Europe's All-time Heat Record Could Fall this Weekend

A building heat wave in Portugal and Spain threatens to topple national and all-time high temperature records in a continuation of a series of remarkable heat waves that have roasted the Northern Hemisphere this summer.

The big picture: The heat wave will be most intense in Portugal, Spain and parts of France, although the U.K. will also see above average temperatures for this time of year. In Spain and Portugal, the fire danger will climb to dangerous levels as temperatures soar, humidity levels plunge, and downslope winds increase.

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A massive high pressure ridge, with a clockwise circulation of air around it, will pump hot, dry air filled with dust from the Sahara Desert into the Iberian Peninsula through the weekend. Already on Thursday, the high temperature in Alvega, Portugal reached 44.6°C, or about 112°F, according to the U.K. Met Office.

By the numbers: The heat is expected to crank up in coming days, with computer models projecting astonishing high temperatures of at least 118°F to 122°F, or 50°C, in southwest Spain and Portugal during the next few days. Models tend to have trouble projecting temperatures in such extreme situations, leaving open the question of what records will be broken.

• According to Weather Underground meteorologist Bob Henson, the hottest temperature ever recorded in Portugal is 117.3°F, or 47.4°C, set in August 2003.
• Spain's all-time high temperature record stands at 117.1°F, or 47.3°C, set on July 13, 2017. Both of these records may fall during the next few days.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, the all-time high for continental Europe stands at 118.4°F, or 48.0°C, set in Athens in 1977.

In addition to the heat, the wildfire danger will be extremely...