THE HOT WEATHER has set a provisional reading of a high of 27.9 degrees Celsius on the Kerry Coast, Met Éireann has said.

Sun worshippers across the country have been enjoying the good weather in recent days.

Speaking to The Journal tonight forecaster Siobhan Ryan said that the provisional figures from Valentia, Co Kerry are the highest since 25 July. 

That was during the high temperatures of the summer as the country was gripped in a heat wave.

“These temperatures are higher than any recorded in August,” she said.

“We are waiting to get a lot of more readings in and we’ll verify the temperatures then but it certainly is very close to the 28 degrees mark. Just for context the hottest temperature ever recorded for September was 29.1 degrees Celsius in 1906.

“There are other high figures today in Mount Dillon (Roscommon) of 27.4 degrees Celsius and in Durrow, County Laois of 28.3 degrees and 26 in Athenry, County Galway.

“It is unusual getting those temperature values so widespread across country.

“There are very warm days. The best description of our weather at the moment is sultry with high humidity. There is mist and fog and humid hot hair which will throw up downpours and sporadic, hazy sunshine. It’ll be very humid.

“The showers will be scattered in the main but there is a risk of thunder storms tonight and early tomorrow. More miss than hit. Early morning Leinster,” she said. 

Met Éireann said that there will be warm and humid conditions throughout tomorrow with scattered thundery showers, mixed with some sunny spells.

It will become more overcast later in the day as showers become more widespread and prolonged with an ongoing risk of localised flooding.

Highest temperatures will be in the region of 19 to 24 degrees. The warmest values will be in Ulster and the north Midlands, with a light to moderate southeast breeze. 

The UN’s IPCC has said that global warming has caused an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events. 

The world has already warmed by about 1 degree Celsius since pre-industrial times due to human activity, and the UN IPCC has warned that this is likely to pass 1.5C between 2030 and 2052 if the increase continues at the current rate.

It is not only temperature that has changed: there have also been changes in rainfall, declines in snow and ice, and increases in sea-level as the oceans heat up.