Climate Change
The weather changes from hour to hour, day to
day. Climate is the average weather within an area over several
decades. Since the 1970s the climate has changed in a major
way. The average annual temperature of the UK rose by
0.5°C during the 20th century, but it's predicted to
rise by another 2°C to 3°C, perhaps even
as much as 5°C during the 21st century.
How the climate is changing
These are some of the predictions derived from four scenarios
for the future prepared for the UK Climate Impacts Programme in
2002:
- The number of very hot days, especially in summer and
autumn, is set to rise.
- There will be fewer very cold days in Winter.
- Winters will be wetter and summers are predicted to become
drier.
- There will be more contrast between seasons.
- There will be much less snowfall
- Growing seasons will be longer.
- At sea, surface water temperatures will increase around the
coast
- The sea-level will rise by between 11 and 71 cm by the
2080s.