temperature

The UK and central Europe experienced a number of intense heatwaves this summer, with all-time records being broken in many places.

Across Europe the heat began to build at the start of summer, and by the last week of June local temperature records were being broken. France recorded an all-time record high temperature of 46 °C on 28th June during a 9 day heatwave.

Taking temperature measurements in your garden is a great way to start investigating microclimates. We take a look at some maximum-minimum thermometers on the market.

Just how cold did it get last night and how hot will it be this afternoon? You can measure these daily extreme temperatures in your own garden using a maximum-minimum thermometer. A variety of thermometers are available in high street stores, garden centres and online, ranging from the traditional to the hi-tech.

The Met Office have released their 3rd annual State of the UK Climate report, which is an annual publication providing an up-to-date assessment of UK climate trends, variations and extremes based on the latest available climate quality observational datasets.

The report shows that 2016 was the 13th warmest year in records dating back to 1910. For the UK as a whole, 2016 was 0.5ºC warmer than average (1981-2010), whilst the last decade was 0.3ºC warmer and sunshine levels were 4% higher.

WMO and Climate Central have launched a series of “Summer in the City” videos to explain the impact of climate change on temperatures in some of the world’s major cities. The short videos have been released in a year that is already experiencing multiple heatwaves across the globe and daily temperature records, and if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, Earth’s average global surface temperature could rise more than 4°C by the end of the 21st century.