WIREDGOV

Relative to average, Scotland and Northern Ireland have seen the mildest, driest and sunniest conditions during summer 2021.

Northern Ireland has had its third hottest summer on record, and Scotland its fourth.

The summer of 2021 has been a season of contrasting fortunes across the UK, with the north and west of the UK experiencing a warmer, drier and sunnier season compared to average while parts of the south east have been duller and wetter than average.

Northern Ireland experienced its third warmest summer on record (15.06°C) and also recorded its highest temperature on record with 31.3°C recorded on 21 July at Castlederg in Tyrone. Some regions of Scotland*, including the City of Glasgow, where COP 26 will be held in November, had their hottest summer in records back to 1884.

The UK as a whole has had its ninth hottest summer on record, with an average of 15.28°C. This is the hottest summer for the UK since 2018. While 2019 and 2020 both experienced extreme heatwave events, in contrast 2021 temperatures reached a peak of 32.2°C at Heathrow on 20th July.  However, relatively high temperatures in June and July, coupled with persistently high minimum temperatures and relative warmth across the north of the UK have pushed this year up the rankings.

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