2022 warmest year on record so far, says UK's Met Office

Reports show that every month this year has been warmer than average

People on the beach in Bournemouth. PA

This October was the seventh warmest on record due to mild temperatures, while slightly above-average rainfall did little to change what has been an extremely dry year so far.

Temperatures during the first 10 months of 2022 make the year the warmest on record so far, the UK's Met Office said.

There were higher-than-usual temperatures across the southern half of the UK during October and mercury climbed to almost 23°C in London as the month came to an end.

A temperature of 22.9°C was recorded at Kew Gardens in the west of the capital on Saturday.

Provisional Met Office statistics show that the mean temperature for October was 11.5°C, with a particularly balmy end making the month the seventh-warmest October in a series which goes back to 1884.

The warmest year on record for the UK was 2014.

Heatwave in the UK — in pictures

People basking in the sun on a crowded Brighton beach. The temperature in Britain smashed through the 40ºC barrier for the first time in recorded history. PA

A man dives into the Serpentine Lake to cool off in Hyde Park, west London. AFP

Firefighters rest as they attend a gorse bush fire, near Zennor, Cornwall. Reuters

A tourist wears a hat to shield herself from the sun on Westminster Bridge in central London. AP

A man cools off at Trafalgar Square, central London. Reuters

Firefighters respond to a large wildfire in woodland at Lickey Hills Country Park on the edge of Birmingham. PA

A railway worker hands out bottles of water to passengers at London's King's Cross, where there are train cancellations due to the heat. AP

Firefighters control a grass fire in Ravenswood, Suffolk. PA

Train tracks are painted white to help with the heat at Alexandra Palace train station in London. PA

Deer rest in the shade at London's Richmond Park. Reuters

An empty freezer section at Sainsbury's Nine Elms in London. PA

Chippy the chimpanzee enjoys an ice treat at Blair Drummond Safari and Adventure Park, near Stirling. AP

A student dips her head into the fountain at Trafalgar Square, London. Getty Images

People turn out to watch the sunrise on Tuesday morning at Cullercoats Bay, North Tyneside. PA

A digital thermometer displaying a temperature of 39°C on a London Underground train. PA

A fan finds a way to keep cool while watching the Women's Euro 2022 football match between Italy and Belgium at Manchester City Academy Stadium. AP

An aerial view shows swimmers at Hathersage Swimming Pool, west of Sheffield in northern England. AFP

Traffic crosses a bridge at Woodhead Resevoir in West Yorkshire as water levels dip dangerously low. AP

A man leaps from the top of a tree into the River Cam, in Cambridge. Getty Images

A packed Gyllyngvase beach in Falmouth. Getty Images

A police officer gives water to a sentry in heavy ceremonial uniform, outside Buckingham Palace in central London. AP

A man cools off in a fountain in London. Reuters

A man sunbathes at the harbour in Mousehole, Cornwall. AP

People swim in the River Wye. Reuters

Passengers feel the heat on the London Underground. The operator advised its customers not to use the metro during the worst of the heatwave. AP

Palm House supervisor Will Spolestra waters the plants at the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, west London, where temperatures inside the greenhouses are cooler than outside during the heatwave. PA

Dry grass at Greenwich Park, south-east London. AP

A swimmer takes an early morning dip in the cool water of Jesus Green Lido in Cambridge, eastern England. Getty Images

Assistant horticulturalist Katie Martyr checks the temperature at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden. Forecasts are for record temperatures exceeding 40°C. Getty Images

Bathers keep cool in a tidal pool at Perranporth Beach in Cornwall, south-west England. Reuters

Message boards at London's Victoria Station warn passengers of potential disruption to train services due to the extreme heat. AFP

Zorro the police horse drinks water from a bucket to cool down during hot weather, on Whitehall in London. Reuters

People use a map to shelter from the sun outside Buckingham Palace in London. Reuters

A cyclist rides through Richmond Park in south-west London at sunrise on Monday. Reuters

The reduced water level at Weir Wood reservoir, near Crawley, south-east England. The UK's Met Office has issued its first 'red warning' for exceptional heat. AFP

A crowded beach at Joss Bay in Broadstairs, south-east England. Reuters

Swimmers take the plunge to escape the heat in east London. Reuters

Sunbathers on the parched grass in Greenwich Park, south-east London. AP

A sign advises people not to travel on the London Underground during the heatwave. EPA

The Met Office will continue to monitor temperature statistics for November and December to see how 2022 fares.

The weather service said the temperature statistics mean that six of the 10 warmest Octobers on record for the UK have happened since the turn of the century, “as the influence of human-induced climate change can be seen across long-term recorded data”.

“What has been particularly unusual about this October is the persistent above-average temperatures — particularly across the southern half of the UK,” said Michael Kendon, of the National Climate Information Centre.

“Maximum temperatures have been above average on every day of the month — always reaching the mid-teens.”

He said a south-westerly airflow brought warm air over Europe to the UK and that above-average temperatures in France and Spain were also partly responsible for the warmth of the air in the UK late in October.

Europe's waterways hit by heatwaves and drought — in pictures

Dried mud and old trees at Colliford Lake in Cornwall, England, where water levels have severely dropped exposing the unseen trees and rocks in Cornwall's largest lake and reservoir. PA

A large section of exposed River Rhine riverbed, due to low water levels caused by drought, in Duesseldorf, Germany. Bloomberg

A boat on a bank of the receding Danube river, after a lengthy drought near the village of Cortanovci, Serbia. AP

People take a stroll on the river bed of the Waal as water levels dropped because of drought in Nijmegen, Netherlands. AP

People take photos on the southern tip of Margaret Island, which can be seen due to low water level of the River Danube, in Budapest, Hungary. AP

The dried-up river Tille in Lux, France. AP

A bridge, which is usually submerged, over the dried bed of Llwyn-on Reservoir, during a heatwave in Wales. Reuters

The Rhine river with low water levels in Cologne, Germany. AP

The Yesa reservoir and the Aragon River are practically without water in Yesa, Navarra, Spain. EPA

Low water levels at Baitings Reservoir in Ripponden, West Yorkshire, England. Reuters

Low water levels at the Odra river near Czelin village, north-western Poland. EPA

Boats on the dried bed of the drought-affected Doubs river on the border with France in Les Brenets, Switzerland. Reuters

A person sits by a reservoir with low water levels and dried grass at Walthamstow Wetlands in London, England. EPA

The dried-up River Po that has been affected by the worst drought in 70 years, near Borgo Virgilio, Italy. Reuters

The slightly above-average rainfall for the UK has not made much of a dent in what has been a dry year, the Met Office said.

So far, East Anglia has seen only 328 millimetres — 52 per cent — of its average rainfall for the whole year, rather than the expected 83 per cent by this stage of 2022.

Counties including Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent and East Sussex have had only half their annual rainfall, the forecaster said.

UK heatwave sees highest-ever recorded temperatures — video

The UK’s long-term average rainfall is currently at 67 per cent — 780mm.

For England, the level is at only 60 per cent (523mm), with the same — 60 per cent or 881mm — for Wales.

Northern Ireland exceeded its long-term average rainfall by more than 50 per cent, while Scotland had 16 per cent more rainfall than average, with 196mm falling.

“There’s still a lot of rainfall needed to replenish our water resources after the incredibly hot and dry summer,” said senior director of policy, research and campaigns at the Consumer Council for Water Mike Keil.

“Saving water is always a good thing to do, whatever the weather — it helps people save money, protects the environment and reduces carbon emissions.”

UK heatwave: London one of the hottest places on Earth — video

In terms of sunshine, the UK received 14 per cent more than average, with 105 hours in October.

England had 129 hours of sunshine, while Wales had 104 hours — both above average.

But Scotland and Northern Ireland had below average sun, with 69 hours and 73 hours respectively.