Under a light to moderate southerly wind, air temperatures promised to rise to between +16 and +21 degrees, with warmest highs in eastern Latgale province, but significantly cooler air (+11 to +15) near the sea and gulf coasts. Rīga should see partly cloudy skies with some brief afternoon rainfall and temperatures may climb as high as +20 degrees.
The weather pattern is being set by a low pressure system promising to cut short the balminess with a cold front. As a result, by Tuesday and on through the first days of May next weekend the weather will often turn cold and rainy, even threatening the possibility of wet snow.
Tuesday promises very contrasting air temperature forecasts for the two ends of the land – while Latgale in the farthest southeast expects to reach a daytime high of +23, the breezy sea- and gulf-coasts of Kurzeme and Vidzeme will chill down to between +7 and +12. The conflicting air masses are bound to bring thunderstorms with heavier downpours at times in central parts of the country.
Wednesday’s high temperatures are forecast to dip even lower, as the whole country stays below +10 degrees and a blustery west wind blows through.
Thursday should see the return of the sun and winds turning from the south, so highs will again warm up to between +11 and +16 degrees.
A cyclone is expected to determine the rainy and gusty weather for the first days of May. Air temperatures won’t likely climb above +7 to +13 degrees, while nighttime lows may again dip below freezing here and there.
But there is no doubt that spring is here, regardless, as ornithologists have reported the arrival of the first returning nightingales and cuckoo birds this past weekend. A prominent watcher of Latvia's birds tweeted of hearing the first one at the Big Clean Up at Riga's undeveloped Lucavsala island Saturday.
Šodien Lucavsalā dzirdēta pirmā šā pavasara lakstīgala Latvijā.
— Kaspars Funts (@KFunts) April 25, 2015
