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Heat Dome Sets Up Over Germany, Sending December Temperatures Toward 18°C

Forecasters cite a persistent southwest inflow driving several days of unusually mild, wet weather.

Overview

  • Germany’s weather service expects a grey, rainy weekend with local morning frost, fog and slippery roads, including in NRW, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, the Saarland, the North and Saxony.
  • From Sunday into midweek, highs commonly reach 10–15°C and locally 17–18°C in the southwest, with Berlin forecast at 11–14°C on Monday and brisk southwesterly gusts in exposed areas.
  • Meteorological analyses show 12–15°C at about 1,500 meters over Central Europe, indicating a pronounced warm‑air dome that pushes surface temperatures well above seasonal norms.
  • The mild surge is set to rapidly erode existing snow cover in middle and higher elevations; Munich saw a brief light‑snow and glätte warning Friday morning before the warmup.
  • Recent model runs have dropped signals for a mid‑December cold spell, pointing to continued mild conditions for now, while climatology indicates low white‑Christmas odds in many lowlands and forecasters stress uncertainty beyond 10–15 days.