The UK just hit 40℃ for the first time
A severe heatwave in Western Europe is shattering temperature records – including in the United Kingdom, where temperatures on Tuesday for the first time on record.
The village of Coningsby in eastern England 40.3 degrees – provisionally the hottest temperature in UK history. The record was previously held by Cambridge, which reached 38.7℃ in 2019.
I’m a scientist interested in climate change and extreme weather. I grew up in the UK and remember major heatwaves in 2003 and 2006 during my school holidays.
Traditionally, temperatures above 30℃ in the UK are considered hot. But to see temperatures already exceeding 40℃ is shocking.
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