AI Research

How unusual is this UK heat and is climate change to blame?

Published

3 months ago

June 30, 2025

Mark Poynting

Climate reporter, BBC News

Getty Images Close-up image of a woman with a small, pink hand-held fan and a wide-brimmed straw-coloured sun hat.

A second spell of temperatures well over 30C before we’ve even got to the end of June – how unusual is this and how much is climate change to blame?

Temperatures of 34C are possible on Monday or Tuesday in south-east England.

They’ve been triggered by an area of high pressure getting “stuck” over Europe, known as a heat dome.

But climate scientists are clear that the heat will have inevitably been boosted by our warming climate.

Some people might feel these temperatures are “just like summer” – and it’s true they are a lot cooler than the record 40C and more the UK hit in July 2022.

But it’s important to be aware just how unusual mid-thirties temperatures are for the UK.

In the second half of the 20th Century, one in ten years saw highs of 35C or more, BBC analysis of Met Office data shows.

But this heat is becoming more common. Between 2015 and 2024, half of the years saw 35C or above.

Graph showing how the hottest day of the year in the UK is getting hotter. The hottest recorded temperature in every year between 1950 and 2024 is shown as a red dot. There is a general increase over time, particularly in years exceeding temperatures of 35C. The hottest day in 2022 is also shown, at 40.3C.

And these temperatures are particularly unusual for June, typically the coolest summer month.

“Recording 34C in June in the UK is a relatively rare event, with just a handful of days since the 1960s,” said Dr Amy Doherty, climate scientist at the Met Office.

The hottest June temperature recorded since 1960 is 35.6C in 1976. The next years on the list are 2017 with a June high of 34.5C and 2019 with 34.0C.

Forecasts suggest that 2025 could come close to those.

And further data from the Met Office also shows that over the decade 2014-2023, days exceeded 32C more than three times as often in the UK as during the 1961-1990 period.

Role of climate change

It is well-established that climate change is making heatwaves stronger and more likely.

As humans burn coal, oil and gas and cut down forests, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere.

These gases act like a blanket, warming the Earth.

So far humans have caused the planet to heat up by 1.36C above levels of the late 1800s, leading scientists reported earlier this month.

That might not sound a lot. But even a small increase in the Earth’s average temperature can shift heat extremes to much higher levels.

Illustrative graph showing the difference between the previous climate and new climate, as two bell-curves. The new climate has a warmer average temperature, meaning cold weather is less frequent and less intense, while hot weather is more frequent and more intense.

It will take time to work out exactly how much climate change has added to this heatwave’s temperatures. But scientists are clear that it will have boosted the warmth.

“We absolutely do not need to do an attribution study to know that this heatwave is hotter than it would have been without our continued burning of oil, coal and gas,” said Dr Friederike Otto, associate professor at Imperial College London.

“Countless studies have shown that climate change is an absolute game-changer when it comes to heat in Europe, making heatwaves much more frequent, especially the hottest ones, and more intense,” she added.

Scientists are still debating how climate change is affecting the formation of heat domes, the immediate cause of the heatwave.

One theory suggests that higher temperatures in the Arctic – which has warmed nearly four times faster than the global average – are affecting the fast band of winds high in the atmosphere known as the jet stream, making heat domes more likely.

That is far from certain, but the basic effect of warming the planet makes heat domes more intense when they do form.

“What is crystal clear is that climate change is loading the dice such that when a heat dome does occur, it brings hotter and more dangerous temperatures,” said Dr Michael Byrne, reader in climate science at the University of St Andrews.

Graphic showing how a heat dome forms, broken down into three steps. First, a mass of warm air builds up in still and dry summer conditions. Second, high pressure in the atmosphere pushes the warm air down. Third, the air gets compressed within this "dome" and gets even hotter.

And as climate change continues apace, heatwaves will keep on getting more likely and could reach even higher temperatures.

“The severity of summer heatwaves, but also extremes of dry as well as wet weather events, will continue to worsen until we rein in our greenhouse gas emissions and stabilise our warming climate,” said Richard Allan, professor of climate science at the University of Reading.

Adapting to a warmer world

Temperatures in the mid-thirties are more common in other parts of the world of course.

But in many cases the UK’s infrastructure – from roads and railways to hospitals and care homes – is simply poorly designed for such heat.

The Climate Change Committee – the government’s independent adviser – has warned, for example, that more properties are likely to be at risk of overheating in the decades ahead.

And these risks are not evenly distributed among the population.

“Air conditioning and other cooling systems become crucial to maintaining health, productivity and quality of life amidst rising temperatures,” said Dr Radhika Khosla, associate professor at the University of Oxford.

“The most vulnerable – including older people, young children, and pregnant women – face the greatest risk,” added Dr Madeleine Thomson, head of climate impacts and adaptation at the Wellcome Trust, a health charity.

“A 45C summer in the UK is now a near-term threat and we are dangerously unprepared.”

Source link

AI Research

Love and Artificial Intelligence – cbsnews.com

Published

29 minutes ago

September 14, 2025

The Editors

Love and Artificial Intelligence cbsnews.com

Source link

AI Research

NFL player props, odds, lines: Week 2, 2025 NFL picks, SportsLine Machine Learning Model AI predictions, SGP

Published

2 hours ago

September 14, 2025

Ross Kelly

The Under went 12-4 in Week 1, indicating that not only were there fewer points scored than expected, but there were also fewer yards gained. Backing the Under with NFL prop bets was likely profitable for the opening slate of games, but will that maintain with Week 2 NFL props? Interestingly though, four of the five highest-scoring games last week were the primetime games, so if that holds, then the Overs for this week’s night games could be attractive with Week 2 NFL player props.

There’s a Monday Night Football doubleheader featuring star quarterbacks like Baker Mayfield, C.J. Stroud and Justin Herbert. The games also feature promising rookies such as Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton and Emeka Egbuka. Prop lines are usually all over the place early in the season as sportsbooks attempt to establish a player’s potential, and you could take advantage of this with the right NFL picks. If you are looking for NFL prop bets or NFL parlays for Week 2, SportsLine has you covered with the top Week 2 player props from its Machine Learning Model AI.

Built using cutting-edge artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques by SportsLine’s Data Science team, AI Predictions and AI Ratings are generated for each player prop.

Now, with the Week 2 NFL schedule quickly approaching, SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model AI has identified the top NFL props from the biggest Week 2 games.

Week 2 NFL props for Sunday’s main slate

After analyzing the NFL props from Sunday’s main slate and examining the dozens of NFL player prop markets, the SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model AI says Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown goes Over 63.5 receiving yards (-114) versus the Bears at 1 p.m. ET. Detroit will host this contest, which is notable as St. Brown has averaged 114 receiving yards over his last six home games. He had at least 70 receiving yards in both matchups versus the Bears a year ago.

Chicago allowed 12 receivers to go Over 63.5 receiving yards last season as the Bears’ pass defense is adept at keeping opponents out of the endzone but not as good at preventing yardage. Chicago allowed the highest yards per attempt and second-highest yards per completion in 2024. While St. Brown had just 45 yards in the opener, the last time he was held under 50 receiving yards, he then had 193 yards the following week. The SportsLine Machine Learning Model projects 82.5 yards for St. Brown in a 4.5-star pick. See more Week 2 NFL props here.

Week 2 NFL props for Vikings vs. Falcons on Sunday Night Football

After analyzing Falcons vs. Vikings props and examining the dozens of NFL player prop markets, the SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model AI says Falcons running back Bijan Robinson goes Over 65.5 rushing yards (-114). Robinson ran for 92 yards and a touchdown in Week 14 of last season versus Minnesota, despite the Vikings having the league’s No. 2 run defense a year ago. The SportsLine Machine Learning Model projects Robinson to have 81.8 yards on average in a 4.5-star prop pick. See more NFL props for Vikings vs. Falcons here.

You can make NFL prop bets on Robinson, Justin Jefferson and others with the Underdog Fantasy promo code CBSSPORTS2. Pick at Underdog Fantasy and get $50 in bonus funds after making a $5 wager:

Week 2 NFL props for Buccaneers vs. Texans on Monday Night Football

After analyzing Texans vs. Buccaneers props and examining the dozens of NFL player prop markets, the SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model AI says Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield goes Under 235.5 passing yards (-114). While Houston has questions regarding its offense, there’s little worry about the team’s pass defense. In 2024, Houston had the second-most interceptions, the fourth-most sacks and allowed the fourth-worst passer rating. Since the start of last year, and including the playoffs, the Texans have held opposing QBs under 235.5 yards in 13 of 20 games. The SportsLine Machine Learning Model forecasts Mayfield to finish with just 200.1 passing yards, making the Under a 4-star NFL prop. See more NFL props for Buccaneers vs. Texans here.

You can also use the latest FanDuel promo code to get $300 in bonus bets instantly:

Week 2 NFL props for Chargers vs. Raiders on Monday Night Football

After analyzing Raiders vs. Chargers props and examining the dozens of NFL player prop markets, the SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model AI says Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert goes Under 254.5 passing yards (-114). The Raiders’ defense was underrated in preventing big passing plays a year ago as it ranked third in the NFL in average depth of target allowed. It forced QBs to dink and dunk their way down the field, which doesn’t lead to big passing yardages, and L.A. generally prefers to not throw the ball anyway. Just four teams attempted fewer passes last season than the Chargers, and with L.A. running for 156.5 yards versus Vegas last season, Herbert shouldn’t be overly active on Monday night. He’s forecasted to have 221.1 passing yards in a 4.5-star NFL prop bet. See more NFL props for Chargers vs. Raiders here.

How to make Week 2 NFL prop picks

SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model has identified another star who sails past his total and has dozens of NFL props rated 4 stars or better. You need to see the Machine Learning Model analysis before making any Week 2 NFL prop bets.

Which NFL prop picks should you target for Week 2, and which quarterback has multiple 5-star rated picks? Visit SportsLine to see the latest NFL player props from SportsLine’s Machine Learning Model that uses cutting-edge artificial intelligence to make its projections.

Source link