UK weather: Hopes for Indian summer as Met Office forecasts above-average temperatures for next three months
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Version 0 of 1. Hopes of an Indian summer are growing as forecasters say the current spell of unusually warm weather could continue for up to three months. This week has seen temperatures hit 25C in some parts of England, compared to an average maximum of just 16C for September. According to the Met Office’s three-month outlook, the good weather is likely to hold through autumn. The probability that the UK’s mean temperature for September, October and November will be warmer than usual is 35 per cent, it said, and between 10 and 15 per cent to be cold. The forecast will be welcome after a cold and dreary August, which saw Britain battered by torrential rain, gales and the effects of ex-hurricane Bertha in unseasonably chilly temperatures. Krista Mitchell, a forecaster, said that by Friday temperatures could hit 24C or 25C during sunny spells in the south. Brighton beach in Indian summer conditions in September 2011 She added: “What we've got is high pressure building which is bringing more settled conditions, and also slightly warmer conditions as well. "We had a pretty cool August, with temperatures in places below average for the last couple of weeks, so it looks like it's warming up as we go into the middle of the week. “It's not going to be wall-to-wall sunshine but where there are sunny spells it's going to feel pretty warm.” Scotland and the north of England will also be warmer than usual, seeing 20C or 21C. The Met Office cautioned that the three-month outlook should be used in conjunction with shorter-range and more detailed forecasts. The last Indian summer was in 2011, when thousands of people flocked to beaches as temperatures of almost 30C were recorded on 1 October in Kent. |