Forecasters have confirmed that 2025 is the hottest year on record for the UK, with a mean temperature tracking ahead of the previous record set in 2022. The Met Office stated that it is "more likely than not" that the year will break the record, following a summer of heatwaves and drought and a mild autumn.
Mike Kendon, a senior scientist in the Met Office's climate information team, said the result should come as no surprise, noting that the UK's annual temperature has risen by about 1C over the last four decades. "We will have to wait for the year-end before confirming 2025's final number, but at this stage it looks more likely than not that 2025 will be confirmed as the warmest year on record for the UK," he said.
If confirmed, 2025 would be only the second year in observational records where the UK's annual mean temperature exceeds 10C. It would also mean that four of the past five years feature among the top five warmest since 1884, with all of the top 10 occurring in the past two decades.
Earlier this year, the Met Office reported that the UK had its hottest summer on record, with a mean temperature of 16.1C across June, July, and August. All five of the hottest summers on record have occurred since 2000. Kendon added: "In terms of our climate, we are living in extraordinary times. The changes we are seeing are unprecedented in observational records back to the 19th century."
