The United Kingdom's average minimum temperature in July 2021 measured 12.1 degrees Celsius. This month, recorded the highest minimum temperature during the reported period. Since 2015, the lowest monthly minimum temperature in the UK was recorded in February 2018, at -0.7 degrees Celsius. This was the first time during this period that the average monthly minimum temperature dropped below zero degrees Celsius, while in January 2021 the second time took place, at -0.5 degrees Celsius. Further information about the weather in the United Kingdom can be found here.

The lowest average minimum temperature recorded in England since 2015 was in February 2018, when temperatures dropped to -0.4 degrees Celsius. In comparison, in February 2025 the temperature was 2.2 degrees Celsius.Further information about the weather in the United Kingdom can be found here.

The UK daily temperature data contain maximum and minimum temperatures (air, grass and concrete slab) measured over a period of up to 24 hours. The measurements were recorded by observation stations operated by the Met Office across the UK and transmitted within NCM, DLY3208 or AWSDLY messages. The data span from 1853 to 2024. For details on measurement techniques, including calibration information and changes in measurements, see section 5.2 of the MIDAS User Guide linked to from this record. Soil temperature data may be found in the UK soil temperature datasets linked from this record.

This version supersedes the previous version of this dataset and a change log is available in the archive, and in the linked documentation for this record, detailing the differences between this version and the previous version. The change logs detail new, replaced and removed data. These include the addition of data for calendar year 2024.

This dataset is part of the Midas-open dataset collection made available by the Met Office under the UK Open Government Licence, containing only UK mainland land surface observations owned or operated by the Met Office. It is a subset of the fuller, restricted Met Office Integrated Data Archive System (MIDAS) Land and Marine Surface Stations dataset, also available through the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis - see the related dataset section on this record. Currently this represents approximately 95% of available daily temperature observations within the full MIDAS collection.

The highest average temperature recorded in 2024 until November was in August, at 16.8 degrees Celsius. Since 2015, the highest average daily temperature in the UK was registered in July 2018, at 18.7 degrees Celsius. The summer of 2018 was the joint hottest since institutions began recording temperatures in 1910. One noticeable anomaly during this period was in December 2015, when the average daily temperature reached 9.5 degrees Celsius. This month also experienced the highest monthly rainfall in the UK since before 2014, with England, Wales, and Scotland suffering widespread flooding. Daily hours of sunshine Unsurprisingly, the heat wave that spread across the British Isles in 2018 was the result of particularly sunny weather. July 2018 saw an average of 8.7 daily sun hours in the United Kingdom. This was more hours of sun than was recorded in July 2024, which only saw 5.8 hours of sun. Temperatures are on the rise Since the 1960s, there has been an increase in regional temperatures across the UK. Between 1961 and 1990, temperatures in England averaged nine degrees Celsius, and from 2013 to 2022, average temperatures in the country had increased to 10.3 degrees Celsius. Due to its relatively southern location, England continues to rank as the warmest country in the UK.

The longest available instrumental record of temperature in the world is now available at the BADC. The daily data starts in 1772.

The mean, minimum and maximum datasets are updated monthly, with data for a month usually available by the 3rd of the next month. A provisional CET value for the current month is calculated on a daily basis. The mean daily data series begins in 1772. Mean maximum and minimum daily and monthly data are also available, beginning in 1878. Yearly files are provided from 1998 onwards.

These historical temperature series are representative of the Midlands region in England, UK (a roughly triangular area of the United Kingdom enclosed by Bristol, Lancashire and London).

The following stations are used by the Met Office to compile the CET data: Rothamsted, Malvern, Squires Gate and Ringway.

But in November 2004, the weather station Stonyhurst replaced Ringway and revised urban warming and bias adjustments have now been applied to the Stonyhurst data after a period of reduced reliability from the station in the summer months.

The data set is compiled by the Met Office Hadley Centre.

Monthly maximum temperatures in the United Kingdom (UK) tend to follow a similar pattern, with maximum temperatures typically highest in July and August. The warmest maximum temperature was in July 2018, at 22.6 degrees Celsius. During this period the lowest maximum temperature, 4.9 degrees Celsius, was measured in January 2021.

Regional climate values for an element, ordered by year -Minimum Tempature. Allowances have been made for topographic, coastal and urban effects where relationships are found to exist. Seasons: Winter=Dec-Feb, Spring=Mar-May, Summer=June-Aug, Autumn=Sept-Nov. (Winter: Year refers to Jan/Feb).

The tables provided show the national weather records. To ensure consistency, these weather records are only given for stations with standard instruments and exposure. Although some records have been broken by non-standard stations, these are not accepted as official records for this reason. Records are provided as follows: For temperature by country, by month and by district for the following: Highest daily maximum temperature Highest daily minimum temperature Lowest daily maximum temperature Lowest daily minimum temperature For rainfall by country, for highest 24-hour rainfall totals for a rainfall day (0900 - 0900 GMT) by period, in days for UK rainfall records for consecutive rainfall days (0900 - 0900 GMT) by period, in minutes for UK rainfall records for short durations (from 5 to 180 minutes) For sunshine hours by country, for highest monthly sunshine records For gust speed by country and district (for sites below 250m), for highest gust speed

Minimum Temperature. days (Current) This dataset shows the future minimum temperature presented to sites across the UK from temperatures degrees per day, based on data collected from a 1981-2010 baseline period. The dataset shows the likelihood of a temperature hazard event distributed across 5km hexagonal grids.

UKCP09 25 km gridded data for minimum temperature Monthly long-term averages for the 1961-1990 climate baseline are also available for the 25 x 25 km grid boxes of the HadRM3 regional climate model. Each 25 x 25 km grid box value is an average of the 5 x 5 km grid cell values that fall within it. The datasets have been created with financial support from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and they are being promoted by the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) as part of the UK Climate Projections (UKCP09). http://ukclimateprojections.defra.gov.uk/content/view/12/689/. Zip file contains 17 text files (one for each month, season and the year as a whole). The individual grids are named according to the following convention: vvvvvv_1961-1990_LTA_25km_ppp.txt where 'vvvvvv' is the variable name and 'ppp' is the averaging period, i.e. jan, feb, mar, etc. (for individual months), djf (winter), mam (spring), jja (summer), son (autumn) or ann (for the annual average). Single netCDF file that contains the data for all months, seasons and the year as a whole. To view this data you will have to register on the Met Office website, here: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/climate/climate-monitoring/UKCP09/register

ukcp09-Gridded datasets based on surface observations have been generated for a range of climatic variables. The primary purpose of this data resource is to encourage and facilitate research into climate change impacts and adaptation. This data set includes monthly ukcp09-Gridded datasets at 5 x 5 km resolution. A grid for each month covering the whole of the UK, downloadable in 10-year blocks.

The datasets have been created with financial support from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and they are being promoted by the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) as part of the UK Climate Projections (UKCP09). http://ukclimateprojections.defra.gov.uk/content/view/12/689/.

To view this data you will have to register on the Met Office website, here: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/climate/climate-monitoring/UKCP09/register

It is estimated that by the year 2050, the temperature of the coldest month in both Manchester and London will increase by ***** degrees Celsius due to climate change. In comparison, the coldest month in the Northern Ireland capital of Belfast will have increased by *** degrees Celsius.

The UK daily temperature data contain maximum and minimum temperatures (air, grass and concrete slab) measured over a period of up to 24 hours. The measurements were recorded by observation stations operated by the Met Office across the UK and transmitted within NCM, DLY3208 or AWSDLY messages. The data span from 1853 to 2018. For details on measurement techniques, including calibration information and changes in measurements, see section 5.2 of the MIDAS User Guide linked to from this record. Soil temperature data may be found in the UK soil temperature datasets linked from this record. This version supersedes the previous version of this dataset and a change log is available in the archive, and in the linked documentation for this record, detailing the differences between this version and the previous version. The change logs detail new, replaced and removed data. This dataset is part of the Midas-open dataset collection made available by the Met Office under the UK Open Government Licence, containing only UK mainland land surface observations owned or operated by the Met Office. It is a subset of the fuller, restricted Met Office Integrated Data Archive System (MIDAS) Land and Marine Surface Stations dataset, also available through the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis - see the related dataset section on this record. Currently this represents approximately 95% of available daily temperature observations within the full MIDAS collection.

UKCP09 25 km gridded data for minimum temperature Monthly long-term averages for the 1961-1990 climate baseline are also available for the 25 x 25 km grid boxes of the HadRM3 regional climate model. Each 25 x 25 km grid box value is an average of the 5 x 5 km grid cell values that fall within it.

The datasets have been created with financial support from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and they are being promoted by the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) as part of the UK Climate Projections (UKCP09). http://ukclimateprojections.defra.gov.uk/content/view/12/689/.

Zip file contains 17 text files (one for each month, season and the year as a whole). The individual grids are named according to the following convention: vvvvvv_1961-1990_LTA_25km_ppp.txt where 'vvvvvv' is the variable name and 'ppp' is the averaging period, i.e. jan, feb, mar, etc. (for individual months), djf (winter), mam (spring), jja (summer), son (autumn) or ann (for the annual average).

Single netCDF file that contains the data for all months, seasons and the year as a whole.

To view this data you will have to register on the Met Office website, here: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/climate/climate-monitoring/UKCP09/register

[Updated 28/01/25 to fix an issue in the ‘Lower’ values, which were not fully representing the range of uncertainty. ‘Median’ and ‘Higher’ values remain unchanged. The size of the change varies by grid cell and fixed period/global warming levels but the average difference between the 'lower' values before and after this update is 0.37°C.]What does the data show? This dataset shows the change in winter minimum temperature for a range of global warming levels, including the recent past (2001-2020), compared to the 1981-2000 baseline period. Here, winter is defined as December-January-February.The dataset uses projections of daily minimum air temperature from UKCP18 which are averaged to give values for the 1981-2000 baseline, the recent past (2001-2020) and global warming levels. The warming levels available are 1.5°C, 2.0°C, 2.5°C, 3.0°C and 4.0°C above the pre-industrial (1850-1900) period. The recent past value and global warming level values are stated as a change (in °C) relative to the 1981-2000 value. This enables users to compare winter minimum temperature trends for the different periods. In addition to the change values, values for the 1981-2000 baseline (corresponding to 0.51°C warming) and recent past (2001-2020, corresponding to 0.87°C warming) are also provided. This is summarised in the table below.PeriodDescription1981-2000 baselineAverage temperature (°C) for the period2001-2020 (recent past)Average temperature (°C) for the period2001-2020 (recent past) changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-20001.5°C global warming level changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-20002°C global warming level changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-20002.5°C global warming level changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-20003°C global warming level changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-20004°C global warming level changeTemperature change (°C) relative to 1981-2000What is a global warming level?The Winter Minimum Temperature Change is calculated from the UKCP18 regional climate projections using the high emissions scenario (RCP 8.5) where greenhouse gas emissions continue to grow. Instead of considering future climate change during specific time periods (e.g. decades) for this scenario, the dataset is calculated at various levels of global warming relative to the pre-industrial (1850-1900) period. The world has already warmed by around 1.1°C (between 1850–1900 and 2011–2020), whilst this dataset allows for the exploration of greater levels of warming. The global warming levels available in this dataset are 1.5°C, 2°C, 2.5°C, 3°C and 4°C. The data at each warming level was calculated using a 21 year period. These 21 year periods are calculated by taking 10 years either side of the first year at which the global warming level is reached. This time will be different for different model ensemble members. To calculate the value for the Winter Minimum Temperature Change, an average is taken across the 21 year period.We cannot provide a precise likelihood for particular emission scenarios being followed in the real world future. However, we do note that RCP8.5 corresponds to emissions considerably above those expected with current international policy agreements. The results are also expressed for several global warming levels because we do not yet know which level will be reached in the real climate as it will depend on future greenhouse emission choices and the sensitivity of the climate system, which is uncertain. Estimates based on the assumption of current international agreements on greenhouse gas emissions suggest a median warming level in the region of 2.4-2.8°C, but it could either be higher or lower than this level.What are the naming conventions and how do I explore the data?These data contain a field for each warming level and the 1981-2000 baseline. They are named 'tasmin winter change' (change in air 'temperature at surface'), the warming level or baseline, and 'upper' 'median' or 'lower' as per the description below. e.g. ‘tasmin winter change 2.0 median' is the median value for winter for the 2.0°C warming level. Decimal points are included in field aliases but not in field names, e.g. 'tasmin winter change 2.0 median' is named ‘tasmin_winter_change_20_median'. To understand how to explore the data, refer to the New Users ESRI Storymap. Please note, if viewing in ArcGIS Map Viewer, the map will default to ‘tasmin winter change 2.0°C median’ values.What do the 'median', 'upper', and 'lower' values mean?Climate models are numerical representations of the climate system. To capture uncertainty in projections for the future, an ensemble, or group, of climate models are run. Each ensemble member has slightly different starting conditions or model set-ups. Considering all of the model outcomes gives users a range of plausible conditions which could occur in the future.For this dataset, the model projections consist of 12 separate ensemble members. To select which ensemble members to use, the Winter Minimum Temperature Change was calculated for each ensemble member and they were then ranked in order from lowest to highest for each location.The ‘lower’ fields are the second lowest ranked ensemble member. The ‘higher’ fields are the second highest ranked ensemble member. The ‘median’ field is the central value of the ensemble.This gives a median value, and a spread of the ensemble members indicating the range of possible outcomes in the projections. This spread of outputs can be used to infer the uncertainty in the projections. The larger the difference between the lower and higher fields, the greater the uncertainty.‘Lower’, ‘median’ and ‘upper’ are also given for the baseline period as these values also come from the model that was used to produce the projections. This allows a fair comparison between the model projections and recent past. Useful linksFor further information on the UK Climate Projections (UKCP).Further information on understanding climate data within the Met Office Climate Data Portal.

Temperature in the United Kingdom decreased to 9.88 celsius in 2024 from 10.14 celsius in 2023. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United Kingdom Average Temperature.

This dataset has been extracted as part of an exercise to assemble "all" Cefas Temperature Data and publish it in a Data paper. It is one of 17 Cefas data sources assembled.

This data source differs from the others in this collection because it arises from an investigation into the potential for Citizen Science to contribute to assessments of the marine environment. The dataset is derived from a database containing over 7,000 records of temperature data collected from temperature compensated dive computers. The lowest temperature is recorded from the thermal sensor. The unprocessed data were then subjected to a quality control process that compared the temperature with the relevant sea surface temperature (obtained from OSTIA – Operational Sea Surface Temperature and Sea Ice Analysis – http://ghrsst–pp.metoffice.com/pages/latest_analysis/ostia.html_).

There was a linear correlation between the sea surface temperature and the recorded temperature at depth. Values exceeding a specified difference from the surface temperature (5°C) were excluded. This resulted in a quality assured dataset of just over 5,000 records (including freshwater and lake data). The subset of global dataset provided covers the UK shelf.

The 5°C threshold is derived from previous analyses of the performance of dive computers.

.. _http://ghrsst–pp.metoffice.com/pages/latest_analysis/ostia.html: http://ghrsst-pp.metoffice.com/pages/latest_analysis/ostia.html

[Updated 28/01/25 to fix an issue in the ‘Lower’ values, which were not fully representing the range of uncertainty. ‘Median’ and ‘Higher’ values remain unchanged. The size of the change varies by grid cell and fixed period/global warming levels but the average difference between the 'lower' values before and after this update is 0.0.]What does the data show? The Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days is the number of days per year where the maximum daily temperature is above 35°C. It measures how many times the threshold is exceeded (not by how much) in a year. Note, the term ‘extreme summer days’ is used to refer to the threshold and temperatures above 35°C outside the summer months also contribute to the annual count. The results should be interpreted as an approximation of the projected number of days when the threshold is exceeded as there will be many factors such as natural variability and local scale processes that the climate model is unable to represent.The Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days is calculated for two baseline (historical) periods 1981-2000 (corresponding to 0.51°C warming) and 2001-2020 (corresponding to 0.87°C warming) and for global warming levels of 1.5°C, 2.0°C, 2.5°C, 3.0°C, 4.0°C above the pre-industrial (1850-1900) period. This enables users to compare the future number of extreme summer days to previous values.What are the possible societal impacts?The Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days indicates increased health risks, transport disruption and damage to infrastructure from high temperatures. It is based on exceeding a maximum daily temperature of 35°C. Impacts include:Increased heat related illnesses, hospital admissions or death affecting not just the vulnerable. Transport disruption due to overheating of road and railway infrastructure.Other metrics such as the Annual Count of Summer Days (days above 25°C), Annual Count of Hot Summer Days (days above 30°C) and the Annual Count of Tropical Nights (where the minimum temperature does not fall below 20°C) also indicate impacts from high temperatures, however they use different temperature thresholds.What is a global warming level?The Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days is calculated from the UKCP18 regional climate projections using the high emissions scenario (RCP 8.5) where greenhouse gas emissions continue to grow. Instead of considering future climate change during specific time periods (e.g. decades) for this scenario, the dataset is calculated at various levels of global warming relative to the pre-industrial (1850-1900) period. The world has already warmed by around 1.1°C (between 1850–1900 and 2011–2020), whilst this dataset allows for the exploration of greater levels of warming. The global warming levels available in this dataset are 1.5°C, 2°C, 2.5°C, 3°C and 4°C. The data at each warming level was calculated using a 21 year period. These 21 year periods are calculated by taking 10 years either side of the first year at which the global warming level is reached. This time will be different for different model ensemble members. To calculate the value for the Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days, an average is taken across the 21 year period. Therefore, the Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days show the number of extreme summer days that could occur each year, for each given level of warming. We cannot provide a precise likelihood for particular emission scenarios being followed in the real world future. However, we do note that RCP8.5 corresponds to emissions considerably above those expected with current international policy agreements. The results are also expressed for several global warming levels because we do not yet know which level will be reached in the real climate as it will depend on future greenhouse emission choices and the sensitivity of the climate system, which is uncertain. Estimates based on the assumption of current international agreements on greenhouse gas emissions suggest a median warming level in the region of 2.4-2.8°C, but it could either be higher or lower than this level.What are the naming conventions and how do I explore the data?This data contains a field for each global warming level and two baselines. They are named ‘ESD’ (where ESD means Extreme Summer Days, the warming level or baseline, and ‘upper’ ‘median’ or ‘lower’ as per the description below. E.g. ‘Extreme Summer Days 2.5 median’ is the median value for the 2.5°C warming level. Decimal points are included in field aliases but not field names e.g. ‘Extreme Summer Days 2.5 median’ is ‘ExtremeSummerDays_25_median’. To understand how to explore the data, see this page: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/457e7a2bc73e40b089fac0e47c63a578Please note, if viewing in ArcGIS Map Viewer, the map will default to ‘ESD 2.0°C median’ values.What do the ‘median’, ‘upper’, and ‘lower’ values mean?Climate models are numerical representations of the climate system. To capture uncertainty in projections for the future, an ensemble, or group, of climate models are run. Each ensemble member has slightly different starting conditions or model set-ups. Considering all of the model outcomes gives users a range of plausible conditions which could occur in the future. For this dataset, the model projections consist of 12 separate ensemble members. To select which ensemble members to use, the Annual Count of Extreme Summer Days was calculated for each ensemble member and they were then ranked in order from lowest to highest for each location. The ‘lower’ fields are the second lowest ranked ensemble member. The ‘upper’ fields are the second highest ranked ensemble member. The ‘median’ field is the central value of the ensemble.This gives a median value, and a spread of the ensemble members indicating the range of possible outcomes in the projections. This spread of outputs can be used to infer the uncertainty in the projections. The larger the difference between the lower and upper fields, the greater the uncertainty.‘Lower’, ‘median’ and ‘upper’ are also given for the baseline periods as these values also come from the model that was used to produce the projections. This allows a fair comparison between the model projections and recent past. Useful linksThis dataset was calculated following the methodology in the ‘Future Changes to high impact weather in the UK’ report and uses the same temperature thresholds as the 'State of the UK Climate' report.Further information on the UK Climate Projections (UKCP).Further information on understanding climate data within the Met Office Climate Data Portal.