Annual mean air temperature at Rothamsted

Last updated 21/04/2017

This version 1 is superceded by version 2:

Access Use and Conditions

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

YOU MUST CITE AS: Rothamsted Research (2017). Rothamsted mean long-term annual temperature. Electronic Rothamsted Archive https://doi.org/10.23637/KeyRefOARESmatemp.

Click the chart above for a PDF version. Summary data used for this chart are derived from annual daily data measured at Rothamsted Meteorological Station and are available to download as an Excel Spreadsheet: Annual Mean Rothamsted Temperature.

The original raw data is available, after registering, from the e-RA database. Please contact the e-RA Curators for a password and further details.

Description

Rothamsted has one of the longest running continuous sets of meteorological recordings in the world. The figure shows the annual mean air temperature at Rothamsted every year from 1878-2013. Also shown is the mean over each five-year period, 1878-1882, 1883-1887, etc. The red line shows the mean temperature, 1878-1987. Mean annual air temperature has fluctuated considerably between 1878-2013. However, when the variation in annual temperature is smoothed using five-year means, it is apparent that air temperatures have risen sharply since 1987 (Scott, 2015). The mean air temperature at Rothamsted is now approximately 10.04°C which is 1.1°C higher than the 1878-1987 average. The 10 warmest years on record occurred in the last 17 years. Much of the rise is due to increases in the autumn and winter months, and in night time temperatures.

MEASUREMENTS

Daily temperature is measured over the 24 hour period 0900 to 0900 GMT.
Since first recorded in 1878, maximum temperature (TMAX) was measured using a mercury column thermometer and mimimum temperature (TMIN) using a spirit-in-glass with indicator bar minimum thermometer.
Since 2004, temperatures have been recorded automatically by thermistors (electronic temperature probes, Campbell Scientific, Type 107).

Keywords:

Meteorological station
Rothamsted
Weather data
Weather
Temperature
Air temperature
Thermometer
Climate
Climate change

Further Information

This version 1 is superceded by version 2 (1878-2019).

Updated from Scott (2015) see Key Reference below. For further information about the measurement of temperature at Rothamsted see Temperature.
Further details can be obtained from the e-RA curators, the Rothamsted Guide to the Classical Experiments (2006), pp 44-45, and the Key References below.

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Key References

2018

• Macdonald, A. , Poulton, P. , Clark, I. , Scott, T. , Glendining, M. , Perryman, S. , Storkey, J. , Bell, J. , Shield, I. , McMillan, V. and Hawkins, J. (2018) "Guide to the Classical and Other Long-term experiments, Datasets and Sample Archive. Rothamsted Research", 57 pp.
  Get Paper

2015

• Scott, T. (2015) "The U.K. Environmental Change Network Rothamsted. Physical and Atmospheric Measurements. The first 20 Years. Lawes Agricultural Trust Ltd.", 32pp.
  Get Paper

2009

• Morecroft, M. D. , Bealey, C. E. , Beaumont, D. A. , Benham, S. , Brooks, D. R. , Burt, T. P. , Critchley, C. N. R. , Dick, J. , Littlewood, N. A. , Monteith, D. T. , Scott, W. A. , Smith, R. I. , Walmsey, C. and Watson, H. (2009) "The UK Environmental Change Network: Emerging trends in the composition of plant and animal communities and the physical environment", Biological Conservation, 142, 2814-2832
  Get Paper

2006

• Rothamsted_Research (2006) "Guide to the Classical and other Long-term Experiments, Datasets and Sample Archive (reprinted 2012)", Rothamsted Research, Lawes Agricultural Trust Ltd, Harpenden UK
  Get Paper

1997

• Chmielewski, F. M. and Potts, J. M. (1997) "The impact of climate variability on crop yields in southern England", Research Reports - Biotechnical Faculty University of Ljubljana, Agricultural Issue, 18-26
  Get Paper

1974

• Penman, H. L. (1974) "Rothamsted Weather", Rothamsted Experimental Station Annual Report for 1973, Part 2, 172-201
  Get Paper from eRAdoc

1969

• Yates, F. (1969) "The Broadbalk Yields: Investigations into the effects of weather on yields", Rothamsted Experimental Station Report for 1968, Part 2, 46-49
  Get Paper from eRAdoc