Met Office reveals when sunshine will return after weeks of torrential rain across UK

27 July 2023, 09:10

The Met Office has revealed when sunshine will return to the UK after weeks of heavy downpours.

Wet and windy conditions are predicted to continue into the weekend as low pressure sends bands of rain across the UK.

The thundery showers are set to stay around throughout August, with sunshine not due to return for weeks, according to the Met Office.

Highs of 40C were originally expected by the end of July - much like the scorching temperatures the rest of Europe is facing - but mild conditions have instead left the UK facing strong winds and torrential rain.

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A long range Met Office forecast read: "Likely to remain fairly changeable for the most part through mid to late August.

"This means further rain or showers at times throughout the UK, with north-western and western areas perhaps seeing the wettest conditions.

"Some showers may turn heavy and thundery. These unsettled spells are likely to be accompanied by strong winds, which will accentuate the rather cool feel during these periods."

They added: "There is a possibility, increasingly towards the second half of August, of a greater incidence of short spells of more settled and warmer weather with lighter winds."

It comes after the weather agency said the scorching heatwave of 2022 will be considered mild by the year 2100 if carbon emissions continue at the same rate.

The Earth will continue to get hotter as long as people continue to emit greenhouse gases unchecked, forecasters said.

Mike Kendon, climate scientist at the Met Office and lead author of its new report, called State Of The UK Climate 2022, described the 40C mark as "a real moment of climate history".

"This was a rare event in the context of the current climate but our extremes of temperature are changing faster than our mean temperature and we know that climate change increases the frequency, duration and spatial extent of heat waves," he said.

Professor Liz Bentley, chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, said: "If you look at future climate projections, we are on a path to go for hotter, drier summers.

"So 2022 for me was very much a sign of things to come in future years with our changing climate."