Issued: 0530hrs Thursday 21st July 2022
Duty forecaster: Garry Nicholson

A cooler outlook for northwestern Europe

Thursday
Hot and sunny weather continues for Spain, Portugal, Italy and across the Mediterranean, with high temperatures once more widespread into the upper 30s. Extensively dry across much of Europe, but scattered thundery downpours are possible for the Alps, whilst a larger cluster of thunderstorms is expected to move across the Low Countries into northern Germany from overnight and into the day, passing eastwards into Poland and Czechia later.
The heat extends across eastern Europe and around the Baltic again too, where southern Sweden is likely see highs into the mid-to-high 30s Celsius. Also hot for southern Finland, topping 30C, whilst the north and west of Norway will be much cooler with showers, possibly thundery in the far north. A risk of thunderstorms breaking out for central Sweden and Finland by evening.

Friday
Continued fine weather for Spain and Portugal, feeling cooler in the morning on coastal regions. However, by midday we expect to see temperatures climb alongside most of Central Europe to low 30s. Some places inland across Spain and Italy reaching 40C. Chances of rain and cloud are restricted to France until the early evening with thundery downpours working eastwards into the Alps and Switzerland.
Eastern Europe is a similar picture with temperatures averaging high 30s, up to 40C in Hungary and the northern Balkans, but potentially feeling cooler in northern Poland, Germany, the Low Countries and Denmark.
Central Sweden is expected to see a much larger proportion of thundery downpours throughout the day before moving eastwards offshore by the evening, extending into Finland through the evening. Another hot day around the southern Baltic. Fresher conditions across Norway, with a few showers in the north, but mainly dry further south.