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The Met Office has revealed that 2025 is set to become the sunniest year ever recorded in the United Kingdom since records started in 1910. With two weeks still remaining in the year, provisional figures indicate that the total sunshine hours have reached 1,622, surpassing the previous record established in 2003. Nearly every month this year, except for February and October, experienced above-average sunshine.
This remarkable sunny year benefitted significantly from an outstanding spring season, noted as the sunniest, warmest, and driest in over half a century. Such conditions have contributed strongly to the overall record-breaking sunshine total. While the UK as a whole has seen extraordinary sun exposure, regional differences have been pronounced. England is the only nation to have broken its sunniest year record for 2025, with Scotland ranking it as the second sunniest year and Wales placing it sixth. Northern Ireland, meanwhile, although it has enjoyed above-average sunshine, has not yet cracked its top ten sunniest years, though it might approach that threshold by year’s end.
The prevalence of high-pressure systems across much of the UK has played a vital role in these weather patterns. High pressure forms when air descends in the atmosphere, resulting in dry, settled weather and extended periods of sunshine. The positioning of the jet stream throughout the year has meant it stayed largely north of the UK, allowing these high-pressure zones to sit over the region and block incoming rain-bearing fronts. This atmospheric setup has been instrumental in maintaining clear skies and preventing cloud and rain from interrupting the sunshine.
Sunshine hours in the UK are monitored across nearly 300 Met Office sites using either traditional Campbell-Stokes sunshine recorders or modern sunshine duration detectors. Sunshine is officially recorded when sunlight intensity reaches at least 120 watts per square metre; when clouds diminish the sunlight below this level, sunshine is not counted. Looking ahead to 2026, although 2025 was exceptionally bright overall, recent months such as autumn and early December have seen more typical or slightly below-average sunshine levels. Forecasts suggest that high pressure may continue to influence the weather, potentially bringing sunny intervals, though winter high pressure can also lead to dull, cloudy conditions known as anticyclonic gloom
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