A ‘dome of heat’ is expected to develop over the Mediterranean in August which could bring very hot temperatures to the UK once again. Today’s heat wave has been caused by air from the Sahara coming north into southern Europe, where high temperatures have endured since July 10. More than 1,000 deaths have been linked to the heatwave in Spain and Portugal. Over the past three days, this has spread north from southern Europe to Belgium, Germany and the UK. Temperatures reached 47 degrees Celsius, a new national high, in Portugal last week and are expected to rise again to 39 degrees this weekend.
Europe and the UK may see another heatwave
Forecasters said UK temperatures could rise again if the same southerly winds that brought this week’s heat to Britain return. Professor Hannah Cloke, a natural hazards researcher at the University of Reading, said: “We’re hoping to see an end to this in a couple of days. [The temperature] it will at least recede, but there is a risk of it coming back up again in a week or so, looking at the longer term forecast. “This is Europe and the UK. This is quite worrying.”
