With temperatures of only around 20 degrees, it is only moderately warm for this time of year in Central Europe at the moment, the situation is quite different in parts of Northern Europe.

The low-pressure system bringing cool North Atlantic air our way is simultaneously pushing very warm air from the eastern Mediterranean far northwards.

As a result, Finland in particular is enjoying early summer weather. Even in the far north, from Finnish Lapland right up to the Norwegian Arctic coast, temperatures will rise to 25 °C on Friday while London only sees around 18 °C.

Although the air temperatures are perfect for swimming, the water temperatures are not. The sea in northern Norway is usually still below 10 °C, and the lakes are generally only just in the low teens.

The warm weather won’t last long either. By Saturday, the southerly wind will ease off slightly and temperatures will drop again slightly.