Issued: 0530hrs Wednesday 7th March 2007
Duty forecaster: Simon Keeling

The rain isn't staying on the plane in Spain!

Today
A vicious area of low pressure is moving into the Bay of Biscay today, pushing fronts southwards and bringing an unusually windy day to much of northern and western France, together with much of Iberia. The heaviest of the rain will be across France, and then another area of heavy rain will be pushing through central and eastern Spain. This rain looks particularly heavy over northeast Spain and then later in the day through the Balearics. Showers following to northwestern Iberia, some heavy.
More rain is expected through Italy, although the west should become brighter later. The former Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey look set to enjoy some fine sunshine and dry conditions, this dry weather also through Crete and Cyprus. The dry conditions extending up into Bulgaria and Romania, as well as much of western Russia and Finland.
For Scandinavia the day will be mixed. Expect some drizzle for Finland and the Baltic States with a murky, damp day to come across southeast Sweden. Heavier rain for Denmark and parts of southern Norway, although western Norway should be drier.
For Germany and Poland there will be a few showers around, but western parts of Germany should be dry as will be Austria and Hungary. The Low Countries staying mainly fine too, although rain is likely in the west towards evening.

Thursday
A welcome ridge of high pressure building through the UK, western and northern France, Portugal and central Spain on Thursday and this will be bringing mainly fine conditions to most of these areas with sunshine.
It's a different story for the central Mediterranean where that low pressure will be bringing heavy rain and strong, even gale force winds to the southern coasts of France, the Balearics and eastern Spain; some very unseasonable weather here.
To the east Italy will have some rain in the west, but the east and south should stay drier, at least until evening. For the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey it will be another dry day with sunny spells coming through, with the dry weather once again through Bulgaria and Romania.
Drizzle in the west of Russia and through the Baltic States, with rain or snow to come in southern Finland, some of it heavy. There will be heavier rain too across Sweden. Western parts of Norway will have a few showers, whilst the south will be breezier with heavier showers, these affecting Denmark too.
Some showers rain to come for southern Germany, but for the north it should be dry and bright with good spells of sunshine, with the sunshine through the Low Countries too.