Issued: 0530hrs Thursday 20th September 2012
Duty forecaster: Simon Keeling

Fine in the western Europe, rain in Italy; severe gales and rain in Scandinavia

Thursday
Mainly dry with sunny spells across England today. Rain and showers are forecast across France. Mainly dry across Belgium. and The Netherlands with showers across Denmark and across western and southern Germany. Eastern Germany looks fair and dry.
Cloudy with rain across France but dry in the far south with that strong mistral continuing. An area of rain will stretch from the Baltic States into Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, the former Yugoslavia into Italy. Rain to come across Corsica and Sardinia with showers around the Balearics. Cloudy but dry across Finland with sunny skies across Norway and Sweden but quite chilly.
Lots of dry, sunny weather to come across Russia, the Ukraine, Romania into Bulgaria and Turkey with a risk of a few sharp showers across Greece. Lots of fine, sunny weather is expected across Spain and Portugal.

Friday
Fine across western parts of Europe through today. There is plenty of sunshine to come through France, Spain and Portugal, although cloud and some showers may affect the northern coasts of France. The same area of cloud affects the Low Countries and northern Germany bringing some showery rain. Fine across most of Poland, Switzerland, Austria and Hungary.
Lower pressure to the east of Italy is giving a more unsettled day here with periods of rain and showers, some of it heavy. Fair for Greece with sunny spells, although some showers in the west. Turkey should be dry and fine with lots of sunshine, with more sunshine to come in Bulgaria and Romania.
To the north a deep area of low pressure is centred over northwest Norway. This is bringing sever gales through Sweden, Norway and Denmark bringing rain and showers, some of it heavy. Further wind and some hazy sunshine in the Baltic States and Finland.