Following a long and dreary winter, several weeks of storms and a dusting of snow, the Met Office has issued an update on the potential of an April heatwave to scorch Brits this Spring.
The weather boffins bring promising news that some hotter weather can be expected after, what turned out to be, a stormy winter.
Weather expert Jim Dale spoke to the Express about the potential of warmer weather this spring. He said: "I think hot weather could come in fairly early as far as April is concerned perhaps.
"I know March is the start of Spring but I think we’re probably going to get properly into April before we start to see the searing sort of temperatures."
So what makes a heatwave and when will the April heatwave come into place?
When will the April heatwave hit?
Jim Dale predicted that a heatwave will hit in the middle of April, but the Met Office has not used this phrase. It has said that during the first two weeks of April, the weather is "likely to become more changeable during this period with spells of drier weather".
The Current Met Office forecast covers the period of April 1 to April 15. Of the forecast, they said it will be "interspersed with showers or longer periods of rainfall".
Yet, added: "This rainfall will probably be highest in the west and northwestern areas with drier weather on average in the southeast.
Of course, April is expected to be warmer as the country gradually warms up to summer, but temperatures could be above average for this time of year.
The Met Office continued: "Periods of strong winds are also likely, especially across the north. Temperatures most likely close to or slightly above average."
What is a heatwave?
Officially, a heatwave is when the temperature reaches above a certain heat (in degrees) and this varies by region throughout the UK, but is generally when the temperature is over 25°C.
The Met Office explained: "The threshold varies by UK county. In London, the threshold is 28 °C, while most Southeast regions have a threshold of 27 °C, and central regions have a threshold of 26 °C. For the rest of the UK, the threshold is 25 °C."
Weather forecaster Jim Dale told the Express that we can expect temperatures to reach this threshold in April, 2022.
He said: "I wouldn’t be surprised to see 26°C, 27°C, 28°C in the middle of April. Longer-term, given what’s happening globally in terms of the temperature profiles in the southern hemisphere and what’s also happening in the United States, I would not be surprised if we started to see some big highlights - in whichever direction it goes, either cold or hot."
"It is more likely that we see those spikes of heat at early stages because of global warming.
"It’s too difficult to be certain at this moment, but I would not be surprised to see the Summer deliver the same kind of heat stress at times."
The high pressure that causes a heatwave can take a long time to shift and this is why warmer tends to appear over prolonged periods.
