Temperatures in the UK rose above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for the first time as a potentially deadly heat wave nears a peak on Tuesday.
The temperature at London’s Heathrow Airport hit 40.2°C at about 12:50 p.m., according to a provisional recording published by the UK’s Met Office. Temperatures across England are breaking the previous record of 38.7°C set at the Cambridge Botanic Garden in 2019.
The searing heat in the UK is disrupting train travel as the country’s normally temperate climate isn’t prepared to deal with extreme weather. As the use of fossil fuels continues to warm the planet, such heat will only get more common.
“This is the trend we’re seeing: Temperature records are being broken,” said Eunice Lo, a senior research associate at University of Bristol. “We expect them to be broken more in the future because of climate change.”
For the first time ever, 40 Celsius has provisionally been exceeded in the UK
London Heathrow reported a temperature of 40.2°C at 12:50 today
Temperatures are still climbing in many places, so remember to stay #WeatherAware #heatwave #heatwave2022 pic.twitter.com/GLxcR6gjZX
— Met Office (@metoffice) July 19, 2022
The country’s hottest day follows its warmest night. The Met Office reported earlier that the UK saw the highest night-time temperature on record with the mercury not dipping below 25°C in places. That exceeded the previous record of 23.9°C, posted in Brighton on August 3, 1990.
Temperatures should start to ease later Tuesday as cooler weather moves in from the west. The biggest relief should come Wednesday evening when temperatures drop to the low 20s Celsius — around average for the season.
Photograph: A sign offering complimentary bottled water in the hot weather, during a heat wave, at London King’s Cross railway station in London, U.K., on Tuesday, July 19, 2022. Temperatures in the UK hit a record Tuesday as the heat wave disrupts travel, business and schools, and poses a risk to lives across the country. Photo credit: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
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