The UK is in the midst of its most blistering heatwave ever, which saw the record for 'hottest day' broken twice on Tuesday (July 19). The new record was documented at Heathrow Airport as the temperature hit 40.2C, just hours after Surrey recorded new highs of 39.1C.
The previous UK record was broken three years prior, when it reached 38.7C in Cambridge University Botanic Garden on 25 July 2019. The current conditions have reminded many of the summer of 1976, which saw one of the longest heatwaves in living memory.
But just how does this spell of weather compare to that of 46 years ago? Nigel Arnell, professor of climate system science at the University of Reading, says it was hot in 1976, but not as “extremely hot” as it is currently.
He said the impacts of that hot summer have been forgotten, and added: “It was disruptive. And it wasn’t really as extreme in temperature as what we’re experiencing at the moment.”
In 1976 temperatures across the UK soared to over 32C. During the heatwave the country's highest ever temperature at the time was recorded when it reached 35.9C in Cheltenham - making the peak of this year's heatwave 4.3C hotter.
The prolonged sunshine and heat in the 70s lasted for over a fortnight and alongside it came the worst drought in over a century. Some parts of the South West even went 45 days without rain and the extreme heat was thought to be behind a 20% increase in excess deaths, reports the Mirror.
It seems as though this year's heatwave won't last quite as long, with rain and thunderstorms expected for much of the UK as the week goes on. The Met Office forecasts that, while it will still be hot, a few heavy showers may develop for parts of the east and southeast on Wednesday (July 19).
By Friday (July 20), it should be "much cooler for all" with "showers or thunderstorms in places," according to the weather service's long-range forecast. But perhaps the biggest difference between the two summers is that having such scorching weather in 1976 was a highly unusual event.
Dr Otto, from Grantham Institute for Climate Change, Imperial College London, acknowledges that there have been heatwaves in the past, but says the difference in 1976 was how the rest of the world looked. “In 1976, there was a heatwave in the UK. In 2022, there are heatwaves everywhere in the world. And so have been in 2021 and 2020 and 2019,” she said.
Meanwhile, when it comes to deaths from extreme heat, Professor Hannah Cloke of the University of Reading warns heatwaves will begin to take over as the most dangerous natural hazard in years to come without action to curb climate change. Extreme cold is the biggest weather killer of people in the UK at the moment.
More heatwaves will also mean more disruption to travel, health services and work and education, and the hot conditions – especially coming after dry periods such as the one seen in parts of England this year – make wildfires more likely.
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