UK weather: Met Office forecasts ‘warm and humid’ conditions
High pressure could help the hot weather return to the UK in August following a drizzly end to July. The latest heat maps from Netweather show shades of red sweeping across northwestern Europe on Wednesday, August 4, with scorching highs of 27C hitting France. The red shades then appear to sweep over eastern England later the same day, with London and Kent basking in 23C and the Yorkshire Dales also seeing 22C.
Elsewhere, Durham, Newcastle and Norwich could see highs of 22C.
The heat could then stick around until Thursday, August 12, as London is hit with 22C, and Essex, Doncaster, Leeds and Brighton are hit with 20C.
Brian Gaze, a forecaster at Weather Outlook, warned of mixed conditions of showers and warm spells hitting the UK during the first part of August.
But he added “very warm periods” could then arrive as the month progresses.
UK weather forecast: A sizzling 27C European plume could head towards the nation (Image: WXCHARTS/GETTY)
He said: “In the first half of August, mixed with showers or longer periods of rain but also warm and fine spells.
“The driest weather will probably be in the south and east, but a heightened risk of heavy showers or thunderstorms means local variations could be large.
“Temperatures should be above average when aggregated over the period as a whole.
“In the second half, the chance of settled and very warm periods increases.
READ MORE: UK hot weather forecast: Sizzling African plume heads for Britain
UK weather forecast: Temperatures could reach 27C in France (Image: NETWEATHER)
“Showery spells of rain are still probable, particularly in the north and west.”
BBC Weather’s long-range forecast between Monday, August 2, and Sunday, August 8, predicted high pressure to spark a rise in temperatures across the nation.
The forecast said: “As weather fronts move through from the west or northwest, we may get a brief ridge of high pressure, but this shouldn’t last for more than a day.
“This is thanks to the sharper temperature contrast we anticipate will develop over Europe, with cooler air in the northwest and warmth in the southeast.
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UK weather forecast: Temperatures could exceed 20C in the UK in August (Image: NETWEATHER)
“These temperature contrasts help strengthen the jet stream, a ribbon of fast-moving air in the upper atmosphere.
“This in turn drives surface weather systems and makes them pass through us quicker.
“There is a slight chance these ridges are a little more frequent, especially later in the week, and we see some more consistently dry, sunny weather.”
The Met Office added the start of August could see mixed conditions of dry periods and thunderstorms.
UK weather forecast: High pressure could potentially help temperatures rise (Image: WXCHARTS)
However, the forecast between Sunday, August 1, and Wednesday, August 25, also said “hotter spells” could arrive later in the month.
The long-range forecast said: “Changeable conditions continuing to dominate for the start of August, with a mixture of sunny and dry periods, showery periods and the chance of longer spells of rain.
“At first the south is likely to see the most showers, with the north remaining the driest, but by the end of the period the south and southeast will possibly be the driest and the west and northwest the wettest.
“There remains a chance for any showers or rain to produce thunderstorms.
UK weather forecast The hot air could arrive from Europe (Image: WXCHARTS)
“Temperatures are most likely cooler than average for this time of year, trending to slightly cooler than average or average through the period, with the south and southwest having the best chance of seeing average temperatures.
“As is typical for this time of year, confidence is low for this period. However, there is a tentative sign of more settled conditions developing with higher pressure becoming slightly more likely.
“This means drier conditions may become more prevalent, although there is still the risk of showers or thunderstorms at times.
“Temperatures likely to trend to above average, with an increasing chance of hotter spells developing as the month progresses.”
