NATURE → Weather - Temerature
Wide variations in temperature, and both extreem heat or cold, can have considerable effect on our survival.
World Average Temperature
Global annually averaged near-surface air temperature 1961 - 1990
Source Wikimedia :https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Annual_Average_Temperature_Map.jpg
Our earth exhibits a very wide variation in average surface temperature. The main controlling factors are latitude (distance from the poles) and of couse elevation. The poles average -10 to -50 degrees C while between the tropics average annual temperatures range from +20 to +30 degrees C. The current official highest registered air temperature on Earth is 56.7 degrees C (134.1 F), recorded on 10 July 1913 at Furnace Creek Ranch, in Death Valley in the United States. The lowest temperature ever recorded on Earth was minus 89.2 degrees C (minus 128.6 F) at the Soviet Vostok Station in Antarctica on 21 July 1983.
UK Average Temperature
UK average annual surface temperature 1981 - 2010
Source: UK Met Office
Average annual temperatures in the UK range from 4 to 5 degrees C at higher elevations (Scotish Highlands) to 10 to 11 degrees C over lower elevations and in the southern parts of England.
Seasons
In temperate regions (the regions to the north and south of the equatorial tropics) temperatures also vary markedly throughout the course of a year, due principaly to the tilt in the earhts axis (23.4 degrees). In winter, temperatures are lower and days shorter, while in summer temperatures are warmer and days longer. This variation, in itself, is not a threat, but during winter we can have very long cold periods, and in summer heatwaves, both of which can threaten our survival. In the UK winter temperatures can go as low as minus 27 degrees C, in Central Europe to as low as minus 45 degrees C and in Scandanivia to as low as minus 50 degress C.
On 19 July 2022 40.3 degrees C was recorded at Coningsby, Lincoinshire during a 2 day heat wave covering the UK. This exceptional heatwave was associated with a much more prolonged and severe heatwave across Europe, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees C in France, 45 degrees C in Spain and 47 degrees C in Portugal. A RED weather warning was issued by the UK Met Office because of its danger to health,
Lowest Temerature Records Europe
Source: Viborc.com
Highest Temerature Records Europe
Source: Viborc.com