The UK has had its coolest summer since 2015, according to provisional Met Office statistics.
Mean temperatures have been 0.22°C below the long-term meteorological average for the UK, with Scotland and Northern Ireland experiencing generally cooler temperatures.
Rainfall rates for the UK were around average, but with some substantial regional variation.
Summer 2024 also saw Storm Lilian named on the 22 August. Lilian was the 12th storm to be named this storm season, and is the furthest through the list the Western European naming group has got since storm naming was introduced in 2015.
Met Office Scientist Emily Carlisle explained: “I don’t think it will surprise anyone that this summer has been cooler than average for the UK. Mean temperatures in both June and July were below average, with temperatures in August only slightly above. This was largely due to northerly winds bringing cold Arctic air to the UK in June and July, while August saw an increase in westerly winds bringing slightly warmer Atlantic air.
“Although we had some heatwaves and bursts of hot weather, these were fairly short-lived and conditions across the whole three months were pretty unsettled. August was the wettest month of the summer, with some places in Scotland experiencing double their average summer rainfall during the month and Storm Lilian bringing strong winds and heavy rain at the end.”
