UK could face another heatwave as temperatures set to climb once again

Independent

7 hours ago

The UK could face another heatwave in the next two weeks, as temperatures start to climb towards the 30s once again.
After a cooler few days, temperatures are expected to increase from the second half of next week and keep climbing towards the middle of July, according to the Met Office.
'Through the second half of next week and especially the weekend, there are signs that temperatures will begin to trend up, becoming warm or very warm once again,' the forecaster said.
'Especially across southern parts of the UK, but perhaps more widely as we head toward the middle of July.'
While longer-term forecasters like WX Charts suggest a second spell of hot weather is expected to start on 12 July, with temperatures staying in the 30s until 18 July, the Met Office warned it is too soon to provide predictions of exact temperatures.
It comes after England faced its hottest June on record, and the UK saw its second-hottest June.
A high of 34.7C was recorded in St James's Park in central London on Tuesday afternoon, beating the previous warmest day of the year on 21 June, where a scorching 33.2C was recorded in Charlwood, Surrey.
The hot weather marks the second heatwave for parts of the UK within the last month, with scientists warning the searing temperatures earlier in June were made 100 times more likely because of human-caused climate change.
Amber heat health alerts were issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) across parts of the country from 27 June until 2 July. The alerts are the second highest, behind red and indicate possible impacts on health and social services.
The UKHSA's weather health alert system provides early warning to the health and social care sector when adverse temperatures are likely to impact the health and well-being of the population.
By Wednesday, the heat subsided and the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms in north-east England and parts of Scotland. Another warning was then put in place for the weekend, with severe rain in parts of Scotland.
The rest of the week saw a split in weather elsewhere, with cool sunshine and frequent blustery showers across the North and mostly dry with warm spells of sunshine in the South.
A study by Met Office scientists revealed that the chance of the UK exceeding 40C is now 20 times more likely than it was in 1960s.
The UK first recorded temperatures above 40C in July 2022, as Coningsby in Lincolnshire reached 40.3C in continental Europe's hottest summer.
The increasingly extreme weather patterns have already caused wildfires, disruptions to power and transport and increased mortality, the Met Office said.
'Because our climate continues to warm, we can expect the chance to keep rising. We estimate a 50-50 chance of seeing a 40C day again in the next 12 years,' Dr Gillian Kay, senior scientist at the Met Office said.
'We also found that temperatures several degrees higher than we saw in July 2022 are possible in today's climate.'