The UK’s record temperature for late-December has been broken in the Scottish Highlands.
With a temperature of 16.8C recorded at 3am on Sunday, December 29, at a Met Office observation post in Cassley, Sutherland, north
Scotland, it was the highest temperature the
UK has ever recorded so late in the year.
The average nighttime temperature for late December in the region is zero degrees.
Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill said: “It is pretty exceptional. We have never recorded a temperature that high this late in the month.
“What makes it more unusual was the temperature came at 3am.”
The UK as a whole is currently experiencing much warmer than average temperatures, but has not yet reached the record high for December – which stands at 18.3C and was recorded on December 2 1948 in Achnashellach.
According to meteorologists, Sunday’s record is down to a process called the Foehn effect.
In the UK, the most pronounced Foehn events tend to occur across the Scottish Highlands, where moist westerly winds meet the high ground along Scotland’s west coast.
This results in a marked contrast in weather conditions across the country with the west being subjected to wet weather, while the lower lying east enjoys the warmth and sunshine of the Foehn effect.
Overnight, mild air from Africa pushed across the UK. As the air travelled from the south west over the UK, it rose up and lost its moisture. This meant that the other side of the hills ended up with drier air.
There is no indication that the warm nights will last, the Met Office said, and 24 hours later the overnight temperature had dropped to single figures once again. Related... 2019 Was The Year The World Burned How To Reduce Your Carbon Footprint And Buy Less Junk In 2020 We Spoke To 5 Climate Experts About What Gives Them Hope