{"id":1192346,"date":"2026-09-08T00:58:20","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T00:58:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1192346\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T00:58:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T00:58:20","slug":"portsmouth-named-britains-most-heat-vulnerable-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1192346\/","title":{"rendered":"Portsmouth named Britain’s most heat-vulnerable city"},"content":{"rendered":"

Portsmouth in southern England is currently the city in Great Britain most vulnerable to extreme heat and is forecast to remain so until the end of the century. This follows from a heat vulnerability index prepared for 71 cities in England, Scotland and Wales by Ordnance Survey, the Met Office and 4 Earth Intelligence, The Guardian World reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Forecast until the end of the century<\/p>\n

The study covered cities with royal charters but did not include Northern Ireland. According to the authors’ assessment, all 71 cities will reach a high level of heat vulnerability by 2040. By the end of the century, almost two-thirds of them may be at the most severe level of heat vulnerability.<\/p>\n

The strongest impact of heat at the end of the century is expected in Portsmouth, Westminster, Plymouth, Leicester and Exeter. Leicester, which currently ranks tenth in the vulnerability ranking, is forecast to rise to fourth place. Exeter and Nottingham will also enter the top ten most vulnerable cities, alongside Bristol and Brighton and Hove.<\/p>\n

Why cities overheat<\/p>\n

Concrete, asphalt, buildings and other hard surfaces absorb solar radiation during the day and retain heat at night, unlike rural areas. As a result, temperatures in cities can be 10\u00b0C higher than in surrounding areas. Areas with limited tree cover and few green spaces and bodies of water face the greatest risk of intense overheating.<\/p>\n

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In Portsmouth, local authorities identified Somerstown, Portsea, Southsea and Fratton as areas particularly vulnerable to urban heat because of a lack of green spaces and the predominance of hard surfaces. In these areas, the lack of greenery also overlaps with areas of social deprivation.<\/p>\n

The situation in London and Milton Keynes<\/p>\n

The City of London has the highest built-environment vulnerability score and the least effective natural cooling among all cities in the study. This is due to the concentration of buildings, roads and hard surfaces, as well as the limited number of trees, green spaces and water bodies. Westminster currently ranks third in overall heat vulnerability and is forecast to be second in the next two periods after Portsmouth.<\/p>\n

By contrast, Milton Keynes ranks 69th out of 71 in its current level of heat vulnerability. The city recorded the lowest built-environment vulnerability in England and the most effective natural cooling: it has 46 km\u00b2 of natural surfaces compared with almost 40 km\u00b2 of hard artificial \u043f\u043e\u043a\u0440\u044b\u0442\u0438\u044f.<\/p>\n

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