Temperatures to fall across Europe as substantial rain heading for parts of UK
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- Parts of southern England endured 62 consecutive days without rainfall as of Monday, recorded at the Met Office station in Wisley, Surrey, with the last drop — just 0.4mm — falling on 16 June.
- UK temperatures are set to fall about 3C below the seasonal norm by Thursday, a drop of more than 15C from the previous Thursday's peak heat.
- A cold front moving in from the Atlantic Monday night into Tuesday brings the chance of substantial rain to southern England, with low pressure from Wednesday into the weekend adding frequent sharp showers and potentially thundery downpours.
- Continental Europe will turn wetter as the main cold front sinks southward into France and Germany on Wednesday, though rainfall farther south relies on scattered showers and thunderstorms, with that risk rising from Thursday.
- Southern US states have extended extreme heat warnings, with overnight lows not dropping much below 27-28C (low 80sF) — compared to the UK's late-June heatwave peak overnight minimum of about 22-23C.
- The National Weather Service is warning of "dangerously hot conditions" across Louisiana and Mississippi, where modelled apparent (heat-index) temperatures could exceed 46C in daytime, with even overnight apparent temperatures hitting 31-33C.
- The heat relief is asymmetric: while Europe cools, the article notes a "significant lack of overnight cooling" compounding the US heatwave alongside high humidity driving dangerous heat-index values.
Why it matters: The 62-day rainless stretch in southern England — broken only by 0.4mm — quantifies just how extreme the UK drought became, and the incoming cold front offers the first meaningful moisture in two months for parched soils, reservoirs, and water-stressed infrastructure; the temperature swing of more than 15C in a single week will also shift energy demand and public-health risk profiles sharply.
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