Weather temperature - How hot is it really?

[Ethel]

Am I right in thinking that the recorded and reported temperatures are taken in the shade?

If that is the case does anybody know how hot is has been in the sunshine today?

[Catso]

Yes.

It's not very meaningful, but I got a thermometer up to 47C in my back garden yesterday afternoon.

[Ethel]

Thanks for that Catso, that's exactly the information I wanted.

[heathfield]

It's air temperature that's recorded. This can be quite difficult to do, trying to ensure that direct heat from the sun doesn't influence the thermometer. Even when the thermometer is shaded by a well-ventilated housing, (a 'Stephenson Screen') the interior can be heated up by the sun shining on it, giving a false result. Some of the other problems regarding the location of a thermometer are discussed here
As Catso infers, leaving a thermometer in direct sunlight can send it off the scale!