Hydrological Summary

"With high pressure dominating for most of the month, October was notably dry for most of the UK. Although there were warm spells, easterly winds brought temperatures close to the seasonal average. There was a good deal of autumn sunshine, although there were regional variations: it was exceptionally sunny in north-west Scotland, while sunshine was near-average in the east."2

Read the full Hydrological Summary here.

July was an unsettled month and one of notable contrasts. Though temperatures cooled decisively thereafter, record‑breaking heatwave conditions characterised the 1st of the month. Following overnight temperature minima which exceeded 20°C in the south-east, Heathrow recorded 36.7°C, the warmest July day on record for the UK (in a series from 1853) and the hottest day in the UK since 2003. Throughout July, the north of the UK was generally wet and cool, whilst in southern areas conditions were predominantly dry although interspersed with intense downpours and thunderstorm activity.

Overall, June was dry, especially in parts of south-east England, and sunnier than average. Monthly average temperatures were fairly typical for June but it was slightly warmer than average in the far south-east and there were some warm spells, with heatwave conditions developing through the final days and extending into early July. As expected for the time of year, soil moisture deficits (SMDs) climbed steeply and, correspondingly, the seasonal recession of river flows and groundwater levels continued, leading to some notably low late June river flows.