June heat smashes British records, blamed on climate change

Temperature records were smashed in Britain’s hottest June, which scientists found was made at least twice as likely because of climate change.

Low water levels at Woodhead Reservoir at Glossop, outside Manchester. The Met Office has confirmed that it was the hottest June on record for the UK. Picture: Getty Images

Temperature records were smashed in Britain’s hottest June, which scientists found was made at least twice as likely because of climate change.

Last month’s average temperature was 15.8C, the highest since records dating back 139 years and 2.5C higher than average. Records are usually breached by a few fractions of a degree but the high broke the previous record by a huge 0.9C.

Water companies reported surging demand, and drought planning was ramped up last week. The hottest day of the year so far was June 10 at 32.2C in Chertsey, Surrey.

Met Office researchers modelled temperatures for June with and without the 1.1C of climate change since the industrial revolution. They found the chance of beating the previous record, of 14.9C in 1940 and 1976, had at least doubled since 1940 because of humans burning fossil fuels in cars, power stations and factories.

“Alongside natural variability, the background warming of the Earth’s atmosphere due to human-induced climate change has driven up the possibility of reaching record high temperatures,” said Paul Davies, chief meteorologist at the Met Office.

An overhead view shows the dried bed of March Haigh Reservoir, near Marsden in northern England on June 15.

The new high comes after 2022 was Britain’s hottest year on record, with an average temperature of above 10C for the first time. Last July also saw an unprecedented 40C heatwave, which created conditions for grassland wildfires that burnt scores of homes.

This June stands out as extremely warm by historical standards. But as the Earth continues to warm, the month’s old 14.9C record could be surpassed every other year by 2050.

All four UK nations had their warmest June since records going back to 1884. Large parts of the southwest of England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland were especially hot, between 2.5C and 3.5C warmer than the average for the past three decades.

“June started with a good deal of high pressure and temperatures initially around average for many but, once that subsided, warm, humid air began to influence temperatures. What’s striking is the persistent warmth for much of the month, with temperatures widely into the mid-20s Celsius for many and even into the low 30s at times,” said Mark McCarthy at the Met Office.

The extreme marine heatwave in the North Sea, where temperatures have been 4C higher than normal, is believed to have played a role in the June heat.

Greenpeace said the new record was a reminder the UK needed to accelerate emissions cuts. “While the dashboard is ablaze with flashing red lights, the Prime Minister somehow still manages to remain asleep at the wheel,” said Mel Evans, its UK head of climate.

There were more than 3000 more deaths than usual during five hot spells last summer. A report by the Climate Change Committee, which advises the government, found Britain was poorly prepared for the extreme weather of a warming world.

The Times