The chances of a hot summer in Scotland have been raised after the Met Office published its three-month weather outlook.
Forecasters say that the chances of the next three months being hot are higher than usual.
They have also suggested that the impacts from heatwaves are also more likely to usual during this period of time - particularly in June and July.
It is estimated that the next few months will be drier across the UK than the national average for that period of time.
But spells of wet weather could once again bring thunder storms and heavy showers - similar to the downpours many Scots experienced during last summer.
Last summer also saw Scottish Water urge Scots to use water ‘efficiently’ as the pressure on Scotland’s water network grew during an extremely warm spell in July.
Temperatures soared to mid to late 20s during the height of 2021’s summer, with the thermostat peaking at 29.3C in Threave, near Castle Douglas.
The Met Office said that Scotland recorded its fourth hottest summer on record last year.
Speaking last year, head of the Met Office’s National Climate Information Centre, Dr Mark McCarthy, said: “Summer 2021 will be remembered very differently depending on where you are in the UK, with record-breaking warm conditions in parts of western Scotland and Northern Ireland, while in the south and east it’s been much duller and wetter.
“There have been several notable weather events through the summer, including a new temperature record for Northern Ireland and Storm Evert which brought strong winds and heavy rain across England and Wales and extreme rainfall in the south east.”
Scotland is expected to experience its warmest day of the year so far tomorrow, with temperatures expected to soar to 22C - which will be hotter than Rio de Janeiro.
But despite the heat, lightning and thunder is forecast to push towards southern Scotland on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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