This weekend the Netherlands will be hit by an official heatwave, when the temperature tops at least 25 Celsius on five days, and over 30 Celsius on three of those.

In Gelderland, that target was reached on Friday, but the Netherlands will be in the grip of a nationwide heatwave this weekend, weather forecasters say.

This week’s heatwave will be the 30^th since records began in 1901.

Sunday, in particular, it will feel extremely hot and sticky and this is due to a shift in the wind direction, which will bring in more damp, hot air from the Atlantic ocean, weather forecasters say.

On Monday it will also be hot and humid, with thunderstorms possible in some places. The picture is similar for Tuesday, according to the KNMI weather bureau. The rest of the week it will be warm with sunny spells and showers.

Meanwhile, today’s clear skies mean keen star gazers will get a good look at the Perseids meteor shower, which are at their height in the night of Friday to Saturday. The best time to spot them is between 3am and 4am, when the impact of the near full moon will be least.