For the first time this year, the temperature in Switzerland has risen above the 25-degree mark. Swiss cities and cantons are experiencing the “first days of summer,” according to MeteoNews.

Hottest temperatures recorded in Swiss mountains

At 3.10pm on Tuesday, the temperature measuring station in Chur in the Swiss mountains was the first place in Switzerland to record a temperature of over 25 degrees this year. According to SRF Meteo, the 25,9-degree reading is the second-highest temperature ever recorded in Switzerland in the first half of April.

Across the country from Delsberg (24,3) to Visp (23,8), temperatures have crept up in recent days. Even on top of the Jungfraujoch at 3.463 metres above sea level, the temperature was a relatively mild 0,8 degrees Celsius. 

Saharan dust and warm winds blamed for high temperatures in Switzerland

The reason for the unseasonably warm weather is the foehn - a warn southerly wind that flows up from the Mediterranean through Swiss alpine valleys. The forecasters noted that the wind will also bring Switzerland’s third helping of Saharan dust this spring, expected to blanket the country on Wednesday and Thursday.

"It's already the third greeting from the desert within a month - that's quite extraordinary," said MeteoNews. Already, the red-orange air has been seen in Spain and France, with the majority expected to fall around Vaud, Valais and Geneva on Wednesday.

The weather in the coming days is set to be a mixed bag. While warm weather and extremely mild temperatures are set to remain until Thursday, cities are expected to see some more “blood rain” as the Saharan dust falls. By Friday, the bise - the foehn's more freezing northerly cousin - is expected to blow the dust away, bringing with it temperatures of just 16 degrees Celsius.