Britain recorded its highest ever summer and winter temperatures in 2019, ending one of the hottest decades in history, the Met Office said Friday. As much of northern Europe sweltered in a July heatwave, the mercury hit 38.7 Celsius (101 Fahrenheit) in the east of England, marking Britain's highest daily maximum temperature on record.
In February, temperatures in London hit 21.2C, a record high for winter. 2019 also saw Britain's record highest minimum winter temperature, 13.9C in the Scottish Highlands. Overall, the decade to 2019 saw eight high temperature records smashed, compared with one low temperature record.
"It is notable how many of these extreme records have been set in the most recent decade and how many more of them are reflecting high- rather than low-temperature extremes," said Mark McCarthy, head of the National Climate Information Centre. He said the records were "a consequence of our warming climate".
Britain's warmer and wetter than average year fits a global pattern of rising temperatures as the pace of man-made climate change quickens. Russia last month said 2019 was its hottest year ever recorded. Globally, several countries from Australia to Poland saw temperature records broken. The United Nations said last decade was the hottest in history, and all four of the hottest year's worldwide have come in the last four years.
Earth has already warmed 1.1C since pre-industrial times due to greenhouse gas emissions from burning coal, oil and gas. In order to avert climate disaster, the UN says global carbon emissions need to fall 7.6 percent annually to 2030. They are in fact rising year-on-year.
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