Latest news with #MikeKendon
Sky News
2 hours ago
- Climate
- Sky News
Extreme weather 'becoming the norm' - as minister warns UK's way of life 'under threat'
Britain's climate is changing rapidly, with records regularly being smashed and extremes of heat and rainfall becoming the norm, the Met Office has warned. In an updated assessment of the UK's climate, the forecaster says heatwaves and periods of flood or drought are becoming more frequent and more intense. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband called the findings "a stark warning" to take action on climate and nature. "Our British way of life is under threat," Mr Miliband told the PA news agency. "Whether it is extreme heat, droughts, flooding, we can see it actually with our own eyes, that it's already happening, and we need to act." The report shows the period between October 2023 and March 2024 was the wettest winter period in England and Wales in over 250 years. Spring 2024 was also the warmest on record. It says the increasing extremes are "typical of recent years". Mike Kendon, a Met Office climate scientist and lead author of the State of the UK Climate report, said: "Every year that goes by is another upward step on the warming trajectory our climate is on. "Observations show that our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago. "We are now seeing records being broken very frequently as we see temperature and rainfall extremes being the most affected by our changing climate." 2:17 The report compares the decade up to 2024 with long-term averages between 1961 and 1990. While the average temperature is increasing, the hottest summer days and coldest winter nights have warmed twice as fast. The climate is also becoming wetter - with the extra rain falling between October and March. Over the last decade, rainfall over the six-month winter period was 16% higher than the average between 1961 and 1990. Effects of UK climate change 'deeply concerning' Chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, Professor Liz Bentley, said the report "reinforces the clear and urgent signals of our changing climate". "While long-term averages are shifting, it is the extreme heat, intense rainfall and droughts that are having the most immediate and dramatic effects on people and nature," she said. "This report is not just a record of change, but a call to action." 0:46 Kathryn Brown, director of climate change at The Wildlife Trusts, said the effects of climate change on UK wildlife were already "deeply concerning". "From swifts dropping out of the sky during heatwaves to trees flowering much earlier than they have in the past," she said. "We are particularly worried about the effects of droughts on our nature reserves."
Daily Record
11 hours ago
- Climate
- Daily Record
Urgent warning from Met Office as report shows extreme weather is 'new normal'
The latest report on the UK's climate is a 'call to action' against global warming. The Met Office has issued an urgent warning as extreme weather has become the 'new norm' for the UK. We enjoyed the sunniest spring on record this year and are just out a sweltering heatwave. But we have also seen some wild weather, and these trends of extremely hot weather mixed with severe storms and rainfall show the concerning impact of global warming on our climate. The new State of the UK Climate report was published by Wiley in the Royal Meteorological Society's 'International Journal of Climatology'. It shows that the last three years have been in the top five warmest on record for the UK, with records beginning in 1884. UK temperatures have warmed at a rate of approximately 0.25C per decade since the 1980s, with the most recent decade (2015-2024) being 1.24C warmer than 1961-1990. The report is based on data from a network of several hundred weather stations, with temperature and rainfall records dating back to the 1800s providing the long term context for climate change. The hottest summer days and coldest winter nights have warmed around twice as much in some parts of the UK when comparing the most recent decade of 2015-2024 to 1961-1990. Rainfall has also increased dramatically, bringing greater risks of flooding in the UK. The overall increase in rainfall was caused by an upward trend of rain in the winter half-year (October to March). For 2015-2024, the winter half-year is now 16 per cent wetter than 1961-1990 for the UK. Met Office Climate Scientist and Lead Author of the State of the UK Climate report, Mike Kendon, said: 'Every year that goes by is another upward step on the warming trajectory our climate is on. "Observations show that our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago. We are now seeing records being broken very frequently as we see temperature and rainfall extremes being the most affected by our changing climate." These changes in temperature and rainfall have already led to an increase in extreme weather events for the UK. While we've seen major storms this year, such as Storm Éowyn, and several record-breaking heatwaves already, the report only uses data up until the end of 2024. However, it details a spike in severe weather up until the end of last year that caused widespread damage and several deaths. The UK saw widespread flooding last year caused by storms Babet, Ciarán, Debi, Elin, Fergus, Gerrit, Henk, Isha and Jocelyn, and parts of Eastern Scotland in particular were affected. Parts of South Wales also experienced severe flooding from storm Bert in late November 2024, with 100 to 150mm or more of rain falling across high ground. This multi-hazard storm brought heavy rain, strong winds and caused several deaths. Red warnings were also issued across the UK for storm Isha in January and storm Darragh in December of 2024. Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, Professor Liz Bentley, said: 'This latest edition of the State of the UK Climate report reinforces the clear and urgent signals of our changing climate, rooted in robust observational science. "It documents changes in temperature, rainfall, sea level, and weather extremes that are affecting lives, infrastructure, and ecosystems across the UK. 'The report draws particular attention to the last decade that clearly shows how quickly our climate is evolving to inform policy, resilience planning, and adaptation. Perhaps most striking is the growing impact of extremes. "While long-term averages are shifting, it is the extreme heat, intense rainfall and droughts that are having the most immediate and dramatic effects on people and nature. This report is not just a record of change, but a call to action.'
eNCA
12 hours ago
- Climate
- eNCA
New UK weather records being set 'very frequently': report
LONDON - Extremes in temperature and rainfall in the UK are becoming increasingly frequent, the nation's meteorological service said in a report on Britain's changing climate. England and Wales endured the wettest winter in 250 years from October 2023 to March 2024, with six of the 10 wettest winters occurring in the 21st century. The report also found that last year was the UK's fourth warmest since 1884, with the last three years all in the top five warmest on record. Records were now being broken "very frequently", said Mike Kendon, Met Office climate scientist and lead author of the Met Office's State of the UK Climate report. "It's the extremes of temperature and rainfall that is changing the most, and that's of profound concern, and that's going to continue in the future," he said. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said the findings showed Britain's way of life was "under threat". "Whether it is extreme heat, droughts, flooding, we can see it actually with our own eyes, that it's already happening, and we need to act," he said. In 2024, experts recorded the warmest spring, the second-warmest February, and the fifth-warmest winter on record. Rising sea levels surrounding the UK were speeding up, with two-thirds of the rise recorded since 1900 taking place in the last 30 years, the report said. "Every year that goes by is another upward step on the warming trajectory our climate is on," Kendon said. "Observations show that our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago," he added. - 'Clear signs' - Changes to the seasons were evident, according to a volunteer-fed database drawn upon by the Met Office researchers. Out of 13 spring events monitored in 2024, 12 occurred earlier than average. The report reinforced the "clear and urgent signals of our changing climate", added Liz Bentley, chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society. The research, however, did not find any evidence that the UK's climate was becoming more windy or stormy. Last month, a group of experts tasked with advising the government said the UK had cut its carbon emissions by 50.4 percent since 1990 levels. Much of the drop in emissions of planet-heating greenhouse gases -- blamed for triggering climate change -- was due to the closure of the UK's coal-fired power generation plants, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) said in its report to parliament. The progress could largely be attributed to the policies of the previous Conservative government, the report said, while crediting the new government of Labour Prime Minister Keir with "bold policy decisions this year". Starmer, elected just over a year ago, has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81 percent on 1990 levels by 2035, strengthening the UK government's ambitions to help curb climate change. har/jkb/jm
Euronews
a day ago
- Climate
- Euronews
Is the UK's spate of heatwaves the new normal under climate change?
As Brits breathe a sigh of relief after 2025's third heatwave relents, many are wondering whether this run of extreme weather is 'the new normal' under climate change. Published this morning, the Met Office's annual climate stocktake report confirms it: baselines are shifting, records are broken more frequently, and extreme heat and rainfall are 'becoming the norm'. The last three years have been the UK's hottest on record - with 2024 the fourth warmest year in records dating back to 1884. Last year was the hottest on record globally, as greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of gas, oil and coal continue to rise, heating up the atmosphere. 'Every year that goes by is another upward step on the warming trajectory our climate is on,' says Mike Kendon, Met Office climate scientist and lead author of the State of the UK Climate report. 'Observations show that our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago. We are now seeing records being broken very frequently as we see temperature and rainfall extremes being the most affected by our changing climate.' How much has the UK heated up? The UK has warmed at a rate of approximately 0.25°C per decade since the 1980s, with the most recent decade (2015-2024) 1.24°C warmer than 1961-1990, the report shows. It is based on observations from a network of several hundred weather stations around the country, which have temperature and rainfall data stretching back to the 19th Century. The number of days with temperatures 5°C above the 1961-1990 average has doubled for the most recent decade compared to 1961-1990. For 8°C above average the number has trebled and for 10°C it has quadrupled. 'This pace of change and clustering of consecutive records is not a natural variation in our climate,' Kendon stresses. 'Numerous studies have shown how human emissions of greenhouse gasses are warming the atmosphere and changing the weather we experience on the ground. 'Our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago, this is clear from our observations.' Is the UK getting wetter? As the UK's climate warms, it is also becoming wetter, because every 1°C enables the atmosphere to hold around 7 per cent more moisture - leading to heavier rainfall. The report shows that the increase in rainfall in the UK is entirely due to an upward trend in the winter half-year, from October to March. For 2015-2024 the winter half-year is now 16 per cent wetter than it was in 1961-1990. October 2023 to March 2024 was the wettest winter half-year on record for England and Wales in over 250 years, prompting widespread flooding in eastern Scotland, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and the West Midlands. Understanding the upward trajectory for high temperature and rainfall is vital, the scientists say, as these weather extremes tend to cause the greatest impacts in the form of floods and heatwaves. 'We are experiencing more severe weather events in the UK due to climate change,' says Met Office chief scientist, Professor Stephen Belcher. 'They are a potent reminder of our responsibility to citizens now, and to future generations, to accelerate efforts to adapt our society and infrastructure to cope with these weather extremes.' Observations do not currently suggest that the UK is becoming windier or stormier, although storms had a devastating impact in 2024. Red warnings were issued for Storm Isha in January and Storm Darragh in December, the report notes; a reminder that such storms are an intrinsic part of the climate due to the UK's position in the Atlantic storm track. UK sea level is rising faster than the global average For the first time ever, the report also highlights how the UK sea level is rising faster than the global average. Tide gauge records since the 1900s provide observational evidence that sea level rise around the UK is accelerating, with two-thirds of the observed sea level rise over that period happening in just over the last three decades. This exacerbates the impact of storms - such as Storm Kathleen in April 2024, which coincided with spring tides and was influenced by high background mean sea levels. 'The storm surge events the UK experienced in 2024 demonstrate the potential for the UK to be affected by coastal flooding,' says Dr Svetlana Jevrejeva from the National Oceanography Centre. 'As sea levels continue to rise around the UK, this risk is only going to increase further,' she adds, and 'as we know from historical events, it is only a matter of time until the UK is next in the path of a major storm surge event.' Other signs of climate change in the UK Though all Brits are susceptible to heatwaves in summer, for observant nature-lovers, the signs of climate change are manifold. The timing of seasonal activity in plants and animals (known as phenology) is recorded in the UK by a volunteer network. Their records show that Spring 2024 was earlier than average for 12 of the 13 spring events monitored. It was also the earliest in the series (from 1999-2024) for both frogspawn appearing and blackbird nesting. 'Looking at the phenology data we can see examples of how nature is responding to both weather, in the short-term, and climate, in the long-term,' says Dr Judith Garforth from the Woodland Trust. 'For example, the particularly warm weather in February 2024 resulted in the earliest UK average frogspawn-sighting since the series began in 1999; but over the longer-term, hazel flowering, which can occur as early as December, is starting to show an advancing trend over the whole 26 years of the data series.' 'This report is not just a record of change, but a call to action,' says Professor Liz Bentley, Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society. '[It] clearly shows how quickly our climate is evolving to inform policy, resilience planning, and adaptation.'
The Sun
a day ago
- Climate
- The Sun
New UK weather records being set ‘very frequently': report
LONDON: Extremes in temperature and rainfall in the UK are becoming increasingly frequent, the nation's meteorological service said Monday in a report on Britain's changing climate. England and Wales endured the wettest winter in 250 years in from from October 2023 to March 2024, with six of the 10 wettest winters occurring in the 21st century. The report also found that last year was the UK's fourth warmest since 1884 with the last three years all in the top five warmest on record. Records were now being broken 'very frequently', said Mike Kendon, Met Office climate scientist and lead author of the Met Office's State of the UK Climate report. 'It's the extremes of temperature and rainfall that is changing the most, and that's of profound concern, and that's going to continue in the future,' he said. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said the findings showed Britain's way of life was 'under threat'. 'Whether it is extreme heat, droughts, flooding, we can see it actually with our own eyes, that it's already happening, and we need to act,' he said. In 2024, experts recorded the warmest spring, the second warmest February and the fifth warmest winter on record. Rising sea levels surrounding the UK were speeding up, with two-thirds of the rise recorded since 1900 taking place in the last 30 years, the report said. 'Every year that goes by is another upward step on the warming trajectory our climate is on,' Kendon said. 'Observations show that our climate in the UK is now notably different to what it was just a few decades ago,' he added. - 'Clear signs' - Changes to the seasons were evident, according to a volunteer-fed database drawn upon by the Met Office researchers. Out of 13 spring events monitored in 2024, 12 occurred earlier than average. The report reinforced the 'clear and urgent signals of our changing climate', added Liz Bentley, chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society. The research, however, did not find any evidence that the UK's climate was becoming more windy or stormy. Last month, a group of experts tasked with advising the government said the UK had cut its carbon emissions by 50.4 percent since 1990 levels. Much of the drop in emissions of planet-heating greenhouse gases -- blamed for triggering climate change -- was due to the closure of the UK's coal-fired power generation plants, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) said in its report to parliament. The progress could largely be attributed to the policies of the previous Conservative government, the report said, while crediting the new government of Labour Prime Minister Keir with 'bold policy decisions this year'. Starmer, elected just over a year ago, has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81 percent on 1990 levels by 2035, strengthening the UK government's ambitions to help curb climate change. – AFP
