05.11.2018
UK Met Office report: Extreme weather reveals changing climate
A new report by the Met Office reveals further details about changes in the UK’s climate since the 1960s. By documenting temperature and rainfall climate extremes, including periods of warmth, cold and spells of wet or dry weather, the report reveals changes in some types of extreme weather.
Quelle: Met Office, 2018
By comparing different meteorological reference periods, a number of interesting trends can be observed. For example, the hottest day of each year over the most recent decade (2008-2017) in the UK has been on average 0.8 °C warmer than the hottest day of each year over the period 1961-1990. Conversely, the lowest temperature of the year has shown an even greater increase, becoming 1.7 °C milder between the two periods in the UK.
This study uses a set of measures agreed around the globe by the World Meteorological Organization and World Climate Research Programme, and are widely used in global climate change research.
Dr Mark McCarthy is the head of the Met Office’s National Climate Information Centre, the team which produced the report. He said: “Monthly, seasonal and annual climate data provide a valuable record of the changing climate in the UK. However, these average figures have a tendency to mask extreme weather and climate events. So in our latest report we have focussed on those measures which record weather extremes – complementing our recently published State of the UK climate 2017 report – which shows how the UK’s climate is changing.”
The report summarises a set of core indices, which can be obtained from temperature and rainfall data. It also shows climate shifts for UK countries and regions, along with maps showing the data across four time periods: 1961-1990; 1981-2010; 2008-2017; and 2017.
More at the UK Met Office’s website (more indices, downloads, links, …)