Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022

Name: Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022
Start: 2022-12-04
End: 2022-12-19
Location: United Kingdom, Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Ireland, Czech Republic, Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Switzerland, Finland

Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022: 765 records at 320 stations, peak on 13 December 2022. Closed.

Data as of 2026-10-17. Last revised 17 October 2026 (2026-10-17).

Key Facts

Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022 set or tied 765 station records at 320 stations.
It ran from 4 December 2022 to 19 December 2022 (16 days) and its peak day was 13 December 2022.
Status: closed.
Cet Central England set a daily record low minimum temperature of -8.0 C (17.6 F) on 16 December 2022.
The busiest day was 13 December 2022 with 135 records.
The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 143 years.

Footprint

4 to 19 December 2022

The area covered by Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022 is outlined, with 12 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.

Footprint of Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022: stations that set records in the event
Station	Type	Value	Date
Cet Central England	Record low minimum temperature	-8.0 C (17.6 F)	2022-12-16
Rothamsted	Record low minimum temperature	-7.5 C (18.5 F)	2022-12-16
Bradford	Record low maximum temperature	-0.9 C (30.4 F)	2022-12-11
Eastbourne	Record low maximum temperature	2.6 C (36.7 F)	2022-12-13
Dublin Phoenix Park	Record low maximum temperature	0.2 C (32.4 F)	2022-12-12
Halmstad Flygflottilj	Record low minimum temperature	-16.6 C (2.1 F)	2022-12-16
Waddington	Record low minimum temperature	-11.2 C (11.8 F)	2022-12-15
Dusseldorf	Record low maximum temperature	-2.5 C (27.5 F)	2022-12-15
Gogerddan	Record low maximum temperature	0.5 C (32.9 F)	2022-12-12
Penicuik	Record low minimum temperature	-13.8 C (7.2 F)	2022-12-13
Preston: Moor Park	Record low minimum temperature	-9.0 C (15.8 F)	2022-12-15
Wisley	Record low minimum temperature	-8.0 C (17.6 F)	2022-12-16

Records per Day

Peak day 135

Records set or tied each day from 4 December 2022 to 19 December 2022. The most in one day was 135 on 13 December 2022.

Records per day during Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022
Date	Records
2022-12-04	2
2022-12-05	2
2022-12-06	1
2022-12-07	2
2022-12-08	4
2022-12-09	11
2022-12-10	28
2022-12-11	65
2022-12-12	80
2022-12-13	135
2022-12-14	95
2022-12-15	94
2022-12-16	86
2022-12-17	104
2022-12-18	55
2022-12-19	1

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced

Top records of Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022 ranked by margin
Halmstad Flygflottilj, 12-16	6.8 C (12.2 F)
Penicuik, 12-13	6.3 C (11.3 F)
Halmstad Flygflottilj, 12-17	6.1 C (11.0 F)
Preston: Moor Park, 12-15	5.1 C (9.2 F)
Halmstad Flygflottilj, 12-11	4.8 C (8.6 F)
Waddington, 12-15	4.0 C (7.2 F)
Gogerddan, 12-12	3.9 C (7.0 F)
Rothamsted, 12-15	3.4 C (6.1 F)
Waddington, 12-10	3.4 C (6.1 F)
Dusseldorf, 12-15	2.5 C (4.5 F)
Cet Central England, 12-16	2.4 C (4.3 F)
Rothamsted, 12-16	1.9 C (3.4 F)
Cet Central England, 12-15	1.8 C (3.2 F)
Cet Central England, 12-17	1.7 C (3.1 F)
Wisley, 12-16	1.3 C (2.3 F)

Margin is how far the new value is beyond the record it replaced. Ties are not shown.

Margin Against Age of the Broken Record

500 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right.

Margin against age of the broken record in Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022
Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
2.4	122
1.8	122
1.7	105
1.9	95
0.9	101
0.7	101
0.6	143
0.6	101
6.8	60
1.0	95
2.5	81
4.0	72
6.1	59
4.8	53
3.9	61
3.4	53
3.4	64
5.1	53
6.3	40
1.3	72
2.9	59
4.0	61
3.0	61
3.6	59
0.9	72
3.0	59
0.8	76
2.6	64
3.3	67
2.7	40
3.2	53
5.4	51
0.2	72
1.4	67
1.5	64
1.1	64
2.5	56
3.5	40
0.3	72
2.1	61
0.7	64
0.5	76
2.1	60
2.4	53
2.5	57
0.3	69
1.9	61
4.3	52
3.3	56
5.1	40
4.2	25
1.5	60
1.9	60
3.7	53
2.0	60
1.6	60
3.8	44
3.1	53
1.7	59
2.1	61
3.9	40
1.5	61
7.6	28
0.2	60
2.2	59
0.1	67
0.2	71
2.0	55
1.5	60
2.3	59
1.2	60
2.0	59
3.3	40
4.2	40
1.4	64
2.8	53
2.3	55
1.7	61
3.3	40
1.3	61
2.6	53
1.4	61
1.6	61
1.4	61
1.2	60
1.4	60
1.0	60
1.6	59
1.0	60
7.6	27
1.5	59
3.9	48
0.8	55
3.0	40
1.0	61
1.7	59
1.6	57
6.6	20
1.7	59
3.1	53
0.1	55
5.1	35
2.7	49
0.2	64
3.2	40
1.0	60
0.6	60
0.6	60
1.3	59
0.5	61
0.3	55
0.4	64
1.3	55
2.2	55
0.9	59
1.4	59
0.8	61
2.0	53
0.8	61
1.8	56
3.4	40
0.8	61
1.6	57
0.9	61
2.0	40
3.0	47
1.5	47
0.9	55
0.4	60
0.4	60
0.9	53
0.2	60
0.4	60
2.2	47
2.5	40
0.1	60
0.8	59
0.8	59
0.8	60
0.8	59
2.2	40
3.2	40
0.2	60
3.7	20
0.2	56
2.5	40
4.6	32
1.0	44
2.0	55
0.7	61
2.8	40
3.8	35
2.4	40
1.4	53
0.6	59
1.5	47
2.4	40
0.5	61
3.3	35
1.0	57
2.2	48
3.6	45
5.9	25
0.1	59
0.7	53
0.1	59
1.3	53
0.1	59
0.1	55
0.4	60
0.1	59
0.9	55
2.0	40
0.3	56
1.3	44
0.1	59
2.2	40
4.8	23
0.4	59
0.1	60
0.3	59
0.9	53
1.4	48
2.3	40
1.3	55
1.2	55
2.7	31
1.3	57
2.3	47
2.0	47
4.0	28
2.1	47
2.1	47
1.8	40
0.2	56
0.6	52
3.7	32
1.6	45
1.5	48
0.4	53

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event

Station records in Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022 compared with similar events
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 6 February to 5 March 2021	12,118 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 13 October to 5 November 2020	9,841 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 23 December 2017 to 8 January 2018	8,263 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 3 to 23 January 2024	7,675 records
Cold outbreak in United States, 15 January to 10 February 2026	5,568 records
Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022 (this event)	765 records

Every Record Set

20 of 765

Every record set or tied during Cold outbreak in United Kingdom and 15 other countries, 4 to 19 December 2022, in date order
Date	Station	Record	Value	Margin	Years stood	Significance
2022-12-10	Waddington	Record low minimum temperature	-7.3 C (18.9 F)	3.4 C (6.1 F)	64	34 of 100 (Routine)
2022-12-11	Bradford	Record low maximum temperature	-0.9 C (30.4 F)	0.9 C (1.6 F)	101	42 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-11	Halmstad Flygflottilj	Record low maximum temperature	-6.0 C (21.2 F)	4.8 C (8.6 F)	53	37 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-12	Dublin Phoenix Park	Record low maximum temperature	0.2 C (32.4 F)	0.6 C (1.1 F)	143	41 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-12	Rothamsted	Record low maximum temperature	-1.2 C (29.8 F)	0.6 C (1.1 F)	101	41 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-12	Gogerddan	Record low maximum temperature	0.5 C (32.9 F)	3.9 C (7.0 F)	61	37 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-13	Eastbourne	Record low maximum temperature	2.6 C (36.7 F)	0.7 C (1.3 F)	101	42 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-13	Penicuik	Record low minimum temperature	-13.8 C (7.2 F)	6.3 C (11.3 F)	40	34 of 100 (Routine)
2022-12-15	Cet Central England	Record low minimum temperature	-9.3 C (15.3 F)	1.8 C (3.2 F)	122	45 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-15	Dusseldorf	Record low maximum temperature	-2.5 C (27.5 F)	2.5 C (4.5 F)	81	38 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-15	Waddington	Record low minimum temperature	-11.2 C (11.8 F)	4.0 C (7.2 F)	72	38 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-15	Rothamsted	Record low minimum temperature	-9.0 C (15.8 F)	3.4 C (6.1 F)	53	35 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-15	Preston: Moor Park	Record low minimum temperature	-9.0 C (15.8 F)	5.1 C (9.2 F)	53	34 of 100 (Routine)
2022-12-16	Cet Central England	Record low minimum temperature	-8.0 C (17.6 F)	2.4 C (4.3 F)	122	46 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-16	Rothamsted	Record low minimum temperature	-7.5 C (18.5 F)	1.9 C (3.4 F)	95	43 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-16	Halmstad Flygflottilj	Record low minimum temperature	-16.6 C (2.1 F)	6.8 C (12.2 F)	60	40 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-16	Wisley	Record low minimum temperature	-8.0 C (17.6 F)	1.3 C (2.3 F)	72	34 of 100 (Routine)
2022-12-17	Cet Central England	Record low minimum temperature	-6.6 C (20.1 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	105	44 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-17	Rothamsted	Record low minimum temperature	-8.2 C (17.2 F)	1.0 C (1.8 F)	95	40 of 100 (Notable)
2022-12-17	Halmstad Flygflottilj	Record low minimum temperature	-15.3 C (4.5 F)	6.1 C (11.0 F)	59	37 of 100 (Notable)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 765 records the event counts. The counts above use the full total.

Related Headlines

Third party news, headline and link only

Download the Data

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily (GHCN-Daily). Records are computed by World Extreme Weather Monitor and are not official NOAA products. (US Government open data (NOAA NCEI)) Data as of 2026-10-17. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
2.4	122
1.8	122
1.7	105
1.9	95
0.9	101
0.7	101
0.6	143
0.6	101
6.8	60
1.0	95
2.5	81
4.0	72
6.1	59
4.8	53
3.9	61
3.4	53
3.4	64
5.1	53
6.3	40
1.3	72
2.9	59
4.0	61
3.0	61
3.6	59
0.9	72
3.0	59
0.8	76
2.6	64
3.3	67
2.7	40
3.2	53
5.4	51
0.2	72
1.4	67
1.5	64
1.1	64
2.5	56
3.5	40
0.3	72
2.1	61
0.7	64
0.5	76
2.1	60
2.4	53
2.5	57
0.3	69
1.9	61
4.3	52
3.3	56
5.1	40
4.2	25
1.5	60
1.9	60
3.7	53
2.0	60
1.6	60
3.8	44
3.1	53
1.7	59
2.1	61
3.9	40
1.5	61
7.6	28
0.2	60
2.2	59
0.1	67
0.2	71
2.0	55
1.5	60
2.3	59
1.2	60
2.0	59
3.3	40
4.2	40
1.4	64
2.8	53
2.3	55
1.7	61
3.3	40
1.3	61
2.6	53
1.4	61
1.6	61
1.4	61
1.2	60
1.4	60
1.0	60
1.6	59
1.0	60
7.6	27
1.5	59
3.9	48
0.8	55
3.0	40
1.0	61
1.7	59
1.6	57
6.6	20
1.7	59
3.1	53
0.1	55
5.1	35
2.7	49
0.2	64
3.2	40
1.0	60
0.6	60
0.6	60
1.3	59
0.5	61
0.3	55
0.4	64
1.3	55
2.2	55
0.9	59
1.4	59
0.8	61
2.0	53
0.8	61
1.8	56
3.4	40
0.8	61
1.6	57
0.9	61
2.0	40
3.0	47
1.5	47
0.9	55
0.4	60
0.4	60
0.9	53
0.2	60
0.4	60
2.2	47
2.5	40
0.1	60
0.8	59
0.8	59
0.8	60
0.8	59
2.2	40
3.2	40
0.2	60
3.7	20
0.2	56
2.5	40
4.6	32
1.0	44
2.0	55
0.7	61
2.8	40
3.8	35
2.4	40
1.4	53
0.6	59
1.5	47
2.4	40
0.5	61
3.3	35
1.0	57
2.2	48
3.6	45
5.9	25
0.1	59
0.7	53
0.1	59
1.3	53
0.1	59
0.1	55
0.4	60
0.1	59
0.9	55
2.0	40
0.3	56
1.3	44
0.1	59
2.2	40
4.8	23
0.4	59
0.1	60
0.3	59
0.9	53
1.4	48
2.3	40
1.3	55
1.2	55
2.7	31
1.3	57
2.3	47
2.0	47
4.0	28
2.1	47
2.1	47
1.8	40
0.2	56
0.6	52
3.7	32
1.6	45
1.5	48
0.4	53

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
2.4	122
1.8	122
1.7	105
1.9	95
0.9	101
0.7	101
0.6	143
0.6	101
6.8	60
1.0	95
2.5	81
4.0	72
6.1	59
4.8	53
3.9	61
3.4	53
3.4	64
5.1	53
6.3	40
1.3	72
2.9	59
4.0	61
3.0	61
3.6	59
0.9	72
3.0	59
0.8	76
2.6	64
3.3	67
2.7	40
3.2	53
5.4	51
0.2	72
1.4	67
1.5	64
1.1	64
2.5	56
3.5	40
0.3	72
2.1	61
0.7	64
0.5	76
2.1	60
2.4	53
2.5	57
0.3	69
1.9	61
4.3	52
3.3	56
5.1	40
4.2	25
1.5	60
1.9	60
3.7	53
2.0	60
1.6	60
3.8	44
3.1	53
1.7	59
2.1	61
3.9	40
1.5	61
7.6	28
0.2	60
2.2	59
0.1	67
0.2	71
2.0	55
1.5	60
2.3	59
1.2	60
2.0	59
3.3	40
4.2	40
1.4	64
2.8	53
2.3	55
1.7	61
3.3	40
1.3	61
2.6	53
1.4	61
1.6	61
1.4	61
1.2	60
1.4	60
1.0	60
1.6	59
1.0	60
7.6	27
1.5	59
3.9	48
0.8	55
3.0	40
1.0	61
1.7	59
1.6	57
6.6	20
1.7	59
3.1	53
0.1	55
5.1	35
2.7	49
0.2	64
3.2	40
1.0	60
0.6	60
0.6	60
1.3	59
0.5	61
0.3	55
0.4	64
1.3	55
2.2	55
0.9	59
1.4	59
0.8	61
2.0	53
0.8	61
1.8	56
3.4	40
0.8	61
1.6	57
0.9	61
2.0	40
3.0	47
1.5	47
0.9	55
0.4	60
0.4	60
0.9	53
0.2	60
0.4	60
2.2	47
2.5	40
0.1	60
0.8	59
0.8	59
0.8	60
0.8	59
2.2	40
3.2	40
0.2	60
3.7	20
0.2	56
2.5	40
4.6	32
1.0	44
2.0	55
0.7	61
2.8	40
3.8	35
2.4	40
1.4	53
0.6	59
1.5	47
2.4	40
0.5	61
3.3	35
1.0	57
2.2	48
3.6	45
5.9	25
0.1	59
0.7	53
0.1	59
1.3	53
0.1	59
0.1	55
0.4	60
0.1	59
0.9	55
2.0	40
0.3	56
1.3	44
0.1	59
2.2	40
4.8	23
0.4	59
0.1	60
0.3	59
0.9	53
1.4	48
2.3	40
1.3	55
1.2	55
2.7	31
1.3	57
2.3	47
2.0	47
4.0	28
2.1	47
2.1	47
1.8	40
0.2	56
0.6	52
3.7	32
1.6	45
1.5	48
0.4	53

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
2.4	122
1.8	122
1.7	105
1.9	95
0.9	101
0.7	101
0.6	143
0.6	101
6.8	60
1.0	95
2.5	81
4.0	72
6.1	59
4.8	53
3.9	61
3.4	53
3.4	64
5.1	53
6.3	40
1.3	72
2.9	59
4.0	61
3.0	61
3.6	59
0.9	72
3.0	59
0.8	76
2.6	64
3.3	67
2.7	40
3.2	53
5.4	51
0.2	72
1.4	67
1.5	64
1.1	64
2.5	56
3.5	40
0.3	72
2.1	61
0.7	64
0.5	76
2.1	60
2.4	53
2.5	57
0.3	69
1.9	61
4.3	52
3.3	56
5.1	40
4.2	25
1.5	60
1.9	60
3.7	53
2.0	60
1.6	60
3.8	44
3.1	53
1.7	59
2.1	61
3.9	40
1.5	61
7.6	28
0.2	60
2.2	59
0.1	67
0.2	71
2.0	55
1.5	60
2.3	59
1.2	60
2.0	59
3.3	40
4.2	40
1.4	64
2.8	53
2.3	55
1.7	61
3.3	40
1.3	61
2.6	53
1.4	61
1.6	61
1.4	61
1.2	60
1.4	60
1.0	60
1.6	59
1.0	60
7.6	27
1.5	59
3.9	48
0.8	55
3.0	40
1.0	61
1.7	59
1.6	57
6.6	20
1.7	59
3.1	53
0.1	55
5.1	35
2.7	49
0.2	64
3.2	40
1.0	60
0.6	60
0.6	60
1.3	59
0.5	61
0.3	55
0.4	64
1.3	55
2.2	55
0.9	59
1.4	59
0.8	61
2.0	53
0.8	61
1.8	56
3.4	40
0.8	61
1.6	57
0.9	61
2.0	40
3.0	47
1.5	47
0.9	55
0.4	60
0.4	60
0.9	53
0.2	60
0.4	60
2.2	47
2.5	40
0.1	60
0.8	59
0.8	59
0.8	60
0.8	59
2.2	40
3.2	40
0.2	60
3.7	20
0.2	56
2.5	40
4.6	32
1.0	44
2.0	55
0.7	61
2.8	40
3.8	35
2.4	40
1.4	53
0.6	59
1.5	47
2.4	40
0.5	61
3.3	35
1.0	57
2.2	48
3.6	45
5.9	25
0.1	59
0.7	53
0.1	59
1.3	53
0.1	59
0.1	55
0.4	60
0.1	59
0.9	55
2.0	40
0.3	56
1.3	44
0.1	59
2.2	40
4.8	23
0.4	59
0.1	60
0.3	59
0.9	53
1.4	48
2.3	40
1.3	55
1.2	55
2.7	31
1.3	57
2.3	47
2.0	47
4.0	28
2.1	47
2.1	47
1.8	40
0.2	56
0.6	52
3.7	32
1.6	45
1.5	48
0.4	53