Carl

Dami Yeah definitely.. just occurred to me as i was ordering the air con unit. All up and running now, minus the window kit i need, which is due today. Early tests are positive and i look forward to giving it a good run when the weather warms up. So draining when you have days or weeks of endless heat, this is going to be a lifesaver!

Snow-mad-dave Hope not but the stats around the world, ironically, are chilling. Hope we don't but time will tell!

SollyOlly Yeah been considering one for years but keep forgetting then get so far into the season you think "ah its not worth it now". Remembered this time and look forward to it arriving and giving it a test! Will report back *Stormforce~beka* Not be long then Metwatch Yeah noted, not really familiar with the mod side of things here as i only occasionally dip in and out. It's all good but a useful place for people who struggle with the heat to vent!

SollyOlly I agree entirely. It's always good to hear others are sharing in the experience who also don't like excessive heat. The culture in the UK seems to be to go crazy for it! Look forward to participating in this years thread hopefully from a position of some comfort, for a change! Suspect we will have some mad hot days in the coming months, given the trends and what is being reported around the world, but would be happy if we didn't!

Seems to be time to start considering the upcoming summer and what may lie in store in terms of heat. Thought i'd kick off the 2024 thread. Heat records are already being broken around the world (link) I've finally invested in portable aircon - can't face another long hot sweltering summer. Even a few days of excess heat is draining and miserable. Look forward to getting that setup. At this end i've got my south facing office which, no matter what i do, gets stupidly hot all day every day in summer - easily 30 degrees plus most days - worse on the really hot days. Hope everyone has a chilled summer!

Yep, and now there's some darker cloud in front of it, amazing contrast!

Can see the top of some of this from Aycliffe. Looks more obvious in person than on my pic!

Just wondering what the thoughts are on this.. still there and heading our way. Done for the day or risk this intensifies as it heads in?

Mental "We'll just go around that cell" they said. I know it's pretty safe for them but jeez!

Just had some *very* close strikes. Nearly had a heart attack. Hearing red arrows up on airband as we speak. Rather them that me.

Pretty decent storm hitting us now. Almost constant thunder, frequent lightning and heavy rain. Sucking some of this horrible hot air out of the house.

Yep feeling and seeing it becoming more humid here and in th direct firing line this round! Wonder how much they might intensify by the time they get here. Quite often seem to die off over the moors on the way..

Zilch here a few miles south. Not even heard the thunder! Looks like this is gonna completely miss us!

Just to check what you're saying, this looks like its going to avoid us on current trajectory (Newton Aycliffe, just to the right of your purple zone. Are you suggesting there may be a chance of some activity from this nearby/here? Ask because obviously i'd like to see it, feels like it's skirting to the north of us and because i have antennas i should probably disconnect PDQ if there's a risk in this locality as it stands! Thanks

Seeing very distant occasional flashes of lightning from the cell over the NY Moors. We're talking a good 40/50 miles from here but its very apparent although not that frequent. Wasn't expecting to see anything tonight so can't complain!

I'll take that, not too concerned, close enough for me but get what you're saying! Yeah fair enough. I'm just glad its the last day of excessive heat here. Tomorrow is the beginning of the end for it all!

Just seeing Met Office are reporting this is "provisionally the hottest day of the year so far". In mid September.

Good point. Not sure i'm in the firing line til tomorrow but forecast showing her we've got another hour or two and then the temps will drop, cooler tomorrow with storms but dreading any residual humidity.. hope any gusts that come with them get some slightly cooler air through the house though!

Hope it helped! I think we've a few more hours of heat then it starts to cool and won't be back up these levels again. Absolute furnace in here right now but finding fan + spray water bottle is doing the trick. We have a dog who has been downstairs where its a wee bit cooler and two poor rats who've had to be moved onto the landing. It's one degree cooler there than where they normally live but the difference has been much greater over other days. Bring on the storms! Not even bothered about watching them so much this time around, just be good to get rid of the sun and have some cooler air follow behind.

Thank you. I should have read that but i didn't! My bad but do appreciate you sharing that!

Quick question for anyone on the UKV charts - seem to stop progressing at 50 hours. Is that an error at my end or something to do with how the models work?

Yup! Useable for the drunks but the rest of us, not so much. Ironically, we're off to Egypt in a couple of months but after a few months of autumn weather, a week of these temps by the Red Sea is going to be a completely different kettle of fish. 24 hours and the storms will be with us. Lets hope the air turns a bit fresher after them rather than a couple of days later as it seems from the charts!

Pretty much with you on that - Got to 38.2 here on the hottest days last year and it was intolerable, but oddly, curtains and window closed slowed the rate of increase of the temp indoors but has had zero effect this time around - no matter what the temp has risen indoors and stayed high all day and most of the night. It's the prolonged nature of this particular spell which has affected me most - just relentless and coupled with everyone's uptick in activity as the schools have gone back, i'm back working after a week off, we've had a couple of people due out to do work on the house, car troubles and everything else - i'll not beat about the bush, I just want to be left alone, to do as little as possible til it ends - and for a few days afterwards to get back to feeling comfortable, refreshed and rested. We've got the physical discomfort of prolonged excessive heat taking its toll. The miserable feeling it brings, the frustration of having to be able to engage your brain for work and all the other demands on us and just find it nigh-on impossible to do. Couple that with the disdain you get when telling people the heat is unpleasant for you - Brits seem programmed to "make the most of us, get drunk and be rowdy" (not all, admittedly but its a national mindset which i find a bit embarrassing - but tbf, if people left others out of it then that's up to them). All in, it's just a week you want to end and some "sanity" to resume. This weekend, I will be staying indoors, curtains closed, managing the heat as best i can. I'll be reading this thread as i find it helps with the mood to see others of a similar mindset. We're nearly there folks and should have best part of six months respite. Aircon will be a must as we approach next spring and summer. Can't see an alternative now.

Can only hope so! Looking like we're going to be around 16 degrees here during the day midweek, should make a huge difference!

Wonder if more extremes and a higher average temp is the new normal, certainly seems that way from recent trends and the global spread of these events. Wondering also what effect the North Atlantic SST anomaly is going to have over autumn and winter. Still off the charts!