GRAUN WARNS BRITAIN OF BRISK NEW CLIMATE RISK

Storm Ciarán’s low pressure 

made tea taste worse, say scientists

Recordbreaking low pressure due to extreme weather meant water was boiling at 98C in Reading on day of storm

Ellen McNally

Millions of Britons were forced to drink subpar cups of tea last November due to the record-breaking low pressure caused by Storm Ciarán.

The low pressure caused the boiling point of water to drop below the 100C temperature some experts recommend to extract the full flavour from tea leaves.

The study by meteorologists at the University of Reading, published in the journal Weather, reported that the water in Reading was boiling at 98C on the morning of the storm...

By performing controlled experiments using temperature sensors and a standard electric kettle, Miller and his team were able to compare the results with previous boiling points observed under different air pressure conditions using the same apparatus.

To determine the broader regional effect of the storm on boiling points, they also combined weather data from various resources, including roadside weather stations across southern England and pressure readings from the Reading University Atmospheric Observatory.

This allowed them to monitor how the pressure minimum moved north-east across the region during the morning, coinciding with typical breakfast times.