Amy Blaney
The summer season has officially begun with temperatures set to hit 25 degrees Celsius on Friday.
Parts of the country will bask in temperatures reaching the mid-teens, with Friday expected to be the hottest day of the year so far.
On Thursday, highs of up to 22 degrees are expected in some areas.
Met Éireann has issued a sunscreen reminder and warned that UV levels will range from high in the south and southeast to moderate in the northwest.
However, the sunny weather is not expected to last into the weekend, with temperatures coming back down into the mid to high teens.
On Thursday, it will be largely cloudy in Connacht, Ulster and north Leinster with patchy rain but brighter spells will develop through the rest of the day.
It will be “dry elsewhere with hazy sunny spells. Highest temperatures of 18 to 23 degrees generally in light to moderate southerly breezes. Slightly cooler though where cloud persists in parts of the west and north,” according to Met Éireann.
#UVLevels will range from Moderate in the north-west to High under sunny skies in the south and south east ?
More here ?https://t.co/sbFTHg1P07https://t.co/9gKN6SVok4 pic.twitter.com/PqownnW8xY
— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) June 16, 2022
The best weather is expected on Friday, with temperatures potentially hitting 25 degrees.
Met Éireann said Friday will be a “dry, warm and sunny” day across south Leinster and south Munster.
It will be cloudier and cooler elsewhere with persistent rain over the north and west sinking further south-eastwards through the day, becoming patchy as it spreads.
Parts of the south and southeast will stay dry, with highest temperatures of 15 to 19 degrees generally, but reaching 20 to 24 degrees in the south and southeast in the early afternoon. Westerly winds will be mostly moderate.
Those who suffer from hay fever are warned that there will be a “high to very high risk” from grass pollen on Thursday and Friday.
Here is the latest #pollen forecast ? There will be a high to very high risk from grass pollen during the current warm & dry weather, away from the far north & west
More here ?https://t.co/Mk9TzkcVhqhttps://t.co/9gKN6SVok4 pic.twitter.com/HpAe7zrQ1K
— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) June 16, 2022
Meanwhile, another sweltering hot day is likely in the middle third of the United States, where dangerously high temperatures were stuck well above normal in recent days while officials warned people to stay indoors and hydrated.
Millions of Americans who live in major cities such as Chicago, Detroit and Atlanta were under heat advisories as temperatures climbed to 38 degrees, the National Weather Service (NWS) said.
"Extreme heat and humidity will significantly increase the potential for heat related illnesses particularly for those working or participating in outdoor activities," it said.
It was to be the second day of stifling weather for parts of the US, from Wisconsin and Michigan south through Tennessee and Georgia and into Florida where temperatures flirted with records in some spots.
