Heatwave: Why is Heathrow so hot?

Tom Edgington | BBC News Website | 2 August 2018

It's Europe's busiest airport, and as well as attracting millions of passengers could Heathrow also be a magnet for the sizzling heat?

Heathrow holds the UK record for July's hottest day ever. Three years ago it reached a sweltering 36.7C.

It also briefly recorded 2018's highest temperature of 35C, before being pipped by Faversham (35.3C) in Kent last Thursday.

And last year the thermometer peaked at 34.5C at - you guessed it - Heathrow.

So what's causing Heathrow to rise to the top of the temperature charts?

How is temperature measured?

To get a standardised temperature, a weather station, known as a Stevenson Screen, is used.

These white boxes, which contain a thermometer, are installed 4ft (1.25m) above the ground and are dotted all around the UK.

The weather station at Heathrow is located very close to the northern runway, so with aeroplanes constantly landing and taking off, does it make a difference to the temperature?

Not according to Paul Williams, Professor of Atmospheric Science at the University of Reading.

"Planes make a negligible difference," says Professor Williams.

"Every time you use energy - whether it's from a plane's engine, or even just switching on a light bulb or taking a shower - it's eventually turned into heat.

"But all of that is a minor influence compared to the effect of the urban heat island."

The urban heat island is, Prof Williams explains, the process where buildings absorb more sunlight than open fields.

Cities tend to hang on to the heat for longer, which can push up temperatures by a few degrees, he says.

Heathrow - with its large black asphalt runways and airport buildings - will naturally absorb more heat.

But London is very built-up, meaning surrounding areas should also be affected in a similar way.

This can be shown by comparing the average monthly temperature of Heathrow to nearby Kew, eight miles away.

The temperature graph above shows there is hardly any difference between Heathrow and Kew - but both areas are hotter, on average, than the rest of the UK.

That suggests that it is the buildings, rather than planes, contributing to the higher average temperatures.

But what about CO2 gas levels expelled by the planes?

Prof Williams says CO2 is a greenhouse gas and it does trap heat but, because it mixes very quickly with the air, it warms the entire climate, not just Heathrow.

"If you measure the CO2 levels above Heathrow they wouldn't be any higher than other parts of the UK because it spreads so quickly," he says.

The Met Office told us that their weather stations are built to very specific standards and any biases that could affect temperature records are taken into account when taking down readings.

The Met Office also pointed out that Heathrow is many miles from the sea, which means it does not benefit from a cooling effect that many coastal areas receive.

It says if you look at overall temperature records, there is a pattern between high temperature and the distance from the sea.

And even the soil can be a factor, according to Gareth Harvey from the BBC Weather Centre.

"Take, another very warm spot, like Wisley - located in the Surrey heathland and typified by sandy soils," he says.

"Sand is a natural insulator and so the heating effect of sunshine is stored in the top layer only, which gets very hot and then warms the air."

In summary, the overall temperature of any particular weather station is likely to be affected by several factors - such as the geographic features, the wind and the soil.

So, there's more to Heathrow's hot spot than its proximity to roaring jet engines and all that tarmac.