By Earth Networks – WeatherBug Meteorologist John Bateman
Ahhh… summer in London. Generally pleasant, with highs in the mid-70s and a chance for rain on two out of 10 days – not bad for a city with its soggy, foggy reputation. Still, the city on the Thames and the 2012 Summer Olympics host does see a week’s worth of highs greater than 86 degrees each summer.
Despite this toasty turn, London is a pretty agreeable summer venue weather-wise when compared to some of the past cities that have hosted the summer games. Here’s a look:
Beijing: The 2008 Summer Olympians had to battle heat, humidity, and air quality in the capital of China. With average highs in the mid-to-upper 80s, along with humidity being brought in by the East Asian monsoon, summer afternoons can be quite oppressive. Combine that with the typical smog that can develop in large cities during the summertime, and you’ve got a recipe that can be a hindrance to the average athlete. Fortunately for the Olympics, Beijing implemented many air-improvement methods that helped to clear the pollution and they even went as far as to try cloud seeding to keep the opening ceremony dry! But in the end, they just couldn’t do anything about the heat and humidity.
Read about the weather during the Summer Olympics in Athens, Sydney, and Atlanta on WeatherBug.com
