London has been wet but mild
(Picture: PA Wire)Mild weather is set to continue in London for the rest of the week with wet and blustery conditions forecast for Saturday.
Peak temperatures of 14C, 13C, 11C, and 12C have been predicted for Wednesday to Saturday respectively - unusually warm for the first week of January.
The mild conditions are in step with warmth across Europe. Warsaw and Bilbao have both recorded temperatures more than 10C above average, the latter clocking a balmy 25.1C. National records have fallen in eight countries for unseasonal heat with a further three setting local station records.
Contrast that with the heavy snow and freezing rain in the US where the bomb cyclone phenomenon has raged, leaving at least 60 dead. Later this week, thunderstorms and tornadoes are expected in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.
For London, the Met Office has said Wednesday will see “early rain in the east clearing to leave sunny spells, with one or two isolated showers” and that it will be mild, with strong winds easing. Wednesday night will have lows of 7C.
Thursday will be “bright and dry at first but with cloud thickening from the west with occasional rain from late morning”.
For later in the week, a Met Office statement added: “[It will be] a rather unsettled period with further periods of stronger winds and rain, interspersed with drier interludes and some sunny spells, the best of these on Friday. It will be generally mild.”
The UK is one of the more northerly places for the weather to be so mild, with parts of Scandinavia and eastern Europe braced for temperatures to sink to -20C.
The mild weather follows a chilly December - which was the only month in 2022 to not be hotter than average in Britain. Human-induced climate change has led to heatwaves becoming more frequent and intense. The world has warmed by more than 1C since the industrial era began.
