Wood Green rooftops in snow from Tottenham 02

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

features a humid temperate oceanic climate (Cfb). This gives the city cool winters, warm to hot summers with precipitation fairly evenly distributed all year round. London has a very rich history of meteorological observations, with precipitation records beginning as early as January 1697 at

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

. Irregular observations were made at multiple locations in the ensuing years. An observing station has been located at

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

since 1841, giving London its longest continuous reliable temperature series. Other stations include

Heathrow Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...

, beginning in 1948,

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, beginning in 1910,

Northolt Northolt is a town in West London, England, spread across both sides of the A40 trunk road. It is west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the seven major towns that make up the London Borough of Ealing. It had a population of 30,304 at ...

, beginning in 1948, and

St James's Park St James's Park is a park in the City of Westminster, central London. It is at the southernmost tip of the St James's area, which was named after a leper hospital dedicated to St James the Less. It is the most easterly of a near-continuous c ...

, beginning in 1910. The highest temperature ever observed in London is provisionally recorded at both

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

and

on 19 July 2022 and the lowest is 1 January 1962. The lowest daily maximum temperature is occurring on 3 occasions: 8 January 1841, 4 January 1867 and 12 January 1987. The highest daily minimum temperature recorded is , recorded in

Kenley Kenley is an area within the London Borough of Croydon. Prior to its incorporation into Greater London in 1965 it was in the historic county of Surrey. It is situated south of Purley, east of Coulsdon, north of Caterham and Whyteleafe and we ...

on 19 July 2022. This is also the highest minimum temperature ever reported anywhere in the United Kingdom. In addition to this, London holds multiple national records, including the record maximum for the months of February, April, May and June. The city can sometimes experience extremes. Snowfall is an infrequent occurrence in winter, falling on an average of 16 days per year, though infrequently heavy. Thunderstorms are a similarly occurring feature, occurring on average up to 16 days per year. London rarely experiences tornadoes, although an F2 struck

Kensal Green Kensal Green is an area in north-west London. It lies mainly in the London Borough of Brent, with a small part to the south within Kensington and Chelsea. Kensal Green is located on the Harrow Road, about miles from Charing Cross. To the w ...

on 7 December 2006. London is vulnerable to

climate change in the United Kingdom Climate change in the United Kingdom is impacting the country's environment and human population in many ways. The country's climate is becoming warmer, with drier summers and wetter winters. The frequency and intensity of storms, floods, droug ...

, and there is increasing concern among

hydrological Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

experts that London households may run out of water before 2050.

Classifications

Climate data tables

London Weather Centre

Heathrow - Airport Weather Station in the suburbs of West London

Kew Gardens - Weather Station in South West London on the banks of the River Thames

Hampstead - Weather Station in North London

The weather station enclosure is the most elevated of any in the London area, and as a result daytime temperatures are typically one degree lower than Heathrow, Kew, Northolt and Greenwich.

Northolt - Airfield Weather Station in the North West of London

Temperature extremes range from in August 2003, down to in January 1962.

Greenwich - Weather Station in South East London near the river Thames

Average UV index

Notes

References

External links

BBC Weather - Forecast for LondonMet Office - Forecast for London
{{DEFAULTSORT:London

Climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologic ...

Climate of England Climate by city