Northern Ireland weather: possible thunder and lightning

Met Office forecasters say today will be rather cloudy with showers or longer periods of rain, turning heavy at times, particularly during the afternoon and across eastern areas, bringing thunderstorms.

Freshening west to southwest winds will develop during the afternoon.

The maximum temperature is expected to be 18 C,

Today’s low pressure is forecast to bring showers to most areas of the UK, but the heaviest, slow-moving downpours are expected in northern areas, including Northern Ireland, with a chance of associated thunder and lightning.

Tonight is expected to be rather cloudy with rain or showers, though outbreaks will lessen through the night to leave most areas dry before dawn.

The minimum temperature is expected to be 8 C,

The unsettled weather is to continue later in the week when the tail end of Storm Alex, which brought heavy rain to southern Florida recently, tracks to the northwest of the UK from the Atlantic.