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Weather is the day-to-day conditions of the atmosphere at a particular place. It includes temperature, precipitation, cloud cover and wind speed. Climate is the average weather conditions of a place taken over a long period of time, typically 30 years.

The UK has a temperate climate. In general, this means that Britain gets cool, wet winters and warm, wet summers. It rarely features the extremes of heat or cold, drought or wind that are common in other climates. The weather conditions are also very changeable.

The first climate graph is for London, in the south-east of the UK. This region is characterised by a warm and dry climate in the summer and a cold and dry climate in the winter.

Not all parts of the UK have the same climate. The second climate graph is from Cumbria in the mountainous north-west of England. Notice that temperatures are generally cooler and there is more rainfall throughout the year.

The general pattern of the climate across the UK has four distinct regions:

• the south-east - cold winters, warm and dry summers
• the south-west - mild and very wet winters, warm and wet summers
• the north-west - mild winter, cool summers and heavy rain all year
• the north-east - cold winter, cool summers and steady rain all year

How has the climate changed over time?

The climate is continually changing. There is evidence, for example from fossils, which shows that during certain periods, the world was much warmer than it is now, and there was little ice on the North Pole. There is also evidence to suggest that at other times the ice cover was much greater than it is today. Since the 1950s, there has been evidence of a steep climb in global temperature compared to the past. This trend is linked to climate change.