Those of us who have been enjoying Indian summer sailing for the last few weekends won't be surprised to learn that this year's extended summer period has been a record breaker.
Climate variability scientists at the Met Office have revealed that the period from May to September 2006 has been the warmest on the long standing Central England Temperature (CET) record.
The record, which dates back to 1659, is the longest instrumental temperature record in the world. So is the rise something we should be celebrating (it's certainly been very enjoyable!) or something we should be deeply worried about - further evidence of global warming, brought on by burning fossil fuels, etc?
The mean temperature of 16.2 °C for the period was a startling 2 °C warmer than the average for 1961-1990. But the previous record of 15.9 °C was set in 1947, long before current concerns about climate change began. The 2006 period included the warmest month ever, July, and a record temperature for September.
In addition to the CET, more detailed statistics for the last 93 years (1914-2006) show that May to September was the warmest for all areas of the country.
The Met Office warns that the record temperatures are consistent with recent findings by Prof. David Karoly of the University of Oklahoma and Dr Peter Stott of the Met Office Hadley Centre: “Their research showed the recent rapid warming of the CET is almost certainly due to human influence - the first time this has been rigorously identified on such a small geographic scale.”
For more information visit www.met-office.gov.uk
