Despite a noticeably sunny end to March, the month still turned out to be the cloudiest in almost two years and the cloudiest March in 14 years in Brisbane. 

The city averaged five hours and 45 minutes of sunshine per day - that's one hour and 45 minutes less sunshine per day than the long-term norm for March. The last time the city had a cloudier month was in May 2022, averaging only four hours and 20 minutes of sunshine per day. The last time there was a cloudier March was in 2010 when five-and-half hours were recorded on average per day. 

The main cause for the gloomy month was humid winds blowing from the east combined with a feed of upper-air moisture streaming in from the west. 

Image: Monthly rainfall percentages for Queensland during March 2024, indicating feed of moisture towards Brisbane from the west.

It may come as no surprise that the extra cloud resulted in cooler-than-average days, warmer-than-average nights and six more rain days than normal, leading to a wetter-than-normal month. 

The bulk of the gloom and wetness occurred in the four days from Sunday 24th to Wednesday 27th when no sunshine was recorded, and rainfall amounted to a bit over 100mm. It turned out to be the gloomiest four-day spell in 11 years.