Issued: 0530hrs Saturday 21st July 2018
Duty forecaster: Garry Nicholson

Staying very warm in Scandinavia, but some torrential rain too

Saturday
Much of Spain and Portugal will be hot and dry, 32 to 36C in the south. Cooler with isolated thundery showers toward the north of Spain. Zones of thunderstorms for southern and eastern France, plus the Alps. Central-western France should escape largely dry, but scattered showers affect the north. Some thundery rain for southern Germany. Drier further north and into the Netherlands.
The Mediterranean and surrounding countries stay hot and sunny, near 40C in southern Italy. The Balkans are also dry. Scattered showers for Romania and Ukraine. Poland and the Baltic states should be dry as showery rain clears away further east into Russia. Possible thunder for the mountains of northern Norway and Sweden. Warm and thundery too for Finland, 24 to 28C, less hot than recent days.

Sunday
Chance of an isolated thunderstorm for eastern Spain and central France, but much of western Europe will be dry and very warm. Thundery rain breaking out widely for Alpine regions and southern-central Germany. Thunderstorms also possible for parts of Hungary, Slovakia and Romania. The Low Countries should be dry with some sunshine.
Staying hot for the Mediterranean, with extensive sunshine for Italy, the Balkans and Greece . Poland and the Baltic states should be dry. Staying generally warm for Scandinavia, but thunderstorms affect northern Sweden and Finland, with torrential slow-moving downpours possible.