2009 Set To Be One Of Warmest On Record

Experts think that 2009 could be one of the top 5 warmest years on record in Britain, as much as half a degree warmer than the average 14 degrees that the UK currently gets.

And looking to the future scientists say that records are likely to start being broken more consistently when El Nino returns to warming the Pacific.

The current warmest year on record was back in 1998 when a strong El Nino caused temperatures to sore in the UK to an average of 14.52 degrees Celsius, well above the long term average of 14 degrees.

Such a prediction is in spite of the phenomenon known as ‘La Nina’ which is cooling huge swathes of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding land.

Whilst climate experts are unsure what causes El Nino or La Nina, they are all agreed that both are having far more effect upon the world’s weather systems than they had anticipated.

La Nina causes cold water to rise in the Pacific Ocean, cooling both the water, the air and the lands around it.

When such a phenomenon stops and El Nino starts again, these areas will be warmed rather than cooled and temperatures should be raised yet again, giving the UK warmer years to come.