Find out what EDF Energy is doing (image (c) EDF Energy)
Extreme weather (Image © Ashley Cooper/Corbis)
Extreme weather: the evidence so far
The UK's weather has gone from mild to wild - and it's getting progressively wilder.
Click on the thumbnails to reveal evidence of the extreme weather conditions set to become increasingly common in this country as the effects of climate change take hold.

In pictures: Extreme weather

A protest in the Osney area of Oxford claiming climate change is to blame for the floods ravaging the country this summer. The Government has pledged a further £10 million to help battle the floods - in addition to the £14 million initially promised by Prime Minister Gordon Brown earlier this month. Click thumbnail to enlargeNikki Rowlinski reads about the flooding in a newspaper as she sits beside the River Thames in Pangbourne, Berkshire, where the water levels were slowly rising on July 24. People living beside the Thames in Berkshire had been warned to prepare for further flooding as a surge of water headed downstream. Click thumbnail to enlargeTewkesbury Abbey, consecrated in 1121, is surrounded with floodwater near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, on July 23. Torrential rain sweeping through large parts of Britain continued to cause disruption across the country, with warnings that water levels could rise to critical levels. Thousands of homes had already been evacuated because of flooding as a barrage of unseasonable wet weather showed little sign of abating, with more than 48,000 homes in the counties of Gloucestershire and Herefordshire left without electricity after a flooded power station had to be shut down. Click thumbnail to enlargeA lone woman braves torrential rain in central London on July 21. Householders were once again beginning the grim task of mopping up after torrential rain caused widespread flooding and travel chaos. Click thumbnail to enlargeThe temperature in the centre of London approached 36°C in 2003 as the heat wave continued into August. Britain had already seen the third warmest June and July for the last 100 years and weather forecasters announced record-breaking temperatures in the following days. Click thumbnail to enlarge
Trains shimmered in the heat outside Glasgow station in August 2003 as speed restrictions were imposed on some of Britain’s busiest rail routes due to the hot weather. The track-related measures were introduced as forecasters predicted the possibility of figures reaching an all-time high of 37.2C. Click thumbnail to enlargeA girl sunbathes in London's Trafalgar Square on July 19 last year as Britain matched the hottest July day on record. Sweltering temperatures were already reaching highs of around 30°C by late morning, and climbed to around 36°C by the afternoon. Click thumbnail to enlargeA car is pushed through flood waters in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, on June 25 2007. Forecasters extended flood warnings across the UK ahead of torrential rain and gale force winds as a storm band swept over England and Wales, accompanied by strong to gale force winds. Three people died as a result of the deluge. Click thumbnail to enlargeHigh seas batter the North East coast in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside, in March 2007. Click thumbnail to enlargeAn RAF Sea King helicopter pulls people to safety from their waterlogged homes, as a major rescue operation got underway to airlift up to 1,000 people from the flood-ravaged coastal community of Boscastle in August 2004. Dozens of people stranded on rooftops and in cars were winched to safety from the picturesque village on the north Cornwall coast. Around 30 vehicles were swept into the harbour and two buildings collapsed during the devastating torrential rains. Click thumbnail to enlarge
A Total petrol station on the outskirts of Hull is surrounded by floodwater after heavy rainfall on June 25 2007. Forecasters extended flood warnings across the UK ahead of torrential rain and gale force winds. Click thumbnail to enlargeFestival goers head home as the 2007 Glastonbury Festival finishes at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, amid the traditional deluge. Click thumbnail to enlargeFlowers lay covered in snow at Whitley Bay in the North East of England on March 20. Click thumbnail to enlargeRowers practice in a field next to Worcestershire Cricket Ground in March 2007 after its fourth flood of the winter. The River Severn burst its banks to leave more than a foot of water lying across the outfield and square with only six weeks to go before the opening County Championship clash with Durham. Click thumbnail to enlargeCommuters braced for travel chaos with a blanket of heavy snow predicted to fall across many parts of the UK on February 28 this year. As the Met Office issued a severe weather warning for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, industry chiefs warned that transport failures could cost the economy hundreds of millions of pounds. Forecasters predicted up to 6in (15cm) of snow could fall over parts of the Midlands, South and Mid-Wales and Northern Ireland. Click thumbnail to enlarge
Gales batter the west coast at Blackpool as ferocious storms hit Britain in January this year. Heavy rain, snow and high winds brought chaos to parts of Britain as the country experienced severe storms. Click thumbnail to enlargeThe scene at Birchwood Road, Sparkbrook, after a tornado struck inner city Birmingham in 2005 causing widespread damage to the area. Click thumbnail to enlargeLittle space to spare on the beach at Branksome, in Poole, where thousands flocked to escape soaring temperatures in the heat wave of June 2005. Click thumbnail to enlargeSevere flooding sweeps cars down the street in Carlisle in January 2005. Rescue workers had to pluck residents from the first floor windows of their partially submerged homes. Click thumbnail to enlargeHealth concerns were raised as the 2003 heat wave caused high levels of summer smog in many parts of the country, with a mist descending on Brighton beach. High ozone pollution was recorded by the UK National Air Quality Archive in many parts of London, including Westminster, Kensington, Southwark and Wandsworth, which all registered seven on a scale to 10. Click thumbnail to enlarge

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