A climate expert has called for the word ‘unprecedented’ to be retired when it comes to talking about environmental matters – saying record-breaking weather events have become the new normal.
March was the 10th month in a row to be the hottest on record for the time of year, as global climate records continue to topple, scientists said.
The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) shows March 2024 was hotter globally than any other previous record for the month, with temperatures 1.68C warmer than the estimate for pre-industrial times.
It is the 10th month in the row to break records for the respective month of the year, the Copernicus analysis found.
Closer to home, England saw a record amount of rainfall in the 18 months to March, according to new figures.
Some 1,695.9mm of rain fell from October 2022 to March 2024.
This is the highest level for any 18-month period in England since comparable data began in 1836, according to analysis by the PA news agency of Met Office provisional statistics.
It beats the previous record of 1,680.2mm, which had been set only the month before and covered the 18 months from September 2022 to February 2024.
The third highest figure on record, 1,668.4mm, was set in the 18 months to January 2021.
Last month saw England experience 62 per cent more rainfall than an average March, though the total for the month, 94.3mm, was not close to record levels, ranking as the 19th wettest March for the nation since data began.
