has there been more or less rain than usual in your area in recent weeks?
In recent weeks, mainland France, with the exception of its Mediterranean zone, has experienced significant amounts of rain, well beyond average – and sometimes above the maximums recorded so far.
The level of precipitation, like that of temperatures, is strongly subject to feeling, and this feeling can be misleading. In a world where the climate is changing, we know that the rain regime tends to become disrupted, with more abundant precipitation but less effective in filling groundwater or feeding rivers.
In the graph below, we compared the amount of rain in several dozen French stations by comparing it to the average recorded between 1996 and 2022.
In order to refine the understanding of the graph, here is how Météo-France classifies the intensity of precipitation, with the correspondence for our three-hour periods:
- light rain: 1 mm to 3 mm in one hour;
- moderate rain: 4 mm to 7 mm in one hour;
- heavy rain: 8 mm and more.
Let us specify that a measurement of 1 mm of precipitation is equivalent to 1 liter dumped per square meter.
Gn Fr France
