With Britain in the middle of an Arctic blast, it may be hard to believe.
But the Met Workplace has revealed that 2024 was provisionally the fourth hottest year on record in the UK.
Average temperatures last year reached a comfortable 9.78°C, 0.64°C above the 1991-2020 average.
This means 2024 follows 2022, 2023 and 2014 as the fourth warmest year for the UK.
According to the Met Workplace, the 10 warmest years have occurred since 2000, five of them in the most recent decade, 2015-2024.
What’s more, every year in the most recent decade has been warmer than the 1991-2020 long-term average.
“With 2024 joining the top ten warmest years in the UK annual temperature series, once again this is a clear illustration that our climate is changing, right now, and we continue to lead this warming curve,” said the Met Workplace Senior Scientist, Mike. Kendon.
“The fact that the ten most recent years have been above the 1991-2020 average demonstrates that this recent period, entirely within my adult lifetime, is a stark reminder of how quickly our climate is changing.”
With Britain in the middle of an Arctic blast, it may be hard to believe. But the Met Workplace has revealed that 2024 was provisionally the fourth hottest year on record in the UK.
Christmas Day was extremely mild. Dyce, Aberdeen, enjoyed comfortable temperatures of 14.2°C on December 25, with minimum temperatures in the north of Scotland remaining above 10°C.
Of the 12 months of the year, eight recorded above-average temperatures, including the warmest May on record, the second-warmest February and the fifth-warmest December.
On January 28, Achfary, Sutherland, recorded a staggering temperature of 19.9°C, a record for January in the UK.
Christmas Day was also extremely mild.
Dyce, Aberdeen, enjoyed comfortable temperatures of 14.2°C on December 25, with minimum temperatures in the north of Scotland remaining above 10°C.
“2024 has been another year with minimum temperatures well above average,” said Kendon.
“We have experienced some particularly mild nights and much less frost than usual, especially in February and December.”
In terms of rainfall, 2024 was a relatively wet year, with the UK recording 1,242mm, 107 per cent of average.
Parts of south central England were worst affected by this wet weather, with Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire each recording their second wettest year according to records from 1836.
Last year included the warmest May on record, the second warmest February and the fifth warmest December
Meanwhile, 2024 was a pretty dull year, with just 1,274 hours of sunshine, 91 percent of the average.
Several notable storms also hit Britain last year, causing flooding, fallen trees, power outages, transport disruptions and several deaths.
Kendon hopes the news will highlight how quickly our climate is changing.
“We haven’t had one of the ten coldest years in the UK since 1963,” he said.
‘The UK is influenced by weather from all directions and we are all familiar with how variable our weather can be from day to day.
‘However, the long-term pattern of observations is undeniable: the world’s climate is warming and there is clear evidence of this in the UK’s own temperature collections.
“We are leaving the realm of historical observations.”
The news comes shortly after the Copernicus Climate Change Service revealed that it is “effectively certain” that 2024 will be the hottest year on record.
“We can now confirm with virtual certainty that 2024 will be the warmest year on record and the first calendar year with temperatures above 1.5°C,” said Samantha Burgess, deputy director of C3S.
“This does not mean that the Paris Agreement has been breached, but it does mean that ambitious climate action is more urgent than ever.”
