Dr Phil Smith With climate change now well established, the Met. Office tells us that October 2026 was the ninth consecutive month with above average temperatures in Britain. As well as being warm, the month was also wetter and sunnier than usual. Rachael Parks sent me the rain-gauge data from her Formby garden. The total...

Dr Phil Smith Continuing a familiar theme, September was the joint fourth warmest for the UK. Although rainfall in Formby, as measured in her garden by Rachael Parks, was about average it wasn’t enough to reverse the water deficit caused by a dry spring and the record hot summer. Thus, the sand-dune water-table hardly changed...

Dr Phil Smith August was a persistently warm month, culminating in the UK’s hottest summer since records began over 150 years ago. Thank goodness, the prolonged dry spell, with five heatwaves, broke in mid-month, Atlantic lows bringing desperately needed rain. In Formby, measurable rain fell on 15 days with a total of about 68 mm,...

Dr Phil Smith In my notes for June this year, I described various heatwaves, concluding with “There could be more to come.” That prediction became abundantly true; the Met. Office described July as “A remarkable month.” England and Wales had the driest July since records began 190 years ago! This was coupled with exceptional warmth....