Could another heatwave be on the way? Temperatures to cool this week but could surge again
High pressure may become more dominant by the weekend, with another heatwave potentially on the way
Cooler weather will sweep the UK the week after a record-breaking heatwave - but the respite won't last long.
Listen to this article
Heat records were broken on three consecutive days from Wednesday last week, reaching a provisional peak of 37.3C in Santon Downham in Suffolk on Friday, and Saturday saw a high of 32.3C in the same location.
The weather this week will come in from the Atlantic on south-westerly winds, dropping the temperature and bringing rain to areas of low pressure.
However, high pressure may become more dominant by the weekend, with another heatwave potentially on the way.
On Monday, most areas will see sunny spells of dry weather. Temperatures will be highest in the Midlands and eastern England - a more comfortable 24-25C.
Areas of low pressure are set to bring showers or longer spells of rain on Tuesday, mainly in northern and western areas. Some of the rain could bring thunder.
Later on Wednesday, a second area of low pressure will then arrive from the Atlantic. As it moves north, the rain and stronger winds will steer to Northern Ireland.
Throughout the week, pressure will be higher in the south, with the south-east of England likely missing out on rain.
The highest temperatures of this week will also be in south-east England, reaching around 25 or 26C.
Could another heatwave be on the way?
According to the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), the Azores High, a semi-permanent high-pressure system situated over the North Atlantic, is expected to become "displaced" and therefore become centred over northern France and southern Britain instead.
As a result, another burst of intense heat is set to be created over Spain and Portugal before moving further north, creating temperatures far higher than average.
This could turn into another heat dome, with rapidly rising temperatures, in south-eastern parts of the UK in early July.
It could follow a similar pattern to June's heatwave, with extreme temperatures reaching 35C again.
Temperatures have been compounded by human-driven climate change, mostly caused by burning fossil fuels, which is making such extreme heatwaves more frequent and intense.