Official News Blog
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BlogRecord-Breaking El Niño Surpasses Previous BenchmarksThe developing El Niño in the Pacific Ocean, which scientists have been monitoring closely for many months, has now exceeded previous records, making it the strongest event in the observational record.Read more -
BlogWeek ahead: Summer warmth meets autumn rainThe autumn equinox arrives this week, marking the point when the Northern Hemisphere begins to tilt further away from the sun.Read more -
BlogWeekly weather quiz September 18: Test your knowledge!Do you keep a close eye on the weather, or do you just enjoy talking about it? Either way, it’s time to put your knowledge to the test with this week’s Met Office weather quiz.Read more
Summer temperature 2018 – the ‘new normal’?
The Met Office Chief Scientist, Professor Stephen Belcher, appeared on BBC Newsnight on Tuesday evening to talk about current extreme temperatures and climate change.
What is a Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW)?
You may have heard talk of the UK possibly seeing some colder weather next week and that ‘things going on’ in the upper atmosphere may be playing a part. The ‘thing’ happening in the atmosphere is known as Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW). When it does happen, it attracts a lot of interest in the UK because it is sometimes linked to the onset of cold weather in winter. Here we shed a little bit more light on the phenomenon.
Why the Met Office is launching a new extreme heat warning
Although hot weather can often be seen as ‘good news’ and is enjoyed by many, it can have serious consequences. Research shows that, as a result of climate change, we are now much more likely to see prolonged spells of hot weather here in the UK.
An update on a record breaking June
On Monday 2nd July we released our provisional climate statistics for June: an exceptional month resulting in a number of new climate records, including the warmest June on record for Wales and Northern Ireland.
Summer 2022: a historic season for northern hemisphere heatwaves
Today [Tuesday 19 July 2022] has been a momentous day for the UK’s climate. Professor Stephen Belcher – Met Office Chief Scientist – and Prof Paul Davies – Met Office Chief Meteorologist – put the UK’s and European heatwave into a global context.
When sounding the alarm feels too alarming
As part of our August climate theme of climate anxiety, Emma Lawrance, Neil Jennings and Jessica Newberry Le Vay from Imperial College London have written this guest post on concerns around the psychological impact of working in climate science fields and on others in society alarmed by climate change.
Looking back on a storm-laden season
With publication of the latest storm names for use for 2024/25 due later this week, we look back at the storms of 2023/24 in what was a wet and windy autumn and winter for many in the UK.
Nasa Space Apps Challenge returns to Exeter
The Met Office will play its part in the world’s largest hackathon when it hosts NASA’s International Space Apps Challenge once again. Up to 150 participants will gather for the two-day event at the Met Office headquarters in Exeter on 5-6 October to take on challenges set by NASA on the theme of ‘the Sun touches everything’.
20 years on from Boscastle – how would things be different?
It’s now 20 years since a devastating flood swept through the small Cornish village of Boscastle. A month’s worth of rain fell in just two hours, causing two rivers to burst their banks and about two billion litres of water to rush straight into the village. Whilst rainfall was in the forecast that day, the intensity of that rainfall and its impact on the village was not predicted, meaning residents had little time to react.
Assembling our capability for ensemble weather forecasting
The real world is neither black, nor white. It is made from shades of grey. The weather forecast can contain many possibilities, but forecasters usually try to distil it down to the most likely outcome. Why should a weather forecast try to determine a single ‘black’ or ‘white’ outcome, rather than present a more well-rounded picture of all of the shades of the weather that could possibly come?
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This is the official blog of the Met Office news team, intended to provide journalists and bloggers with the latest weather, climate science and business news.
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