Satellite images show dry weather impact on region

Satellite imagery shows the impact on the south-east England landscape of a record-breaking dry spell and prolonged hot weather.

July 2026 was the driest in England since records began 190 years ago, according to the Met Office.

Every month of the year except February has seen above average sunshine hours for the UK, while the South East and other parts of the country have seen multiple heatwaves.

A comparison of satellite imagery from 2025 to 2026 shows stark differences in plant health in Kent, Sussex and Surrey.

While July broke several weather records, farmers of all kinds have been battling the weather conditions all summer.

Some have warned they are feeding winter food supplies to their animals due to the impact of the conditions.

River levels have dropped, impacting wetland ecosystems in the region too.

Emergency services have issued warnings over an increased wildfire risk due to the dry conditions and asked the public to play a proactive role in stopping fires from breaking out.

Meteorologists at Wisley in Surrey have gone more than 50 days without recording any rainfall at the site - a record for that weather station.

The conditions are having an impact on humans too.

Multiple heat health alerts have been issued over the summer.

South East Water and Thames Water have hosepipe bans in place for their customers.

Forecasters expect August to remain predominantly warm, dry and above average in temperature.

The Environment Agency classifies most of south-east England as being in "prolonged dry weather".

Officials warned several areas should "expect status changes" in the coming days - raising the prospect that an official drought could be on the way. Drought has been declared in more than half of the country.

Experts have warned that climate change means the UK is experiencing more frequent intense winter storms followed by heatwaves and droughts in summers.

The consensus among scientists is that human activities are causing climate change, posing serious threats to people and nature.

The UN's climate body – the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) – concluded in 2023 that "human activities, principally through emissions of greenhouse gases, have unequivocally caused global warming".

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