This summer’s final heatwave has come to an abrupt end, with temperatures across Austria dropping by 10C or more this week, accompanied by heavy showers on Monday.

Another cold front is set to bring even lower temperatures from Thursday, with more rain forecast across much of the country. Night-time temperatures in Vienna and other major cities are expected to drop to single digits in the latter half of the week.

The cold spell follows Austria’s second hottest summer on record, narrowly behind 2003, when considering both mountainous and lowland areas. According to Geosphere Austria, in the lowlands alone, this summer was 2.1C above the average temperature for the 1991-2020 climate period, and 3.9C above the 1961-1990 average. In the mountains, it was 2.2C higher than the 1991-2020 average, and 3.9C above the 1961-1990 climate period.

Several cities, including Vienna and Linz, also recorded a record number of tropical nights, when temperatures remained above 20C.