Climate of The United Kingdom - Climate History

Climate History

The climate of the United Kingdom has not always been the way it is today. During some periods it was much warmer and in others it was much colder. The last glacial period was a period of extreme cold weather that lasted for tens of thousands of years and ended about 10,000 years ago. During this period the temperature was so low that much of the surrounding ocean froze and a great ice sheet extended over all of the United Kingdom except the south of England, and southern coastal areas of Wales.

The cold period from the 16th to the mid-19th centuries is known as the Little Ice Age.

The temperature records in England are continuous back to the mid 17th century. The Central England temperature (CET) record is the oldest in the world, and is a compound source of cross-correlated records from several locations in central England.

A detailed narrative account of the weather of every year from 1913 to 1942, with photographs of plants taken on the same day in each of those years, may be found in Willis (1944).

As with many parts of the world, over the last century the United Kingdom has reported a warming trend in temperatures. While some of this may be due to a recovery from the cooler period of climate mid 20th century (particularly the 1960s) the last 20 years has nonetheless seen an unprecedented level of warm weather. This rise in temperatures is illustrated by the most recent dataset (1981–2010) for Belfast and Cambridge Botanical Gardens, and the same data 50 years previous (1931–1960).

Climate data for Belfast, 1931-1960
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 6.0
(42.8)
6.8
(44.2)
9.2
(48.6)
11.8
(53.2)
14.9
(58.8)
17.5
(63.5)
18.4
(65.1)
18.3
(64.9)
16.1
(61.0)
12.6
(54.7)
9.1
(48.4)
6.9
(44.4)
12.30
(54.14)
Average low °C (°F) 1.5
(34.7)
1.5
(34.7)
2.7
(36.9)
3.9
(39.0)
6.1
(43.0)
9.2
(48.6)
11.0
(51.8)
10.7
(51.3)
9.2
(48.6)
6.8
(44.2)
4.1
(39.4)
2.9
(37.2)
5.80
(42.44)
Source: Stadtklima
Climate data for Belfast, 1981-2010
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 7.1
(44.8)
7.4
(45.3)
9.5
(49.1)
11.9
(53.4)
15.0
(59.0)
17.4
(63.3)
19.1
(66.4)
18.5
(65.3)
16.3
(61.3)
12.8
(55.0)
9.5
(49.1)
7.4
(45.3)
12.66
(54.78)
Average low °C (°F) 1.8
(35.2)
1.7
(35.1)
2.9
(37.2)
4.3
(39.7)
6.8
(44.2)
9.6
(49.3)
11.6
(52.9)
11.4
(52.5)
9.5
(49.1)
6.9
(44.4)
4.0
(39.2)
2.1
(35.8)
6.05
(42.89)
Source: Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute
Climate data for Change in monthly mean temperatures at Belfast between 1931-1960 and 1981-2010
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) +1.1C +0.6C +0.3C +0.1C +0.1C -0.1C +0.7C +0.2C +0.2C +0.4C +0.5C +0.4C +0.36C
Average low °C (°F) +0.3C +0.2C +0.2C +0.4C +0.7C +0.4C +0.6C +0.7C +0.3C +0.1C -0.1C -0.8C +0.25C
Source: Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute

As the above tables show, all months except December at Belfast exhibit warming when both maximum and minimum temperatures are taken into account.

Climate data for Cambridge, 1931-1960
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 6.3
(43.3)
7.2
(45.0)
10.5
(50.9)
13.7
(56.7)
17.2
(63.0)
20.5
(68.9)
22.2
(72.0)
22.0
(71.6)
19.2
(66.6)
14.6
(58.3)
9.9
(49.8)
7.3
(45.1)
14.22
(57.59)
Average low °C (°F) 0.6
(33.1)
0.5
(32.9)
1.6
(34.9)
3.8
(38.8)
6.5
(43.7)
9.7
(49.5)
11.8
(53.2)
11.5
(52.7)
9.5
(49.1)
6.1
(43.0)
3.5
(38.3)
1.7
(35.1)
5.57
(42.02)
Source: Stadtklima
Climate data for Cambridge, 1981-2010
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 7.5
(45.5)
7.9
(46.2)
11.1
(52.0)
13.8
(56.8)
17.5
(63.5)
20.4
(68.7)
23.1
(73.6)
22.8
(73.0)
19.5
(67.1)
15.2
(59.4)
10.5
(50.9)
7.6
(45.7)
14.74
(58.54)
Average low °C (°F) 1.4
(34.5)
1.1
(34.0)
3.0
(37.4)
4.3
(39.7)
7.3
(45.1)
10.2
(50.4)
12.4
(54.3)
12.2
(54.0)
10.0
(50.0)
7.2
(45.0)
3.9
(39.0)
1.7
(35.1)
6.23
(43.21)
Source: Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute
Climate data for Change in monthly mean temperatures at Cambridge between 1931-1960 and 1981-2010
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) +1.2C +0.7C +0.6C +0.1C +0.3C -0.1C +0.9C +0.8C +0.3C +0.6C +0.6C +0.3C +0.52C
Average low °C (°F) +0.8C +0.6C +1.4C +0.5C +0.8C +0.5C +0.6C +0.7C +0.5C +1.1C +0.4C +0.0C +0.66C
Source: Stadtklima

Again, a similar warming trend is shown for the South East of England, albeit slightly more pronounced with no month recording a fall in overall mean temperatures.

Read more about this topic:  Climate Of The United Kingdom

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