Overview
- DWD forecasts a brief warm peak on Thursday with temperatures near 20°C in favored areas such as the Oberrheingraben, the Rhineland and the Alpine fringe.
- The week starts grey with widespread fog and patches of drizzle, and southern Bavaria can still see local night frost despite the mild spell.
- Meteorologists attribute the surge to a strong southerly flow drawing very mild air from North Africa, with Saharan dust likely to dull sunshine in places.
- From Friday into the weekend, ECMWF projects a sharp drop as polar air advances, bringing a risk of accumulating snow in the Alps and higher Mittelgebirge, with sleet or transient flakes possible in some lower areas.
- Other models, including GFS, show a less severe cooldown, so forecasters flag uncertainty for the weekend and caution about travel hazards such as fog, overfrozen moisture and rapid temperature falls.