The UK's summers are getting hotter - but how prepared are we?

Image source, Rasid Necati/Aslim Anadolu/Getty Images By Mark Poynting Climate reporter Published 2 minutes ago Much of the UK is facing a record-breaking heatwave, with temperatures potentially reaching 37C in parts of south-east England. That would smash the previous June high and comes hot on the heels of unprecedented heat in May too. But scientists are warning even hotter temperatures are likely in the years ahead. They have described the records as "extraordinary" and say the UK needs to make preparations for more extreme heat a much greater priority. Hundreds of schools plan closures ahead of red heat alerts Published 3 hours ago From cool-down spots to chalk on windows - how Europe is coping with the heat Published 9 hours ago The temperatures we are experiencing are particularly unusual so early in the summer, but they are consistent with how our climate is changing. "We expect increasing temperatures and the breaking of temperature records due to climate change," said Lizzie Kendon, professor of climate science at the University of Bristol and head of climate projections at the UK Met Office. "What is so extraordinary, however, is the margin by which the record will be broken." While temperatures vary naturally from year to year, UK summers have clearly been getting warmer. Between 2015 and 2024, the number of days exceeding 30C in the UK more than trebled compared with the 1961-1990 average, the Met Office says. The maximum temperature recorded each year has shot up too. Reaching 35C was a rare event throughout the 20th Century – but six out of the past ten years have passed that mark. Could 40C summers be the new normal? The UK's hottest recorded temperature now stands at 40.3C, set in July 2022. Before 1990, the UK had not seen 37C. But these records are almost certainly going to keep getting broken. If global warming continues at its current pace, temperatures in the mid-forties could be a serious possibility for the UK by 2050, according to Met Office projections. And while not every year will be hotter than the last, the UK could face even higher temperatures in the second half of this century. Higher temperatures dry out the soil too. With less moisture available, less heat energy is used up by evaporation - leaving more energy to warm the air and amplifying the hot conditions. Some scientists have also argued that climate change could be making high-pressure systems more likely to get "stuck" - although this is not yet certain. This can create a "heat dome" that traps hot air underneath, which is what Europe has been experiencing this week. "Climate change [is] loading the atmosphere with extra heat and making extreme temperatures far more intense than they would have been in the past," said Dr Akshay Deoras, senior research scientist at the University of Reading. Scientists stress that the only way to limit rising summer temperatures is to rapidly cut global emissions of planet-warming gases, such as carbon dioxide. Is the UK