Wednesday 5th August
With a maximum of 27.2C on Tuesday, logged at 13.33, it was an official heatwave after three days when the peak was equal to or above the threshold. The high was 5.6C above average. The sunshine was intense again that saw the UV light rise to the top of the High category, the highest since 12th July.
The significant feature of the past twenty-four hours was the arrival of a short shower from 02.37 to 02.40, early Wednesday, that produced 1.2mm of precipitation. It was the first measurable rainfall in 34 days. By 07.00 almost all evidence of the rain had evaporated from the dry and warm hard surfaces. It was a bonus as it will have cleared dust from the atmosphere and washed dust of plants.
The overnight minimum of 15.9C was 4.1C above average occurring at 05.17, just before the official sunrise in Marlborough at 05.36. However, there was much cloud cover that limited the evidence of sunshine, bar the occasional burst between minimal breaks in the cloud cover, which was the result of a weather front crossing the area. This was the reason the thermometer only rose a little; from the minimum to reach 17.4C by 08.00. It will give us a much cooler day today, also over the next few days, with maxima close to the August average due to the breeze coming from the West also brisk, arriving from the Atlantic.
As the recent depression moves further away towards Scandinavia, the Azores high has started to take advantage and has begun to push back across the UK with the result that fine weather with higher temperatures will arrive from Friday onwards with maxima several degrees above the August average by Saturday, possibly not far off heatwave threshold temperatures again. The evidence – the barometric pressure has begun to rise slowly, having gained 4mb since yesterday.
Why has it been so dry recently?
Author: Met Office
Tue, 04 Aug 2026
After an exceptionally dry July for many, questions are understandably being asked about why rainfall has been so limited and whether there is any meaningful rain on the way.
Persistent patterns have kept rain away
The main reason for the recent dry weather has been the persistence of weather patterns that have kept the wettest conditions away from the areas that need rain most.
Through much of July, the dominant pattern largely restricted rainfall to northern parts of the UK, while southern regions saw very little rain, often receiving only a small fraction of their typical monthly average. This meant that even when the UK as a whole saw some unsettled weather at times, rainfall was not evenly spread.
In summer, this can be particularly important. Showers and rain bands may bring locally heavy rainfall in some areas, but leave others almost completely dry. If the same broad pattern repeats over several weeks, rainfall deficits can build quickly. Southern and eastern areas are especially vulnerable in this type of setup, because they can often sit on the drier side of weather systems while the north and west see more frequent rain.