 16th until the 18th of the month.

A closer look at the temperatures recorded reveals that all three months of the meteorological spring were warmer than average. 

In March, the air temperature peaked at 27.9°C, when it is normally 17.4°C, on April 1st the mercury hit 29.4°C when it is normally 20.1°C, and on May 18th the air temperature soared to 32.3°C where it usually 24.3°C.

The same was also true with precipitation volumes, as the three months of spring were significantly drier than the climatic norm, bar the occasional occurrences of blood rain. 

Between March and May, the Meteorological Office's weather stations in Malta and Gozo recorded only 26.2mm of rain, compared to the spring norm of 68.6 mm.

May was the driest month of the season, getting only 5.8 mm of rain across three days and consequently falling 4.4 mm short of the climatic norm.

May only saw a few light showers resulting in 5.8 mm of rain, which is less than half of the usual amount for the month. Most of this total (4.8 mm) fell on May 8th, which was also the dullest day of the month, with less than one hour of sunshine recorded.

Cloudy skies and dust in suspension contributed to May being gloomier than average. As a result, the Meteorological Office recorded 300.8 hours of sunshine in May; nearly seven hours below the monthly norm.

Temperatures measured in May also show how last month was almost a degree warmer than the norm, with the average temperature standing at 21.1°C. 

While May brought the first heatwave of the year, 2006 still holds the record for the highest temperature measured in May, when the mercury rose to 35.3° C.