Temperatures forecast to hit as high as 31°C on Thursday
After a cool beginning to May, the coming days are set to usher in warmer temperatures more akin to summer, according to the Met Office.
The cloudy skies and showery weather of last week could be replaced by temperatures as unseasonably high as 31°C on Thursday.
While forecasters don’t expect temperatures to reach a record for the month - the hottest May recorded reached 35.3°C in 2006 - it will feel much warmer than the average maximum May temperature of 24.3°C.
Forecasters say the weather is turning warmer due to an
area of high pressure over the East Mediterranean together with an area of low pressure over Algeria and Tunisia, creating a southerly flow from Libya.
The hot temperatures will come over from Libya to the Maltese islands but a moderate northwesterly wind will lower the temperatures by Saturday, the Met Office says.
Since the humidity this month won’t be so high, the heat will not
‘feel’ hotter than the actual temperature.
But it will represent a stark change from the previous week’s temperatures, which reached a maximum temperature of 19.4°C on Thursday, due to a weak cold front passing over the central Mediterranean.
The UV index will be 8 on Thursday but will increase to UV 9 from Friday through Sunday.
The mean average temperature for May is 20°C.