Home
Weather London
WeatherRadar
RainfallRadar
TemperatureRadar
WindRadar
LightningRadar
Weather News
Editor's Pick
Discover the app
Weather widget
Contact us
Apps
Career
    Home / Editor's Pick /

    Myth or fact? Is a "mini-heatwave" coming?

15:00
19 April 2023

Myth or fact?
Is a "mini-heatwave" coming?

blue sky

Now we've all heard rumours of this "mini-heatwave", but are the rumours true?

A long-range forecast from the Met Office seemed to fuel the frenzy with hopes that a "heatwave" was more imminent, especially given temperatures just reached 20°C for the first time this year.

The statement however, detailed the chance of warmth at the end of April in a long-range forecast, after the spell of below-average temperatures coming up.

What is a heatwave?

A heatwave is defined as a prolonged period of hot weather after a temperature threshold has been reached and/or surpassed for a certain number of days. The exact threshold varies depending on location, so is a fairly loose definition

A long-range forecast is purely built on trends and averages. For example, if the next few weeks look to be warmer than average on the weather models, or drier than average.

When there is good agreement across weather models, you can have greater certainty, though it is still very difficult to give any indication of detail such as exact temperatures so many days ahead.

For now, the rest of this week looks to be dominated by high pressure, with temperatures fluctuating around the average. From around the 23rd April however, cold, northerly winds look to plunge in delivering below average temperatures.

In some weather models, at present, there is an indication by the end of that week that milder air from the south will push its way back in, while some others are set on the cold clinging on for a little longer.

How are weather forecasts created?read more

We will be sure to keep you updated on any and all upcoming weather in the longer-term, but you can also check out the WeatherRadar to see the detail in the shorter-term.

Weather & Radar editorial team
More on the topic
Floods and landslides in parts of Asia. An unusual monsoon. . . Wednesday, 29 July 2026
Split image: On the left, flooded villages and fields can be seen in a vast landscape. On the right, a weather map of India shows heavy rainfall, along with a warning sign featuring a car in floodwater.
Wednesday, 29 July 2026

An unusual monsoon

Floods and landslides in parts of Asia
Icy spells in the Southern Hemisphere. Snow in the Andes. . . Tuesday, 28 July 2026
A composite image showing a temperature radar map of South America and a snow-covered town in Chile. The winter cold is bringing heavy snowfall to the Andes and, in some areas, snow down to lower altitudes.
Tuesday, 28 July 2026

Snow in the Andes

Icy spells in the Southern Hemisphere
Fourth heatwave of the year. Peaking Wednesday. . . Tuesday, 28 July 2026
Temperature map of England and Wales on Wednesday 29.07 showing widespread hot conditions, with temperatures reaching 33°C near Cambridge, 32°C around London, Norwich, and Southend-on-Sea, and a large heat warning symbol highlighting elevated heat risk.
Tuesday, 28 July 2026

Peaking Wednesday

Fourth heatwave of the year
All weather news
This might also interest you
Seasonal warmth between spring thunder. Your weather - Your shots. . . Sunday, 19 April 2026
Split image showing coastal sunset with layered lenticular clouds over rooftops and palm trees on the left, and a green valley with river and hills under soft daylight on the right.
Sunday, 19 April 2026

Your weather - Your shots

Seasonal warmth between spring thunder
Historic Storm Éowyn arrives. On this day.... . . Saturday, 24 January 2026
Split image showing a person in a yellow jacket struggling against strong winds and heavy rain on a street at night on the left, and an Irish wind forecast map on the right with red and purple shading, gusts up to 75 mph, and a wind warning icon, divided by a curved white line.
Saturday, 24 January 2026

On this day...

Historic Storm Éowyn arrives
Super Typhoon Bavi threatens Taiwan. Up to 1,000 mm of rain. . . Wednesday, 8 July 2026
The image shows an intense tropical cyclone over the western Pacific, east of Taiwan and the Philippines. The centre of the system is depicted as a light purple and white vortex with a clearly visible eye, surrounded by a ring of red and orange areas indicating the strongest wind speeds. A white arrow marks the typhoon’s predicted track towards the north-west, in the direction of Taiwan. To the west of the storm lie the Philippines, with the cities of Manila and Cebu; to the north of these lies Taiwan, with Taipei. Further west, the Chinese coast, including Hong Kong, and parts of Vietnam can be seen. The coloured wind map shows predominantly green areas outside the storm’s core, indicating significantly weaker winds. White streamlines illustrate the typhoon’s anti-clockwise circulation in the Northern Hemisphere. The highest wind speeds are concentrated around the eye of the cyclone.
Wednesday, 8 July 2026

Up to 1,000 mm of rain

Super Typhoon Bavi threatens Taiwan
All articles
Weather & Radar

Weather & Radar is also available on

Google Play StoreApp Store

Company

Contact us Privacy Policy Legal info Accessibility statement

Services

Uploader

Socials

facebooktwittertikToklinkList