For days now, a powerful summer high-pressure system has had large parts of western and central Europe firmly in its grip, prompting heatwaves.

There are now signs that the hot, dry weather will come to an end this weekend.

The wind will shift to a south-westerly direction, bringing significantly more humid air. This will give rise to the first heavy summer thunderstorms in Europe. Severe weather is also expected in some areas, particularly on Sunday. Afterwards, temperatures will drop noticeably.

The leading weather models are forecasting a return to typical westerly weather conditions in early June for the first time in quite a while. This means that Atlantic lows will be moving from west to east towards Europe, bringing with them rain and a mix of cool and slightly warmer air.

In southern Europe, things remain much the same: the hot summer weather persists there. Although there are increasing numbers of heat-induced thunderstorms over the mountainous regions of Spain, Italy, and the Balkans, they do not bring any real relief from the heat.