Communicating changes in the intensity of UK heatwaves
Communiquer les changements d'intensité des vagues de chaleur au Royaume-Uni
Hawkins, Ed ; Sutton, Rowan ; Kendon, Mike
Année de publication
2026
Communicating how people are already affected by climate change is challenging, partly because global warming of 'just' 1°C does not necessarily sound like a problem. However, the hottest UK summer days have warmed more than 3 times faster than the rate of global warming in the past century. Using a simple observation-based approach, we estimate that for the hottest UK day on record, when temperatures reached 40°C in 2022, a comparable day a century ago would have peaked around 36°C. Similarly, several historical days would now reach 40°C if comparable events reoccurred, offering novel opportunities to communicate risks from ongoing global warming.</div>
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