The mercury will continue to fall and showers will be more extensive.

BarcelonaThe heat wave is now history, and the focus now shifts to the arrival of cold air from higher altitudes, which will determine the weather for the first half of the week. Monday was still quite warm, although temperatures have dropped across the board, but between Tuesday and Wednesday the drop in temperature will be more pronounced and more noticeable to the population. In addition, we will also have showers and thunderstorms that will help cool the air a little further and allow the soil to regain some of the moisture it has lost during so many weeks of extreme heat and lack of rain (more heat wave data is available at the end of this report).

Tuesday: showers and cooler

On Tuesday, temperatures will return to normal, and the temperature drop will be marked, especially at midday, as the early morning was still quite warm due to the presence of clouds that prevented the temperature from dropping. There will be more clear skies early in the morning, although intervals of medium and high clouds will cross the country, leaving the sky partly cloudy at times, with the possibility of a shower. Showers and thunderstorms will occur in the afternoon in the Pyrenees, the Pre-Pyrenees, and the central regions of the country, which will also reach the west and the pre-coastal region. The weather will cool down, and in the Pyrenees, we should grab a blanket at night, as lows in the valleys are expected to be around 9°C or 10°C. Rest will be better along the coast, as lows will drop to 19°C or 20°C, between 3°C and 7°C below the values seen just 72 hours ago.

In this regard, the Catalan Meteorological Service maintains a warning of danger due to intense rainfall, covering all regions of the Pyrenees, the Pre-Pyrenees, and northern Ponent, as well as the Alt Empordà, Baix Camp, and Tarragonès regions. In these regions, more than 20 mm of rainfall could fall in one hour, and the showers could be accompanied by thunderstorms and hail.

Showers will persist for several days.

Tuesday will see the most extensive rainfall, but Wednesday could still see rain in several regions, especially in the northeast. On Thursday, the rain will be restricted to the northeast, with locally intense thunderstorms, and on Friday, it will be virtually dry. Temperatures will drop further on Wednesday and stabilize by Thursday, with mild temperatures during the middle of the day and even cool temperatures in some areas during the evening.

Summary of Monday's heat wave and storms

The heat wave we've experienced in the country during the first two weeks of August has been intense and long-lasting, with many days of exceptionally high temperatures throughout the country. In fact, Sunday was the 16th day this summer on which the Meteocat Automatic Meteorological Station Network reached or exceeded 40°C, making 2025 the year with the most 40°C days on record in Catalonia. These are some of the notable highs from the episode:

• 43.8°C: Vinebre and Benissanet
• 42.4 °C: the Masroig
• 42.3 °C: Ribarroja Reservoir
• 42.2 °C: Ascó
• 41.8 °C: Lleida - La Fenosa and Torres de Segre
• 41.7 °C: Aldover and Limiana
• 41.6 °C: Albesa and Tremp

The arrival of cold air from high altitude brought the first widespread showers on Monday afternoon, locally accompanied by thunderstorms and hail or stones. The most notable rainfall was 68 l/m² at Lac Redon in the Aran Valley, 46 l/m² at La Seu d'Urgell, 44 l/m² at Espot (Pallars Sobirà), and 29 l/m² at the Sanctuary of Queralt (Berguedà).