(Photo – Luis Molina)
The UK will have the warmest year on record at the end of December if temperatures do not drop significantly in the upcoming weeks.
Mike Kendon, member of the National Climate Information Centre, said: “Only a very cold December is able to potentially influence where the year will eventually sit in the record books.”
The Met Office revealed that Autumn 2022 was the third warmest season on record, only surpassed by the autumns of 2006 and 2011.
“Spurred on by mild September, then the seventh warmest October on record, November continued the mild theme for the season.”
The UK would need a December of near-record cold weather to avoid 2022 being the warmest year on record.
According to provisional stats, Autumn was the third warmest on record for the UK.
? on some of the statistics
— Met Office (@metoffice) December 1, 2022
November was close to being the warmest on record. Preliminary data from the Met Office show that November was the third warmest with an average mean temperature of 8.2° C.
Statistics confirm that the mean Autumn temperatures in the UK are 11.1° C, but they soared to 14.4° C in 2022.
Specifically in England, the anomaly in the rise of temperature was 1.4° C.
As of December, Met Office’s meteorologist Aidan McGivern explained that the last month of the year looks very different compared to November.
“The second week of December looks likely to turn colder with winds probably arriving from the north.”
Disperse snow showers are possible at lower levels, although he said it is currently “too early to say where and when any snow may fall.”
Signals for the second half of December are mixed.
Will we get any snow? ❄️
Watch Alex share two scenarios of what could happen to our weather next week ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/jSR9tYpbmB
— Met Office (@metoffice) December 7, 2022
For those expecting snowfall in London, McGivern said, “It is looking more likely compared with recent Decembers, but it’s far from certain.”
With northerly winds arriving during the second week of December, it is likely that it will be cold enough for snow.
The meteorologist explained that average daytime high temperature in December is 9° C and average overnight low is 5° C.
In addition, December is the fourth wettest month of the year for London after October, November and January and there are typically 11 days of rain throughout the month.
“December 2010 was the last colder than average December for London. Every December since then has been around average or warmer than average,” McGivern said.
The UK’s warmest year on record is 2014.