Hottest June day ever recorded at Lancaster University weather station

Monday June 12 saw temperatures hit 30.1C, topping the previous records of 28.4C in June 2020 and 2000, by 1.7C.

Temperatures have only topped 30C six times before at Hazelrigg – twice in July 2022, July 2019, July 2006, Aug 1990 and July 1976.

Hazelrigg is a UK Met Office climatological station where daily measurements of temperature, rainfall and sunshine have been taken since 1976, with a further 10 years of data collected before that on the university’s Bailrigg campus.

Dr James Heath, from Lancaster Environment Centre, said: “With the background of global heating, extreme temperature events like this are undoubtedly becoming more common, and previous records are being broken by larger margins.

“The average annual temperature at the site may have only been increased by around 0.2 °C per decade, but the likelihood of extreme temperatures (one day in 1000 over the 56-year period as a whole) has risen fourfold over the last 10 years or so.

“The recent weeks have also been exceptionally dry and sunny. June’s only rainfall so far has been 1.2 mm on Saturday June 10.”

“For 22 consecutive days before that, there was no rainfall at all, with only 0.1mm on May 18, and the last significant fall being 13.5 mm on May 8.

“May as a whole only received 40 per cent of its normal total.”

Temperatures for the rest of the week look set to remain high in Lancaster and Morecambe.

The Met Office forecasts highs of 26C for Thursday with sunshine from 6am through to 9pm.

A little less sunshine is on the cards for the weekend with some cloud forecast but temperatures are still expected to remain around 24C.

Previous hottest June days

28.4 °C (25th, 2020, 18th, 2000)

28.3 °C (29th, 1976)

28.2 °C (26th, 2018)

28.1 °C (29th, 2018)

28.1 °C (30th, 1976)

Days exceeding 30 °C

19th July 2022 – 35.3 °C

2nd August 1990 – 32.1 °C

25th July 2019 – 31.4 °C

18th July 2022 – 31.0 °C

3rd July 1976 – 30.0 °C