Hottest day ever recorded in Liverpool as heatwave sets new high temperature - how it compares to UK record

Liverpool endured it’s hottest day on record on Tuesday as temperatures soared above 35°C on the second day of amber and red weather warnings for extreme heat in the region.

The sweltering sunshine brought some transport services to a standstill as Merseyrail urged people not to travel due to delays, cancellations and the threat of train tracks buckling in the heat.

Public health officials across Merseyside issued urgent advice on how to keep cool and the RNLI gave a special warning to beach goers planning a dip in the sea.

Temperatures in the city hit 33.1°C on Monday and then soared to a new record for Liverpool on Tuesday, according to official figures from the Met Office.

What is the hottest temperature ever recorded in Liverpool?

The heatwave peaked at 35.5°C on Tuesday afternoon - the hottest single temperature ever recorded in Liverpool, according to the Met Office.

A scorching 36℃ was reported at Liverpool John Lennon Airport on Monday, 18 July, but this has not been confirmed by the Met Office.

The hottest minimum temperature recorded in Liverpool was again during the red and amber weather warnings, with at least 22.5℃ on Tuesday, 19 July.

The previous record high - which stood for nearly 32 years - was 34.5℃ recorded in Bidston on August 2, 1990.

The previous closest to beating that record came in 2006 when a temperature of 34.3°C was logged in Crosby on July 19.

What is the hottest day on record in the UK?

The July 2022 heatwave obliterated long-standing weather records across th UK.

As per weather data from the Met Office, the UK recorded its first ever temperature to exceed 40℃ on Tuesday July 19, 2022.

Thermometers at London Heathrow Airport hit a record-breaking 40.2℃ at 12:50 pm.

It broke the record set by Charlwood in Surrey earlier that day with 39.1℃ recorded.

A previous high of 38.7℃ was set in 2019.

Paul Gunderson, who is the Met Office’s chief meteorologist, had predicted on Friday, July 15 that record-breaking heat would hit the country: “Exceptional, perhaps record-breaking temperatures are likely early next week”.

What is a heatwave?

The word ‘heatwave’ is thrown around regularly when it comes to weather forecasts across the globe - but what is a heatwave?

According to the Met Office, a heatwave is an extended period of hot weather relative to the expected conditions of the area at that time of the year.

In the United Kingdom, this is the criteria the weather must meet to be considered a heatwave:

• When a location records three consecutive days with a maximum temperature that exceeds the threshold (this varies depending on the county)

For example, Liverpool and the surrounding Merseyside area has a threshold of 25℃.