Hot Hot Hot

How much do you know about the weather?

I love the weather. I especially love the unpredictability of the British weather. I love checking BBC Weather on a very regular basis. I love to see what we should expect in a day, hour by hour. I love to know what to expect in the next 5 days. I love the weather. I love the weather forecast.

In Britain we have had one of the coldest winters on record and now we are experiencing one of hottest summers in recent years. The heatwave is in its seventh day today and if it continues until July 25th it will be the longest heatwave on record in the UK. This would beat the summer of 1976. Britain has already recorded its longest spell of high temperatures since 2006. 

In the wake of all these summer weather facts, I was absolutely delighted to see that the Telegraph has devised a weather quiz to test our summer weather knowledge. Check it out here.

 

It is hot

So it is quite hot. At last, the UK looks set to enjoy a real summer. Today will be the hottest day of the year and the heatwave is forecast to last well into next week.

At OISE Oxford we would like to recommend the Guardian's article on how to 'Sleep soundly and beat the heat'.

1) Choice of bed lined is important - natural fibres are best. The director of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre and author of Sound Asleep recommends keeping your pillow in the fridge during the day and retrieve it as you go to bed. However, I am not sure if this is the soundest of advice. Who has room in their fridge for a pillow? And if you had room the chances of getting yogurt, butter and other fridge items would be really rather high. Of more sound advice - do spread out, rather than sleeping curled up will help you keep cool.

2) Make sure there is good air circulation – either by using a ceiling or portable fan, or just keeping door and windows open.

3) Prepare your beddroom for sleep, by leaving blinds down or curtains closed during the day to keep the sun out, and opening your windows in the evening once the heat of the day has died down

4) If you're in the grip of sweaty insomnia, "run your wrists and hands under the cold tap for a few minutes. Dry your hands and go straight back to bed."

5) A nap in the day will help counteract the effects of lost sleep.  Bring on the siestas!