It will feel like 41°C as sultry weather kicks in for the weekend

Temperatures will feel over 40°C this weekend and spilling over to next week, the Meteorological Office at Malta International Airport has warned.

Temperatures from Friday to Wednesday are expected to be between 34°C and 36°C feeling over 40°C between Sunday and Tuesday. 

The seven-day forecast provided by the MET Office at MIA

But the hot weather will not quite spell a heatwave.

"The 'feels like' measurement is based on wind and humidity. When humidity is high as it is expected to be in the coming days, the rate of evaporation and cooling is reduced, so it will feel much hotter on the skin than it actually is," Brian Micallef, forecaster at the MET office, told MaltaToday.

Micallef added that central Europe was currently going through a blocking high temperature. This is when northwesterly wind over the Atlantic is locked in a stationery cycle, effectively blocking changes in temperature. 

"It isn't a heatwave because the temperature is not 5°C over the mean but it's always, till Wednesday, still slightly above the mean," Micallef said. 

The temperature is expected to cool down after Wednesday next week. 

The MET office has released a hot-weather warning.

The Ministry for Health had previously issued a public health warning at the start of summer, urging individuals to avoid unnecessary exposure to the sun and to drink regular fresh water whilst avoiding dehydrating liquids like alcohol and coffee.