(Photo : Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
This week, unusual warmth has penetrated well into the Arctic Circle in northern Norway and Finland, regions usually encased in ice and snow for most of the year.
According to local meteorological services, temperatures in many towns north of the Nordic peninsula reached record highs over the weekend. At the same time, Europe's Copernicus organization keeps an eye on exceptional smoke and heat intensity from fires in eastern Russia, the western United States, and British Columbia.
Norway Heat
On Monday, Banak, Norway, hit 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.3 degrees Celsius). Highs of 93 degrees Fahrenheit (33.7 degrees Celsius) on Sunday and 89 degrees Fahrenheit (31.7 degrees Celsius) on Tuesday accompanied this.