Temperature records set as Europe's far north bakes in heat wave

Temperature records have been set in the far north of Europe as the region sizzles through a summer heat wave.

The Norwegian municipality of Porsanger hit 34.3 degrees Celsius on Monday, an all-time record for the entire province of Troms and Finnmark, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute said.

So far this year, nine of Norway's 11 provinces have registered a heat wave, leading to warnings about the risk of forest fires in the Arctic landscape.

The Nordic country defines a heat wave as three consecutive days in which the maximum temperature exceeds 28 degrees Celsius.

Finland and Sweden are also unusually hot at the moment.

According to the Finnish radio station YLE, the reason is a high-pressure area east of Finland that is bringing more warm air from Siberia.

Hottest temperature in Lapland

According to the Finnish Meteorological Institute, a weather station in the northern Lapland region recorded 33.5 degrees Celsius on Monday - the hottest temperature recorded in Lapland in more than a century.

The warmest day in decades was also recorded in several places in the Swedish part of Lapland on Sunday.