Australian Weather

[NorthNSW]

Good afternoon,

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

May 24th - 15.5ºC/23.0ºC - 5.4mm

May 25th - 16.8ºC/18.9ºC - 1.8mm

May 26th - 10.5ºC/21.0ºC - Nil

May 27th - 12.0ºC/19.6ºC - 1.8mm

May 28th - 11.5ºC/19.2ºC - 0.4mm

May 29th - 10.9ºC/19.0ºC - 10.0mm

May 30th - 11.8ºC/19.9ºC - 2.0mm

This week saw our 20-day dry spell come to an end. The days were cool to mild, and the nights were mild at first but soon tended cool to (almost) cold. The 10.5ºC minimum is our coldest minimum since early October last year, and our coldest May night since 2006. A rainband earlier in the week delivered some light rain, which cleared to a sunny weekend. A couple of light showers developed early Monday morning, and have persisted on and off since then. There were a two brief moderate showers on the 29th, which made it that bit wetter.

The upcoming week:

Today is overcast with low cloud and generally light showers on/off. Onshore showers should continue to persist over the next couple of days. A low pressure trough is expected to move through the region from the west on Sunday, with some patchy rain likely to accompany it. At this stage, an East Coast Low is expected to form off the central NSW coast on Monday, but being to the north of it should mean we see minimal precipitation from it. There may be a burst of showers on Wednesday as the low moves away from the NSW coast, sending moist southeasterly winds ashore. The rainfall, if any, we receive from Monday to Wednesday will be highly dependent on where the low forms and its behaviour after formation.

The month of June:

June is a cool month, the days are cool to mild, and the nights are cool, sometimes cold. Maximum temperatures average 19.2ºC, and minimum temps average 12.1ºC. The record high max is 26.3ºC and the record low min is 4.2ºC. June tends to be a damp month, and on average it is actually slightly wetter than May (June Avg. 139.1mm). Much like May, June can be prone to dry spells and rainfall can vary somewhat year to year. June is the peak in the East Coast Low season (ocean is still fairly warm and intrusions of cold air tend to be a regular occurrence). Last year in June an ECL brought 560mm here in 5 days causing major flooding. Though this year the ECL season has been fairly subdued. Winter cold fronts come through now and again, sometimes a high pressure system anchors itself over northern NSW bring clear, mild days but cold nights (often frosty away from the coast). Frontal systems tend not to bring much rain here, as we're on the leeward side of the Great Dividing Range and by the time they get to this latitude (basically 30ºS) they are usually running out of "puff" anyway. Thunderstorms are a very rare occurrence in June, it is not unusual at all for June to be storm-free.

Edited May 31, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Canberra - Coldest May in 50 years

Snow season starts early at Perisher. Photo: SUPPLIED ZZZ

The coldest May in more than 50 years has left Canberra's gardeners with frostbitten plants and dying blooms.

Incoming president of the Canberra Garden Club, Allan Moss, said plants experiencing new growth in autumn were vulnerable to damage from the cold.

''The biggest issue is that before May, we had a pretty warm autumn,'' he said. ''This means the soft growth from the warm autumn is burnt off by the cold.''

Conifers are the only plants that will not see damage from the cold, according to Mr Moss.

''Many natives, bottlebrushes and banksias in particular, put on a flush of soft growth in the autumn, so they'll see that burning,'' he said. ''But you don't see it on conifers, because they put on their growth in the spring.''

Meterologists at Weatherzone, which is owned by Fairfax, say it's the second-coldest May on record, with overnight temperatures falling below zero, three degrees below the average overnight temperature.

Canberra hasn't suffered through a cold spell like this since 1961.

Average temperatures fell to minus 0.2 degrees compared to the historical average of 3.1 degrees.

The only colder May on record was in 1957, when the average low was minus 2.6 degrees.

''This freezing weather is more typical of July, when the average minimum is minus 0.1 of a degree,'' Weatherzone meteorologist Brett Dutschke said.

The effects the cold snap is having on plants is normal, but it has arrived earlier than usual.

Mr Moss said plants generally begin to see signs of frost burn around June and July. He added amateur gardeners shouldn't worry.

''People shouldn't trim their plants yet,'' Mr Moss said. ''They should just leave it until the spring.''

Mr Dutschke attributed the cold weather to high pressure systems across the month.

''Skies have been clearer than normal and the air drier than normal, which have combined to make most nights dip below freezing.''

The conditions have made for a drier-than-average month, with only 21mm of rain falling, less than half the long-term average of 44mm.

And Mr Moss said the lack of rain would actually be a blessing in disguise for gardeners.

''By having less rain, you have less soft growth,'' he said. ''That means there will be less potential for plants to be damaged by frost.''

Meteorologists are predicting more freezing nights in winter, but they will not be much colder than Canberra has already experienced.

''More freezing nights are likely, but overall, nights should turn out to be near average,'' Mr Dutschke said.

''Daytime temperatures and rainfall should also return to normal.''

Read more: http://www.canberrat...l#ixzz1wUml8iBz

Edited June 1, 2012 by Styx

[Aaron]

May was definitely very cold throughout Australia

South Australia - coldest May nights for eight years in Adelaide with temperatures below 13 degrees during the day, 27 nights below 10C

Western Australia - coldest nights on record in Broome, in the north as well as tied lowest temperature on record in May in Perth (1.3 degrees)

New South Wales - parts of Sydney barely reach 10C on some days

Northern Territory - one of the coldest May's on record, average minimum at Darwin second coldest on record, 4.5C at Alice Springs, also second coldest

Early start to the season, good news for skiers and fans of snow, over 30cm at Perisher

[NorthNSW]

Wow, only got to a maximum of 16.5ºC yesterday (May 31st) from persistent cloudcover and occasional showers. The very high humidity and light winds meant it didn't feel that cold though. A max temp that low is May is not common (though above the 10th percentile). The record low maximum for May is 14.4ºC, which funnily enough was set last year. Global warming, more like global cooling.

Driving back to South West Rocks from Kempsey early this afternoon (June 1st), around 12:30pm. I caught sight of a funnel cloud. I pulled over into the bus changeover just off the road (only used for school kids changing buses, at about 8:30am and 3:50pm on school days). The photographs were taken looking north along South West Rocks Road, just outside of Kempsey. It was fairly dull, so you'll have to click to view the larger image to be able to see the funnel. There was nothing overly special about the cloud, just a shower moving in slowly from the east.

Edited June 1, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Here's the chart for May. Warmer than usual in Tasmania ( again ) and in Western Australia, but more shades of blue everywhere else.

Edited June 2, 2012 by Styx

[Styx]

What a dicey looking road! What a corner!

[NorthNSW]

Haha, it's actually a fairly safe road. No sharp corners, stretches of straight road, and fairly good visibility ahead to scan for potential hazards, so the road is nearly all 100km/h. That is only one of two small hills the road goes over before it transverses the Macleay River floodplain to South West Rocks (floodplain about 1km north of this picture). This little section is 80km/h because of the number of driveways connecting to the road on the small hill. The road surface is not in the best state though due to the flooding and heavy rains we've had over the past 3 years, and not helped by heavy vehicles regularly using the road with the ongoing construction of the Kempsey Bypass. Hard for the local government to keep up at the moment.

Btw, the bitumen in the foreground isn't part of the road, it's the entrance to the bus changeover. The main road continues in a straight line all the way into town from the edge of the photo.

Edited June 2, 2012 by NthNSW

[NorthNSW]

Southern and central New South Wales on alert for hazardous conditions.

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology

New South Wales

Significant Weather Media Release

Issued at 5:29 pm EST on Monday 4 June 2012.

Severe Weather to bring coastal erosion and flooding tides

Damaging winds combined with spring tides, are likely to produce near-record

water levels along the NSW coast. Coastal areas from Batemans Bay to Port

Macquarie will be affected by a rapidly moving low pressure system from

overnight tonight and tomorrow (5 June).

While the entire NSW coast will be affected by the high tides, the main focus

of concern are the low lying areas between Batemans Bay and Port Macquarie,

including Sydney Harbour and the Cooks River. During such high tides, low lying

areas along the coast, as well as coastal creeks and rivers, can experience

flooding.

The Bureau's Regional Director in NSW Mr Barry Hanstrum said the low pressure

system currently off the southeast coast of NSW will move rapidly northwards

during Tuesday reaching the Hunter by late evening.

"The low pressure system will bring large waves and damaging winds to coastal

areas together with a period of heavy rain," Mr Hanstrum said. "Already we are

seeing higher than normal tides, and low lying areas may see some inundation at

high tide tonight. On Tuesday night the combination of large waves and high

tide will lift the water levels even higher.

"Offshore wave heights over six metres are expected to extend northwards

tomorrow bringing a significant risk of coastal erosion, especially on south

facing beaches."

New South Wales State Emergency Service Commissioner Mr Murray Kear has urged

people in areas affected to prepare now. "People who live in at risk coastal

areas should monitor their local sea level closely, stay well clear of the surf

zone and call the NSW SES on 132 500 if you have any concerns for your

property," Mr Kear said.

According to Phil Watson, Principal Coastal Specialist in the Office of

Environment and Heritage, the highest water level on record at Fort Denison is

2.40 m recorded on 25 May 1974.

The Bureau has issued a Severe Weather Warning for this event.

Link: http://www.bom.gov.a...pl?IDN38503.txt

(As of the 5:38pm EST update) Winds up to 110km/h are forecast to affect the South Coast, Illawarra, Snowy Mountains and Southern Tablelands tonight, and the Sydney Metropolitan, Central Tablelands and Hunter tomorrow. Link to Severe Weather Warning for damaging winds, heavy rain, abnormally high tides and damaging surf: http://www.bom.gov.a...gs/severe.shtml

Edited June 4, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Gales, floods and monster waves as Victoria cops a weather beating

Megan Levy

June 5, 2012 - 7:23AM

Fit to burst ... A swollen Traralgon Creek overnight. Photo: Age reader Graeme Morley

Parts of central and east Gippsland have been drenched in more than a month's rain in less than 24 hours, flooding nearly every river, closing highways and forcing the evacuation of 90 properties in the hardest hit area of Traralgon.

Gale-force winds up to 144km/h also have buffeted the state overnight, toppling trees and blocking sections of the South Gippsland Highway and the Monaro Highway in the state's south-east.

Click for more photos

Gippsland's storm floods

Traralgon under flood after overnight storms delivered a month's worth of downpour in 24 hours. Photo: Ryan Teuma

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Monster waves measuring more than eight metres - with some unconfirmed reports of waves significantly higher - are also being recorded in Bass Strait as the large and complex low pressure system in the Tasman Sea delivers a second day of wild weather to the state.

Bureau of Meteorology duty forecaster James Taylor said a large band of rain overnight had delivered widespread falls of between 100-150 millimetres of rain to much of central and east Gippsland.

The highest rainfall recorded in the region at 6am today was at Reeves Knob, which had received 183 millimetres of rain since 9am yesterday.

''With the rain on the radar we think there's still a good chance we will see another 50-odd millimetres this morning. We're fairly certain we're going to see totals pushing through 200 millimetres and higher,'' Mr Taylor said.

''I think many places will get probably one to 1.5-times the monthly average rainfall in less than 24 hours.''

He said nearly every river in Gippsland had flooded overnight.

State Emergency Service (SES) spokesman Toby Borella said residents in 90 properties near Traralgon Creek in Traralgon were ordered to evacuate immediately at 4am today as the river level rose to major flood level. The SES said there was deep water in the area and houses would be inundated.

A relief centre was established at the performing arts centre in Gray Street, where 23 people remained this morning.

The evacuation order remains in place until 10.30am today when the flood conditions will be reassessed.

Mr Borella said the SES had also helped rescue people from cars trapped in floodwater.

''Overnight there were 12 requests for assistance regarding a trapped person in floodwater,'' he said.

''We would advise people never to drive, walk or ride through floodwater.''

Mr Borella said there had been 750 requests for assistance across the state since Sunday morning, including 300 calls for trees that had fallen down and blocked traffic.

Fallen trees had also caused problems in Emerald and Lilydale, while the SES said significant power losses could be experienced as a result of high winds.

The highest wind gust recorded overnight was 144km/h at Mount Buller, with similarly high speeds recorded in the alpine peaks and in elevated coastal areas.

''It's snowing so there will be blizzard conditions about the alpine region,'' Mr Taylor said.

''There are also very large waves along the central and east Gippsland coast, which have some potential to cause some coastal erosion.''

Mr Taylor said a buoy in eastern Bass Strait had recorded waves of between eight and 8.5 metres. One recorded wave appeared to be ''significantly higher'' but had not been confirmed, he said.

Meantime police say the South Gippsland Highway between Woodside and Orbost has been closed due to fallen trees and flooding while the Monaro Highway between Cann River and the NSW border is also blocked.

Metro said major delays were expected this morning on parts of the Lilydale line, which had been blocked by a fallen tree.

The line has been suspended between Lilydale and Mooroolbark and buses will replace trains.

The rain is expected to ease later today.

Read more: http://www.theage.co...l#ixzz1wsA7jsfx

The complex low pressure system is now tracking up the coast, and as NthNSW points out Sydney and surrounding districts are now preparing for storm force winds and heavy rainfall.

Edited June 5, 2012 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

May 31st - 12.2ºC/16.5ºC - 7.8mm

Jun 1st - 12.0ºC/19.2ºC - 3.0mm

Jun 2nd - 13.5ºC/19.1ºC - 6.4mm

Jun 3rd - 13.5ºC/18.2ºC - 10.0mm

Jun 4th - 13.4ºC/22.0ºC - 4.0mm

Jun 5th - 10.5ºC/17.1ºC - 0.4mm

Jun 6th - 10.9ºC/17.7ºC - 2.0mm

Overall, it was a cool, damp and somewhat cloudy week. Most of the rain this week fell as drizzle. May 31st was our coldest day since October 2nd last year. The 4th was a warm winter's day (and started off sunny), and a pool of upper cold air moved in, allowing for isolated showers and storms to develop. I wasn't in town at the time, but father said a storm passed barely a kilometre to the south but there was a fair amount of lightning/thunder to be seen/heard, and the radar archive and lightning tracker supported his observations. I was in Port Macquarie (about an hour to the south) that afternoon, but I did manage to see a storm pass to the south of the city and out to sea, and pulled over for the photo opportunity as I headed along Pacific Drive:

On the 5th, snow fell down to about 1200m on the Northern Tablelands west of here. After the ECL gave eastern Victoria a good lashing, it moved quickly up the southern and central coast of NSW. A number of coastal weather stations recorded gusts in excess of 90km/h (the Bureau's threshold for 'damaging winds'), and there were reports of wind damage from the Gippsland (VIC) all the way up to Bonny Hills (near Port Macquarie). The low veered out to sea as it moved into the north coast of NSW, so wind gusts were strong but nothing like some places had received further south.

Tim Bailey's weather report from the 5th, he's a fruitloop, but his umbrella breaking made me laugh:

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjSWwZ5ubp0

Upcoming week:

There is the chance of a shower this evening, with a southerly airstream along the north coast at present. Tomorrow and Saturday should be mostly fine, perhaps the chance of a rogue shower but more than likely should remain dry.

An ECL is expected to develop off the southern Queensland coast on Sunday pushing showers, possibly tending to rain, onto the north coast. The showers should persist into Monday, clear on Tuesday, with mostly fine weather by Wednesday. The eventual movement of the low will dictate how much we receive and when it clears.

Edited June 7, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Tornado tears through Perth suburbs

Updated June 08, 2012 07:46:18

Video: Perth suburbs clean up after tornado (ABC News)

Emergency crews in Perth have spent the night cleaning up after a tornado hit the city's north-eastern suburbs.

The tornado uprooted trees, brought down power lines, and lifted roofs from buildings in the suburbs of Dianella and Morley.

The tornado lasted only about 10 minutes, but packed winds of up to 125 kilometres per hour and caused damage worth millions of dollars.

Several hundred homes which were left without electricity were expected to be reconnected during the night.

The town of York, east of Perth, was also hit by a powerful storm.

Morley video store manager Michael Williams says it was an extraordinary experience.

"It was really windy. I looked out the windows and there was just stuff flying in the sky," he said.

"Then we were just standing at the window having a look and the roof just started going boom, boom, boom with the wind, so we just ran to the back of the store and as we were running the windows just smashed in."

Electrician James Stevenson was in the Galleria Shopping Centre car park in Morley when the storm hit.

"It went across the top of the shopping centre, ripping all the shade sails off, smashing them on to cars and there was power lines down in the street with wires across the road," he said.

Another witness, Shelby Ginger, had just arrived to pick her children up from school.

"So we got out of the car to walk towards the school and all of a sudden it just bared down and started," she said.

"Everything was flying towards us so we jumped under a tree and saw it go down the road ripping trees up - just scary."

Powerful gusts of wind and rain also lashed the town of York from about 12:30pm (AWST) but there were no reports of injuries or damage to homes.

Neil Bennett from the Bureau of Meteorology says the tornado struck without warning.

"The unfortunate nature of these things; they live fast and die young," he said.

The trough line crosses land SW Western Australia, Perth.

It's all happening...

Come on Tasmania, step up to the plate

Edited June 8, 2012 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

Just saw footage of the tornado's damage on the news Styx, it's amazing no one was badly hurt or killed considering it came through around lunch-time.

Here's what I could find of youtube that has footage from a number of different sources. Seven News Perth:

Edited June 8, 2012 by NthNSW

[Methuselah]

Thanks for sharing that with us, mate. Lucky no-one was hurt!

[NorthNSW]

Perth and south-western Western Australia hit by more wild weather yesterday (Sunday).

'Once in a decade' storm lashes south-west WA'

Authorities say it could take a week to restore power to some homes after widespread storms packing winds of up to 140 kilometres per hour lashed Western Australia's south-west.

Crews are working to restore power to more than 110,000 homes after the storms, described by the weather bureau as a "once in a decade" event, hit the region on Sunday.

An area roughly the size of Victoria was affected, with the coastal towns of Mandurah and Rockingham the worst hit.

The affected area stretches from Kalbarri on the mid-west coast, to Kalgoorlie in the east, and Israelite Bay on the south coast.

Emergency crews are attempting to clean up the damage before another storm, which the weather bureau warns could be potentially even more severe, hits the coast tomorrow night.

This morning Western Power's Miriam Borthwick told ABC News Breakfast that the storm had caused the most damage her agency had ever seen.

"There are currently 112,345 properties without power, that's down from 161,000 last night, so Western Power's managed to restore about 49,000 customers overnight," she said.

Residents have reported damage to houses, downed power lines, and debris spread across roads.

Main Roads says about 60 sets of traffic signals remain blacked out across the metropolitan area due to the power problems.

Work is underway to restore the lights but there is a warning it may take some time.

Authorities are asking for patience as they respond to calls for assistance.

Western Power said it was responding to hundreds of hazards and its main concern was safety.

A spokeswoman said maintenance crews were concerned about the 269 power lines and street light wires, and 180 service wires that had come down in the storm.

She said that power restoration would have to take a backseat because of the hazards, describing the situation as "seriously scary".

Western Power crews worked through the night with the hope of returning power to smaller south-west towns left without back-up generators for hospitals.

In Bunbury, cars, buildings and infrastructure have been damaged, including fallen power lines and smashed windows at the Bunbury Regional Hospital.

Roofs have been ripped off houses in Donnybrook and a circus big-top tent in Busselton was blown away.

Cars have been forced to swerve to avoid thousands of tree trunks and branches, still littering major roads across the South West this morning.

Link (with some pics and couple of short vids): http://www.abc.net.a...lash-wa/4062970

Here's a link to the current Severe Weather Warning issued for South-West WA for the next two days: http://www.bom.gov.a...pl?IDW28001.txt (As of 2:23pm EST, it warns for Widespread Damaging Winds with Locally Destructive Gusts and Abnormally High Tides)

Edited June 11, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

They will cop it tonight ( Tuesday ).

If the weekend storms were "once in a decade" then the next one is gearing up to be the winter storm of the century.

I have never seen the word "dangerous" in an official forecast.

Winds forecast to reach or exceed 125km/hr ( 77 miles per hour ).

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology

Western Australia

Perth Forecast

Issued at 4:50 am WST on Tuesday 12 June 2012

Warning summary

Severe Weather Warning issued.

Forecast for Tuesday

Showers, increasing towards evening with a thunderstorm or two and possible

hail. Strengthening W/NW winds, becoming strong and dangerous during the

evening.

Precis: Showers, windy. Storm risk.

City: Max 18

Mandurah: Max 18

Edited June 12, 2012 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

Good afternoon to all

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

Jun 7th - 10.3ºC/18.5ºC - Nil

Jun 8th - 11.0ºC/19.2ºC - Nil

Jun 9th - 11.0ºC/19.3ºC - Nil

Jun 10th - 11.2ºC/16.3ºC - 29.4mm

Jun 11th - 11.2ºC/15.6ºC - 110.2mm

Jun 12th - 11.1ºC/19.5ºC - 41.0mm

Jun 13th - 13.2ºC/18.3ºC - 4.0mm

An East Coast Low (ECL) developed off the southern Queensland coast and brought heavy showers and rain over Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. There was also the occasional bit of thunder/lightning as the showers came ashore in a moist SE'ly airstream. Particularly on Monday (Queen's B'day holiday), with frequent heavy showers, and cold, breezy weather (the max was recorded overnight, temps did not rise above 14ºC during the day). The 110.2mm that fell on Monday is the wettest day so far this year (coincidently, the Queen's B'day holiday last year was the wettest day of 2011 with 150mm falling that day). Showers eased substantially on Wednesday as the ECL over the southern Coral Sea moved further out to sea. The ECL pushed us over 1000mm for the year to date.

Upcoming week:

It should be a mostly dry week. A ridge of high pressure is extending across the region today, with sunny skies this afternoon. The high will bring sunny weather over Friday and Saturday. Mild and generally light N/NW'lies will be directed into the region from central/northern Australia ahead of an approaching frontal/trough system, with temps in the low 20s today, Friday and Saturday. The trough should move through the region early Sunday morning, with a little light rain possible. Any cloud/rain should clear to a sunny day by the afternoon. A high pressure system will move into eastern Australia during Sunday night. As a result, mild and sunny weather is expected to return and persist through Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Edited June 14, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Getting slightly surreal here.

Frost free, persisting mild, and no usual winter snow peak on the mountains.

In fact, the most 'wintry' cold change of the year happened back on March 23, 3 weeks after summer ended.

Edited June 15, 2012 by Styx

[Summer Sun]

Getting slightly surreal here.

Frost free, persisting mild, and no usual winter snow peak on the mountains.

In fact, the most 'wintry' cold change of the year happened back on March 23, 3 weeks after summer ended.

Sounds like our last winter in the UK that was quite a mild one at times with only 1 short lived cold spell

[Slowpoke]

Sounds like our last winter in the UK that was quite a mild one at times with only 1 short lived cold spell

Indeed it does, though that cold spell was quite notable in some parts for the temperatures though much more so for mainland Europe.

[NorthNSW]

Hey all,

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

Jun 14th - 12.0ºC/21.0ºC - Nil

Jun 15th - 13.5ºC/20.0ºC - Nil

Jun 16th - 14.5ºC/21.5ºC - Nil

Jun 17th - 12.5ºC/21.0ºC - Nil

Jun 18th - 12.9ºC/19.9ºC - Nil

Jun 19th - 11.4ºC/19.0ºC - Nil

Jun 20th - xx.xºC*/19.6ºC - Nil

*Observation missing

It was a mild, sunny winter week. It was also dry with no rain was recorded, although there were two brief light showers early in the morning on the 17th as a weakening trough moved through the region.

For the upcoming week:

Today is the shortest day of the year, with sunrise at 6:45am and sunset at 4:54pm (civil twilight for about 25 mins on either side), and just a UV Alert between 11am and 12:40pm (Max UV Index of 3 today).

It should be dry and sunny until Tuesday thanks to a dominant high pressure system. On Tuesday, a high over southern Australia may start directing southeasterly winds onto the coast with some light showers expected. The light showers may persist into Wednesday, but at this stage, they look like they will clear during the day. It should be mild today and tomorrow with highs in the low 20s, but it the days will cool from Saturday down to around 17 degrees or so. Nights should cool further too.

Wintry cold fronts moving through southern Australia at the moment and over the next couple of days. Snow expected at higher elevations across SE Australia, especially at the ski resorts in Victoria and New South Wales. In Victoria, snow level is expected to lower down to 800m tomorrow, rise slightly to 900m on Saturday, then lower down to 700m on Sunday. Snow levels are expected to be somewhat lower in Tasmania, but Styx will probably give you the lowdown on that one.

[Styx]

Thanks mate, I'm watching Tasmania from afar for a while, I am in earthquake central until the end of next week but I am naturally taking interest in this proper cold snap. Snowline to 400m in Tasmania on Sunday. Unfortuently there doesn't appear to much precipitation in it. But it is the winterist front of the year.. and more importantly the cold weather will be around for a while.

Even odds it might even be a colder than average month for Tassie, after 7 warmer than normal months in a row.

[Styx]

Snowcap on Hobart's Mt Wellington today. At 12 noon the summit ( 1270m/4200ft ) temperature was -2, and the city was 7 degrees ( 5 below June average ).

There have been 7 successive below average temperature days in Hobart during this cold spell, with a minimum of 1.6 ( 4 below ) and a maximum low of 9.5.

It does get colder and snowier than this. But this is a nice start!

[NorthNSW]

I like it when Mt Wellington has a snow-capped peak. I was cruising up New Zealand's west coast near the Fiordland in early January and there was just something magical about being at sea level but being able to see snow-capped peaks on the highest mountains in the area. I took this picture on the Sea Princess, on January 8th this year:

Styx, would you happen to know (or roughly estimate) the most consecutive days that Mt Wellington has had a snow-capped peak for?

~~~~~~

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

Jun 21st - 13.0ºC/20.3ºC - Nil

Jun 22nd - 14.5ºC/20.4ºC - Nil

Jun 23rd - 11.4ºC/18.0ºC - Nil

Jun 24th - 9.0ºC/19.5ºC - Nil

Jun 25th - 10.0ºC/19.8ºC - Nil

Jun 26th - 11.5ºC/19.2ºC - 50.2mm

Jun 27th - 12.2ºC/16.2ºC - 40.0mm

Up until the afternoon of the 26th, it had been a sunny week. The nights were mild at first, then became cool, tending cold on the 24th and 25th. The last time, a night cooler than 9.0ºC occurred was July 11th last year. It become apparent as the week progressed, that the southeasterly airstream was going to be enhanced by a low pressure trough just offshore and that decent rain should be expected. The trough and moist southeasterly flow brought moderate to heavy rain from the afternoon of the 26th and into the 27th, bringing an end to a 12-day dry spell. Persistent cloudcover and rain periods on the 27th brought a cold day. A weak low developed off the southern Queensland coast last night. This rain has just nudged us over 300mm for the month to date.

The upcoming week:

The weak low / offshore trough, combined with a moist southeasterly flow should continue to deliver showers through today and ease during tomorrow. The showers should clear by tomorrow night.

Saturday should be a mild, sunny day. A cold front will move through the region on Sunday, though no rain is expected to accompany the front. It should remain fine, though tending cool, from Sunday and through the remainder of the week thanks to a high pressure system over southern Australia.

The month of July:

July is a cool month, the days are cool to occasionally mild, and the nights are cool, sometimes cold. Maximum temperatures average 18.7ºC, and minimum temps average 11.2ºC, and as you would expect, it is our coldest month of the year. The record high max is 28.3ºC (29/07/1958) and the record low min is 4.4ºC (25/07/1971). July tends to be a dry month, and on average it is our second driest month of the year (July Avg. 78.7mm). Like any of our wintry months, July is prone to dry spells and rainfall can vary a lot from year to year. July is also one of three months which have recorded 0mm in the past. I guess you could call it one of our three 'dry season' months (along with August and September).

The 'East Coast Low season' is in decline as sea surface temps start to cool somewhat during the month, hence the lower average rainfall than June.

Like June, winter cold fronts make an occasional appearance in July, as do high pressure systems which can park themselves over northern NSW bringing long spells of fine weather but cool to cold nights. Thunderstorms are a rare occurrence in July, and much like June, it is not unusual for the month to be storm-free.

Edited June 28, 2012 by NthNSW

[Styx]

Nice question.

There are no continuous official records of that, which may be understandable. What constitutes a snowpeak for example, and from what position in town do you take your observation from. Surprisingly though there is no official record kept of snow depth on the summit either ( but that is probably because there was no road to the summit until the early 1930's, and even today the road to the pinnacle is closed for 3 or 4 weeks due to snow and/or ice.

The answer to your question though is months and not days. In my own time, 1992 was a standout year ( I kept daily records as a teen ); there was a permanent snow cover from the end of July until the first week of December in that year. In more recent years it has usually been from July thru to the start of October. The last 2 or 3 winters have been terrible, snow then total melt, followed by snow and melt. Too infrequent cold fronts and way too warm, with no ripe condition for accumulation.

I have been searching for a webpage link for you. Having problem in locating it right now. It is an article dealing with your very question, and it details the findings of a chap that kept a record of snow cover observations on Mt Wellington in the mid to late 19th century. He recorded most years a continuous cover of 6 months, with one standout year from June thru to January.

I have also seen newspaper articles as recently as the 1950s showing people sledging and playing in the snow on Christmas day - not from a fresh snowfall on Christmas eve but from snow that had accumulated since winter and/or spring that still remained at the start of summer.

Doesn't happen like that anymore!

[NorthNSW]

Thanks Styx for that answer.

Summary here for the past week (Date/Min/Max/24hrRainfall):

Jun 28th - 12.9ºC/18.5ºC - 9.4mm

Jun 29th - 12.8ºC/20.6ºC - Nil

Jun 30th - 12.2ºC/21.6ºC - Nil

Jul 1st - 13.3ºC/20.0ºC - Nil

Jul 2nd - 9.5ºC/18.9ºC - Nil

Jul 3rd - 9.3ºC/17.3ºC - Nil

Jul 4th - 10.2ºC/17.0ºC - Nil

The showers cleared early in the morning on the 29th. A high pressure system then kept the skies clear. Cooler air infiltrated the region later in the week with some cool days and cold nights. There was a bit of mid level cloud during the day on the 4th with a small increase in moisture as winds turned more S/SW'ly.

The upcoming week (Jul 5th to Jul 11th):

Winds will tend southerly today, with a scattering of generally light showers developing today (first drizzly shower is moving through as I type), and persist through tomorrow, weakening on Saturday. Winds should then tend more E/SE'ly. The onshore airstream will persist but is expected to be weaken somewhat, so just the chance of a rogue shower or two through Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Models are playing with a trough over central eastern Australia later this week, and at this stage there is the possibility of light rain on Wednesday as it moves further eastward.

The days should continue cool and breezy for the next couple of days. It should gradually become mild later in the week though. The nights should tend to be more mild this week, largely thanks to an increase in moisture levels.

Edited July 5, 2012 by NthNSW