Scottish weather: Why is it so warm in Scotland in May?

The National

17-05-2025

The National reached out to climate change experts and meteorologists to explain the recent sunny spells and whether or not they point to a wider issue related to global warming.
Grahame Madge from the Met Office explained the simple, meteorological causes behind the warmth in Scotland.
He said: 'We have been sitting under an area of high pressure for some time and this is the pattern we will have for a further week.
'These are known as blocking highs because they become dominant and generally prevent other low-pressure weather systems from making any progress toward the UK.
'So in effect they 'block' or shield us from unsettled weather.'
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In a conversation with Edward Graham, a climate and water vapour expert and lecturer at the University of the Highlands and Islands, he explained that until the month is over, the statistics we've seen so far regarding dryness are only provisional.
He said: 'It's easy to get swayed by statistics that go 'dry as this' 'hot as that', but it's not unusual.
'The driest part of the year is March, April, May and June in terms of precipitation; the sunniest month of the year, particularly in the west of Scotland, tends to be May.
'There's still a long time left, and there's signs that the rain might come back towards the end of the month, in which case the statistics are only provisional.
'And to be honest, you know the rain will come. It might not come just yet, but we can be certain that in Glasgow and the West Highlands, the rain will come.'
Whilst the recent sunshine isn't a particular cause for concern, being more of an 'anomalous fine spell', Graham explained that having constant, successive dry months creates what's known as a 'cumulative effect', where we then start to see more extreme weather and feel the health and structural impacts of climate change.
(Image: Colin Mearns)These include increases in mortality rates due to extreme heat, and ecological and infrastructural issues.
Such issues could be the drying of riverbeds, issues with roads, bridges and houses that were not designed to withstand the Earth heating up, and the destruction of ecosystems which haven't had a chance to adapt to the climate changing so quickly.
Graham explained: 'These systems have been designed over the decades to cope with the climate in the past, not necessarily a climate which is in this moving frame of reference, that of a climate that's happening now and one in the future.
'So the risk of hazards is continuously increasing as a result of that.'
A certain degree of resilience is required, not just by ecosystems, but by humans too to cope with a changing climate.
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Graham noted that, while everyone should try to be 'as green as possible' on an individual level, there is more of an onus on governments and oil and business giants to adhere to their 'moral and ethical duties'.
He said: 'There is a particularly strong onus on governments and those who can make a real change. I'm talking about leaders in the oil industry and leaders in business.
'It's the failure of big business, big oil industry, to live up to its ethical and moral duties. That's the problem — it's an ethical problem.
'It's quite easy to make a change to renewable energies. It would be a win-win situation — it would help stop climate change, and make the earth a lot greener. There'd be a lot less pollution, and we'd have investments in new technology.
'Green technologies are highly advanced and we could use AI to do this, but there's a sort of inertia amongst business and conservatism that when you get wealthy, what do you want? You just want more.'