Parts of the UK are set to reach heatwave temperatures as a period of good weather sweeps across much of the country.
The Met Office has confirmed that temperatures are likely to exceed the criteria for a heatwave in parts of the UK, although that’s a slightly more complex matter than you might imagine.
You see, different parts of the UK have different measures for what constitutes a heatwave.
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Anyway, the chances are that you’re likely to see some decent weather over the coming days, so that’s cause for celebration.
This weather – a welcome change for many – will arrive over the end of this week and continue to get hotter and stick around because of a period of high pressure arriving over much of the UK.
If you’re in the north-west of the UK, you might have to wait a bit longer for the decent weather to arrive, but things for many should start picking up as we move through towards the weekend and the start of the next week.
A spokesperson for the Met Office said: “Throughout the rest of this week and into the start of next week we are not expecting a lot of change to our weather as high pressure will dominate much of the UK, this means temperatures will gradually increase.
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“From Friday and over the weekend, away from the northwest of the UK, temperatures likely be close to the mid-twenties.”
On the subject of what actually makes a heatwave, the spokesperson continued: “Heatwave criteria requires an area to meet their regional heatwave temperature on three consecutive days.
“This temperature is between 25C to 28C.
“Many of us can expect a warm and dry spell for the rest of the weekend and into the start of next week.
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“However, the areas that will meet ‘heatwave’ criteria will likely be a bit more limited.
"Where the heatwave threshold temperature is 25C across parts of south Wales and the southwest of England there is a good chance of heatwave criteria being met from Friday onwards.
“For other areas of the UK, such as the southeast, it will be much more marginal, due to the heatwave threshold temperature being higher.”
Still, it all bodes well for the rest of the week and the weekend, regardless of whether there is an official heatwave or not.
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So, fire up the barbecue and break out the beers, because – for most of us – it promises to be a great weekend.
We've got to enjoy these things whilst they last.
Tom Wood