What is 40C in Fahrenheit? How to convert Celsius to Fahrenheit and temperatures explained - iNews

Parts of the UK have been hit with extremely hot temperatures today with some records likely to have been broken.

And tomorrow it is set to get hotter in parts of England with 40C or higher a possibility.

Met Office forecasting models have suggested the mercury could even reach 43C but Professor Penelope Endersby, its chief executive, said "we're hoping it won't be as high as that."

What is the forecast for the next couple of days?

By 3pm today, the highest recorded temperature was 37.5C (99.5F) at Kew Gardens in west London, according to the Met Office.

Cavendish in Suffolk had reached 37.4C (99.3F), Santon Downham, also in Suffolk, was 37.2C (98.9F) and Wisley, Surrey, saw temperatures of 37.2C

Temperatures of 40C (104F) or 41C (105.8F) are forecast but they could rise even higher.

If temperatures hit 40C or above, they will be the highest UK temperatures on record.

The Met Office forecast of intense heat has led it to issue a red national severe weather warning for extreme heat for parts of England for Monday and Tuesday.

This means it's "very likely that there will be a risk to life, with substantial disruption to travel, energy supplies and possibly widespread damage to property and infrastructure."

There are also amber warnings for extreme heat in place for England Wales and parts of southern Scotland.

More on Heatwave

The UK Health Security Agency has issued a level 4 alert for the first time since the heatwave plan for England was introduced in 2004.

This level of alert is used when a heatwave is "so severe and/or prolonged that its effects extend outside the health and social care system. Illness may occur among the fit and healthy, and not just in high-risk groups."

After Tuesday, the temperatures are expected to drop – by about 10C or 12 C overnight going into Wednesday – but they will still be slightly higher than average normal for the time of year.

Chief meteorologist at the Met Office Paul Davies has warned that another heatwave later in summer cannot be ruled out.

What are the previous record high temperatures in the UK?

The current record for the highest temperature in England and in the is 38.7°C, which was reached at Cambridge University Botanic Garden on 25 July 2019.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Wales had been 35.2C at Hawarden Bridge, Flintshire, north east Wales, on the 2 August 1990. But this looks to have been broken today with it provisionally recording 35.3C in Gogerddan, near Aberystwyth, the Met Office said.

The highest temperature recorded in Scotland was 32.9C at Greycrook in the Borders on 9 August 2003.

In Northern Ireland, the record of 31.3C was set in Castlederg in County Tyrone on 21 July 2021.

People take shade under umbrellas in London in the heatwave (Photo: Reuters)

How do you convert Celsius to Fahrenheit?

There are two main temperature scales.

In 1742 Swedish scientist Anders Celsius invented the Celsius temperature scale (also called the centigrade scale) in which 0C is the freezing point of water and 100C is the boiling point.

The Fahrenheit scale is based on one proposed by the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit in 1724. In Fahrenheit, water freezes at 32 F and boils at 212F.

There are simple formulas to convert Celsius to Fahrenheit and Fahrenheit to Celsius.

They are as follows:

• C to F: Divide by 5, then multiply by 9, then add 32
• F to °C: Subtract 32, then multiply by 5, then divide by 9

So for example, if the temperature is 40C, to get F you would divide 40 by 5 which would give 8, then multiply that by 9 which would make 72, then add 32. The answer would be 104F.