Will there be a heatwave in July?
Sign up to our newsletter for daily updates and breaking news Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign up here! Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice  Long-range weather forecasts published by the Met Office suggest some parts of the UK could be in store for "very warm spells" in a couple of weeks. This has led some to conclude that a heatwave is definitely on its way  but the truth is that this is far from certain. Long-range forecasts are purposely written in vague terms as "the chaotic nature of the atmosphere" means accurate meteorology is difficult beyond five days, according to the Met Office. In other words, these reports should be read as an indication of how the weather might change rather than a rock-solid prediction. The forecast being cited in reports, for Tuesday 20 July to Tuesday 3 August, says: "As is typical for the time of year, confidence is relatively low for this period, but fine and dry weather for much of the UK is most likely for the rest of July. "There is however the possibility that occasional spells of rain may impact northwestern areas, with a very low chance of thundery conditions developing at times, especially across the south. "Temperatures are likely to be above average for much of this period, with an increased chance of some very warm spells occurring in the south." At this stage, the Met Office has not quantified what these potentially "very warm spells" could look like. To reach the levels of a heatwave, Essex's daily maximum temperatures would have to exceed 27C for at least three consecutive days. As the Met Office warns "confidence is relatively low for this period", we will simply have to wait and see whether the heatwave rumours are borne out.