Heatwave conditions are set to dominate the UK over the coming days, bringing warm and dry weather for many until early next week (week beginning Monday, July 11). The Met Office has said that, with high pressure in charge, there will be little change to the weather through the rest of the week and over the weekend which will allow temperatures to increase day on day.
BBC Breakfast weather forecaster, Carol Kirkwood, said there was "no rain" in the forecast for at least the next seven days. From Friday and over the weekend, temperatures will be in the mid-to-high 20s Celsius for many, and by Tuesday of next week it could reach into the 30s.
The Met Office said: "The situation remains the same into the start of next week, which means further dry and sunny weather and temperatures climbing higher during Monday and Tuesday, likely peaking on Tuesday with temperatures possible in the low 30s Celsius in parts of England and Wales, and high 20s elsewhere." You can get more weather news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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Speaking about the latest Met Office 10-day trend, meteorologist Alex Deakin added: “The strong July sunshine plus the high pressure squishing the air means that temperatures will be building through Sunday and Monday, likely to be over 30 Celsius and perhaps going up a notch further by the time we get to Tuesday.”
For it to be an official Met Office heatwave, specific thresholds, based on the region, must be met for three days running.
The forecasting service said that areas with lower heatwave thresholds, especially southwest England and south Wales, were more likely to reach heatwave criteria from Thursday onwards. Elsewhere, in areas with higher thresholds, the chance of an official heatwave is more marginal, although it’s possible they could also be warm enough from Sunday.
The Met Office said that it was likely that much of next week would see further sunny and warm weather, especially across southern parts of the UK. However, how high the temperature will get is not clear at this stage.
Alex continued: “The most likely scenario with these temperatures is that we stay in that warm or warmer than average zone. But there is a possibility that the heat will build further towards the end of next week.”
The BBC long-range UK forecast for next week says: "Through next week, high pressure will remain centred to the south-west, extending a ridge eastwards across the UK. It will stay dry and warm for most as areas of low pressure are deflected northwards. In Wales and southern England, temperatures are likely to be well above average for the time of year. These warm, dry conditions will exacerbate the problems of a lack of soil moisture already seen in parts of central and southern England.
"Later next week, there are hints in the latest models that the high pressure may drift further eastwards, becoming centred to the east of the UK next weekend (July 16 and 17). Warm air advection would then take place as the high would draw dry warm air in from the continent along south-easterly breezes.
"This scenario would lead to potentially hot conditions in Wales and southern England for several days. Warm air would reach into northern areas too, and temperatures would be well above average for much of the UK. However, there is low confidence in this at present. An alternative scenario would be for the high to drift further southwards, allowing a return to a more unsettled pattern, with conditions becoming cooler again."
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