Heat wave scorches Europe as UK reaches record-breaking temperatures

By Sana Noor Haq, Hafsa Khalil, Angela Dewan, Aditi Sangal, Mike Hayes and Elise Hammond, CNN

Updated 7:43 AM ET, Wed July 20, 2022
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9:29 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

UK exceeds 40 degrees Celsius for the first time ever, provisional records show

From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London

For the first time ever, a temperature record of 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) has provisionally been exceeded in the UK, the Met Office said on Twitter.

The record was set in western London's Heathrow, where the capital's main airport is based.

"London Heathrow reported a temperature of 40.2°C at 12:50 today," the office said, adding that temperatures are still climbing in many places and that people need to remain "weather aware."

The Met Office had earlier announced that the previous 38.7 degrees Celsius (101.6 degrees Fahrenheit) record had been broken and that temperatures were expected to rise through the day, setting new records.

9:14 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

UK provisional all-time heat record could take up to 9 months to become official. Here's why

From CNN's Sana Noor Haq

The UK's Met Office announced a record-smashing temperature of 39.1 degrees Celsius (102.4 degrees Fahrenheit) before midday on Tuesday -- but that record is provisional until a rigorous months-long process will make it official.  

The blistering temperature was recorded at Charlwood village in Surrey, just outside London, according to the UK Met Office, topping the previous 38.7C record, and it's highly likely that the country will experience even higher temperatures later today.

"There’s a rigorous process of validation and only some sites report hourly," Met Office CEO, Penelope Endersby, tweeted Tuesday, referring to weather stations that share temperature data.

"Climate sites report twice daily or even weekly, so the highest temperatures could take a while to register," Endersby said.

"Met Office engineers are on standby to collect kit from record-breaking sites and bring it back for confirmatory calibration. Good scientific recording takes care and time."

When meteorologists collect daily, real-time data for maximum temperatures, their research is verified against data collected by nearby stations to check for discrepancies, according to the Met Office.

However, temperature records undergo further rigorous quality control over a prolonged period of time -- sometimes several months -- before they are official recognized as a new record. These include cross checking between stations and sites, breaking down the weather on the day and what was expected compared to forecasters' results.

Engineers also carry out physical inspections to check equipment works efficiently with no anomalies, ensuring that reported records are correct.

The UN's World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirms global temperature records, a rigorous process that typically takes six to nine months of evaluation. The organization has very rarely overturned record readings on heat.

9:14 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

UK records hottest railway track at 62 degrees Celsius as country provisionally smashes all-time heat record

From CNN’s Sharon Braithwaite in London

Train tracks are seen painted white to combat the heat at Alexandra Palace train station in London on Tuesday.
Train tracks are seen painted white to combat the heat at Alexandra Palace train station in London on Tuesday. (Yui Mok/PA/Reuters)

The hottest railway track in the UK reached 62 degrees Celsius (143.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in Suffolk, east England, on Monday, Britain’s Network Rail said on Tuesday.

"Rail temperature can be about 20°C higher than air temperature, causing it to expand, bend and break," Network Rail who manages the railway infrastructure in England, Scotland and Wales tweeted.

Earlier today, the UK recorded a temperature of 39.1 degrees Celsius, provisionally shredding its previous record of 38.7 degrees Celsius. The heat record was documented at Charlwood in Surrey, according to the UK Met Office.

Britain’s transport infrastructure is “just not built” for these types of temperatures," Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told Sky News on Tuesday.

"Gradually we're having to upgrade all the infrastructure including the overhead lines, which are gradually being replaced with the types which won't sag even in extreme temperatures. But that's a whole new thing country needs to get used to,” he said.

Shapps added that it would take "decades to replace" the infrastructure.

"There's a long process of replacing and upgrading it to withstand temperatures, either very hot or sometimes much colder than we were used to. And these are the impacts of global warming," he said.

9:15 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

Europe is buckling under climate-crisis-induced heat

Analysis by CNN Digital Meteorologist Judson Jones and CNN International Climate Editor Angela Dewan

A man splashes his face with water from a fountain in Trafalgar Square in London on Tuesday.
A man splashes his face with water from a fountain in Trafalgar Square in London on Tuesday. (Aaron Chown/PA Wire/PA via AP)

At the pace of soaring heat in the UK and with the afternoon still to come, it is likely the UK will break multiple high-temperature records on Tuesday, not just the one all-time high.

These temperatures are astonishing in the UK because they don’t reach this level often, and while they’re not as surprising in Spain, Portugal, and France, they are becoming more frequent and longer even in parts of Europe accustomed to dealing with heat.

Human-induced climate change is, in general, making the world hotter, extreme heat more likely and heatwaves more painfully long. Scientists in the business of attributing the role of the climate crisis to extreme weather now say it can be assumed that any heatwave has been made worse by climate change, primarily caused by humans burning fossil fuels.

In the UK, extreme heat is especially troublesome as the country is ill-prepared for heat. A day approaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) has brought the nation to a halt — people are advised not to use public transport. That’s because most of it isn’t air-conditioned, like most people’s homes. And for those who catch the tube -- London’s underground — such temperatures can pose a serious risk to health in the capital’s musty, airless subway system.

In extreme heat, railway tracks bend and can cause train accidents. Some schools are telling parents to keep their children at home. Simple fans are selling out in stores across the country. Lifeguards are having to deal with more drownings and enormous crowds try to cool off in beaches, rivers and lakes.

France, where summers are typically hotter than in the UK, is also struggling with the heat, recording its second-highest temperature ever on Monday. The disruption there too is enormous — 37,000 people have been evacuated as wildfires tear though forest.

9:15 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

UK temperatures expected to rise further after new record hit

From CNN's Sana Noor Haq

Horticulture student Muhammed Ismail Moosa waters the plants in the Palm House at the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, west London, on July 18, where temperatures inside the greenhouses are cooler than outside during the heatwave.
Horticulture student Muhammed Ismail Moosa waters the plants in the Palm House at the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, west London, on July 18, where temperatures inside the greenhouses are cooler than outside during the heatwave. (Dominic Lipinski/PA Images/Getty Images)

People in the UK are bracing for even hotter temperatures after the national all-time heat record was shattered with a reading of 39.1 degrees Celsius (102.4 degrees Fahrenheit) before midday, the UK Met Office tweeted.

People across the country, who are typically unprepared for extreme heat, experienced temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius.

By 11 a.m., temperatures reached 36.9 degrees Celsius (98.42 degrees Fahrenheit) at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, west London, the Met Office said. Other parts of west London, including Heathrow, reached 36.6 degrees Celsius (97.88 degrees Fahrenheit), and St. James Park in central London reached 36.6 degrees Celsius (97.88 degrees Fahrenheit).

The UK is bracing for multiple extreme heat records to be broken in various places today, the country's national weather agency warned.

Monday's temperatures reached 38.1 degrees Celsius (100.58 degrees Fahrenheit) in eastern England's Santon Downham, making it the third hottest day on record, while the UK had its hottest night ever.

9:21 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

Breaking: UK temperature record smashed, provisional readings show

By Angela Dewan

The UK has recorded a temperature of 39.1 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit), provisionally shredding its previous record of 38.7 degrees Celsius (101 degrees Fahrenheit). The heat record was recorded at Charlwood in Surrey, according to the UK Met Office.

Temperatures are likely to rise further through Tuesday, the office said.

9:22 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

Heatwave set to hit Germany, warns country's weather service

From CNN's Nadine Schmidt in Berlin

View of the old town in Dresden, Germany, in the haze of the morning sun on July 19.
View of the old town in Dresden, Germany, in the haze of the morning sun on July 19. (Robert Michael/picture alliance/Getty Images)

As western Europe battles a new record-breaking heatwave, Germany is bracing for temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some regions on Tuesday and Wednesday.

''We expect the heatwave to peak in Germany today and tomorrow,'' German Weather Service (DWD) spokesman Andreas Friedrich told CNN on Tuesday. 

''Tuesday and Wednesday could be the warmest days of the year — with temperatures expected to hit 40 degrees in southwest and western Germany on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the heatwave will shift towards the east and northeast,'' Friedrich went on to say.

The hottest day in Germany was recorded on 19 June this year, where temperatures reached 39.2 degrees Celsius in Cottbus and Dresden. "We can assume that this record will be broken on Tuesday," Friedrich said.

According to DWD, Germany's heat record stood at 41.2 degrees Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit), measured in Duisburg on 25 July 2019. "It is possible that we will get into similar ranges along the Rhine on Tuesday."

''The extreme heat is a result of climate change,'' Friedrich added. "Since the famous 'summer of the century' in 2003, we don't experience the 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) mark every year. However, we do see very high temperatures more and more often in the summer," he went on to say.

Friedrich said that the extreme high temperatures will cause drought and dryness in some areas across Germany and the risk of wildfires remains very high.

Wildfires have already been seen in parts of southern France and Spain, with Portugal facing drought, and the UK, its first ever red weather warning for high temperatures.

9:22 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

Extreme heats cause travel disruptions in England and Spain

Heat haze at Alexandra Palace train station in London, England, on July 19.
Heat haze at Alexandra Palace train station in London, England, on July 19. (Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images)

As parts of Europe are hit with wildfires, droughts and record-breaking temperatures, travel plans for many have been put on hold.

On Monday, one of the UK's largest airports suspended flights after high temperatures damaged a runway. London Luton airport announced on Twitter that essential repairs were required after the high heat essentially "caused a small section to lift." Full operation commenced after 6 p.m. local time.

The Royal Air Force also paused all flights to and from Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, its biggest air base, after a report from Sky News suggested part of the runway had "melted." The UK Ministry of Defence tweeted a statement saying: "During this period of extreme temperature flight safety remains the RAF's top priority, so aircraft are using alternative airfields in line with a long-established plan. This means there is no impact on RAF operations."

Also in London, commuters have been told not to use the city's transportation services unless for "essential journeys" the Transport for London chief operating officer Andy Lord advised.

Regular track temperature checks will take place to prevent tracks from bending or buckling, TfL said in a statement. The network will also check air conditioning units across the Tube network and air cooling systems on the capital's double-decker buses.

Network Rail, which owns and operates Britain's railway, has asked people not to travel on Tuesday due to the extreme heat. In a tweet, the company said the East Coast Main Line will be closed and no services will run between London King's Cross and York and Leeds.

"A combination of extremely high local forecast temperatures and temperatures well in excess of those for which the infrastructure is designed for on the East Coast Main Line has led to this decision," it said on its website.

The UK Met Office has issued its first ever Red warning for heat, for both Monday and Tuesday.

Spain has also suspended train services in the country's northwest between Madrid and Galicia due to a fire close to the tracks, according to state-owned rail company RENFE. On Monday morning local time, the railway administer announced the suspension which will affect all trains on the route until further notice.

9:23 a.m. ET, July 19, 2022

The world is smashing heat records over cool records 10 to 1

From CNN's Brandon Miller

Hot-temperature records are far outpacing cool records across the globe so far this year as Europe and the United States brace again for dangerous heat waves.

Globally, 188 all-time heat records have been broken so far in 2022 (with more than 50 of those occurring in the past week), compared with just 18 cold records, according to data from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

In the US alone, 92 all-time record high temperatures had been set through July 16, compared with only five all-time record low temperatures. 

Studies have shown that extreme heat will increase in frequency, intensity and duration because of the climate crisis and that extremes will occur more frequently on the hot-side compared to cold.

Gabriel Vecchi, a climate scientist and geosciences professor at Princeton University, told CNN that the hot-and-cold record imbalance is a signal of the climate crisis, and scientists have noted a trend in recent years that hot extremes are outpacing cold ones.

This is what you would expect from a planetary warming that's been driven in large part from greenhouse gases; this is now the world we're living in," Vecchi told CNN, adding "it's fair to think that almost every heatwave that we see right now has some influence from global warming."

Some background: Scenes of firefighters tackling wildfires and roads melting in extreme heat may look dystopian, but UK forecasters say these phenomena are a result of the ongoing climate crisis.

In the summer of 2020, meteorologists at the UK Met Office used climate projections to predict the weather forecast for July 23, 2050 — and the results are startlingly similar to their forecast for Monday and Tuesday.

"Today, the forecast for Tuesday is shockingly almost identical for large parts of the country," Simon Lee, an atmospheric scientist at Columbia University in New York, tweeted Friday, adding in a later post that "what is coming on Tuesday gives an insight into the future."

Read the full story here.

CNN's Angela Fritz and Sana Noor Haq contributed reporting to this post.