Britain’s hottest year EVER in 2022 was ‘a moment in climate history’ and ‘a sign of things to come’, scientists warn

Last year’s record-breaking summer, which saw the country experience its hottest day on record, was “a sign of things to come” for Britain’s climate, scientists warn.

Scientists say the extreme heat is an example of what to expect in the future unless greenhouse gas emissions are brought under control.

The hot, dry summer of 2022 saw Britain endure temperatures of 40°C for the first time ever, with a maximum of 40.3°C in Coningsby, Lincolnshire.

Last year was also the UK’s hottest year on record, according to Met Office data dating back to 1884.

Not only that, but it eclipsed the Central England temperature record – the longest running series in the world – which dates back to 1659.

These UK climate milestones show the direction of the journey over the coming decades, the Met Office said, adding that as long as greenhouse gas emissions go unchecked, the Earth will continue to warm.

Mike Kendon, a climate scientist at the Met Office and lead author of the new State Of The UK Climate 2022 report, described the 40°C temperature as ‘a real moment in climate history’.

“This was a rare event in the context of the current climate, but our extreme temperatures are changing faster than our average temperature and we know that climate change is increasing the frequency, duration and spatial extent of heat waves,” he said.

According to our current emissions trajectory, 2022 would be considered a cool year by 2100 standards, Mr Kendon added.

Professor Liz Bentley, CEO of the Royal Meteorological Society, said: ‘If you look at future climate projections, we are heading for hotter, drier summers.

“So 2022 to me was very much a sign of the coming years with our changing climate.”

The Met Office report, which tracks the progress of the UK’s changing climate each year, revealed that temperatures are rising above 36°C more often than in the past.

Between 1961-1990, the highest recorded temperature was 88.3 °F (31.3 °C); between 1991-2020 it was 92.3 °F (33.5 °C); between 2013-2022 it was 96.2 °F (35.7 °C) and in 2022 it was 104.5 °F (40.3 °C).

Data from a citizen science project called Nature’s Calendar is also included to track how plants and animals respond to the changing seasons.

Fritha West, a research scientist at the Woodland Trust and one of the report’s authors, said 2022 had a mild February and a warm October, meaning an early spring and a late autumn.

Leaves were on the trees 16 days longer than the 1999-2021 average and some flowers and insects emerged days earlier than usual.

Last year was also a relatively dry year, although not as extreme as 1976, and as summers get hotter and drier, year-long climate trends show the UK getting wetter overall.

Five of the UK’s 10 wettest years since 1836 have occurred in the 21st century, and the UK saw its wettest February, April, June, November and December on record in the years since 2009.

Sea levels also continue to rise due to the melting polar ice caps, with long-term trends showing the rate has doubled in recent years compared to the 20th century, said report author Dr Svetlana Jevrejeva of the National Oceanography Centre.

The UK’s main political parties have spoken openly about watering down their environmental policies following the Conservatives’ narrow victory in the by-elections in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, which many have blamed on opposition to ultra-low emission zone expansion plans.

Dr. Jevrejeva responds: ‘It is important which path we choose and which scenario we follow, but the sea level will rise in the next few hundred years anyway.

‘It just depends on how fast the sea level is rising, because there is already heat in the ocean and the ice caps are already starting to lose ice mass and the glaciers are disappearing.

“It takes a few hundred years to reach equilibrium. We try to communicate our science and make clear our understanding of what could happen.

“That’s our role and that’s what we do.”