Finnish Lapland sees temps plunge to -8C, rest of country awaits heatwave

While the south and west of the country basks in late spring sunshine, the far north of Finland is still experiencing wintry conditions.

Monday was a cold night across Finnish Lapland, with overnight temperatures dropping to a low of -8.3 degrees Celsius at the Saana fell in the far northwestern corner of the country.

While much of the rest of Finland has been enjoying warmer-than-normal temperatures over the past week, Finnish Lapland is still experiencing wintry conditions.

A weather station at Muonio picked up a reading of -6.1 degrees Celsius on Monday night, while temperatures ranged from -3 to -5.5 across the rest of the region.

20 degrees expected across Finnish Lapland

Temperatures during the day on Tuesday near the Saana fell are expected to hover around the zero mark, although Wednesday could see the mercury rise to +5 before readings soar to about 20 degrees across Finnish Lapland on Thursday.

The rest of the country can meanwhile expect the sunny and warm conditions to continue, with highs of 20 degrees Celsius in the west and south on Tuesday likely to be surpassed by readings of 25 degrees and over on Wednesday.

According to Yle meteorologist Elias Paakkanen, the late spring sunshine will not end there, with temperatures ranging from 20-25 degrees Celsius across much of Finland on Friday and into Saturday.

Although Finnish Lapland is likely to see an increase in temperatures compared to the beginning of the week, Paakkanen said the average temperature there on Friday is unlikely to rise about 15 degrees.

Related stories from around the North:

Canada: Be wary of thin ice amid mild weather conditions, says hunter in Fort Smith, N.W.T., CBC News

Finland: Finland’s weather seesaws through April, with coldest temperature posted in Lapland, Yle News

United States: Arctic weather satellite leaving Europe for June launch in U.S., Eye on the Arctic