Australian Weather

[Styx]

 

Outback Australia has certainly had a good soaking but there are creeping rainfall deficiencies along the populated eastern seaboard. Remarkably, pockets of eastern Tasmania are in the midst of some of the lowest Jan-June rainfall totals in the country ( 100-150mm ). Hobart 160mm. The formation of an east coast low will alleviate conditions, sea surface temperatures are certainly productive enough to amplify any such event.

[Styx]

~0.45C warmer than average in Australia in June ( mean; 1961-90 ). 

 

- Since September 2012 ( 22 months ) every month in Australia has had an anomaly of at at least +0.5C with the exception of February 2014 (-0.2C). June 2014 may be another exception...but it may be rounded to +0.5C ( as other months have been rounded up/down to the tenth decimal place ). The June 2014 figure is based on my reading of the just released bargraph format from the BOM website. The more accurate summary appears to have been accidentally excluded from the state and national summaries.

[NorthNSW]

A bit of light snow on the northern ranges of NSW on June 30th. Guyra recorded its coldest maximum for the year so far with 3.8ºC (4.6ºC and 4.1ºC maximums were recorded during the snow event near the beginning of May).
A light settling at the village of Black Mountain, a little south of Guyra:

(Source: Northern Rivers Severe Weather Group - Facebook)
Pictures of snow flurries in Guyra (10 photos): http://www.guyraargus.com.au/story/2385108/photos-snow-day/?cs=603#slide=1

And another light settling on the Barrington Tops:

(Source: Tamworth Weather - Facebook)

 

Historical weather - The July 3rd 1984 snowfall was a very significant one on the northern ranges of NSW. There are 50 photos to view in the article: http://www.guyraargus.com.au/story/2393687/1984-the-year-it-snowed-dangerously/?cs=605

1984 :The year it snowed ( dangerously)
July 3, 2014, midnight

 

July 3 1984 is a day that will long in the memory of Guyra folk. It was the day that saw the beginning one of the best snow events in the town’s history.
The spectacular snowfalls on Tuesday July 3 and Wednesday July 4 1984 were the heaviest and most prolonged for many years, and nothing since has come close.
Guyra’s maximum temperature on the Tuesday was -0.3C, and the maximum on the Wednesday was 0.5C. These were record low maximums. The minimums were -3.0C and -6.0C respectively.
The snow started at around 8am on Tuesday and continued without stopping until the following evening with the temperature remaining below zero for this whole time allowing snow to settle and quickly build up to a depth of several centimetres, particularly overnight on Tuesday.
The New England Highway was blocked south at the Devil’s Pinch and several other locations north between Guyra and Glen Innes.
The railway line was also blocked north of Dumaresq. The outbreak was so intense that snowfalls extended over the border into south-east Queensland with snow falling in Toowoomba for the first time in 25 years.
In the Guyra Shire Chronicle published the following week on Friday July 13 the headline was ‘Life after snow!’
It reported that the official reading from the Post Office was 25cm, but it was deeper in many parts of the district with drifts reported up to 1.5 metres deep.
Even a week later the banked up snow still remained. Many roads in the district were impassible to normal traffic for at least Tuesday (3rd) and Wednesday. At Bald Blair some children were unable to return to school until Monday of the following week as they were snowed in.
In its archives, Guyra Central School reports that the snow fell continuously for 48 hours with depths of between 250mm and 300mm and in places up to 1.5m in drifts. Despite the blizzard conditions and sub-zero temperatures the school could not be officially closed.
At Black Mountain School they had the added problem of the septic tank freezing along with the pump that supplies water to the school.
Frozen water was a common problem with plumbers kept busy for days repairing frozen pipes and pumping systems.
Ordinary cars were unable to cope with the icy conditions with numerous reports of cars running off the roads – four wheel drives became the vehicle of choice.
Council equipment was extra busy during the week as graders cleared the snow from many of the roads of the district.
In town front end loaders were used to clear away deep drifts with tonnes of snow and ice carted away, with piles of dumped snow remaining visible for more than a week.
(http://www.guyraargus.com.au/story/2393687/1984-the-year-it-snowed-dangerously/?cs=605)

 

In more recent times, the October 2012 snowfall was reasonably significant. It brought 17cm of snow to Guyra.

A light dusting of snow or snow flurries are possible on the northern NSW ranges tomorrow.

 

Not much weather happening here lately, aside from a windy though brief squall-line thunderstorm on June 28th. Today was a beautiful sunny 23ºC day, with mostly light winds. Fairly standard July temps for the next week in nearby Coffs, though the nights are a bit chillier than normal for July. Extended sunny, dry weather around here is not unusual in July:

 

We need the rain though. Rainfall over the past 12 months has been very much below average across northern NSW, with some places on the northern ranges experiencing record dry over this period. We've had only 974.4mm over the past 12 months, well below the average of around 1485mm. However, there's no surprises that drought conditions have returned following six years in a row of good to very good rainfall. We're now in the traditionally drier half of the year, so chances are we may not see some relief until summer:

Edited July 5, 2014 by NorthNSW

[Styx]

Tasmania snow pictures, from midweek. Heavier falls traditionally occur at the end of winter and at the beginning of spring. No low level snow event as yet,  so no disruption, just nice scenery, especially in out of way places.

 

Great Lakes region, Central Tasmania, ( near 1000m asl ) : Credit: Examiner newspaper

 

Great Lakes region, Central Tasmania Credit: Examiner newspaper

 

Waratah, Western Tasmania, ( 615m ) Credit: Carol Haberle

 

Cradle mountain, NW Tasmania, ( peak 1500m ) Credit: Cradle Coast Tours

 

Mt. Wellington ( 1270m ), Hobart, SE Tasmania, Credit: 'Think Tasmania'

[Styx]

It's been a very long time since a major Australian centre has had a notable cold weather event.

 

 

Brisbane hits coldest temperature in 103 years

If you are lucky enough to be reading this from the comfort of your blankets, it might be best to stay there, as Brisbane has hit its coldest temperatures in 103 years.

 

Not since July 28 1911 has Brisbane felt this cold, getting down to a brisk 2.6C at 6.41am.

 

At 7am, it inched up to 3.3C.

 

Matt Bass, meteorologist from BOM, said the region was well below our average temperatures.

 

“If it felt cold, that’s because it was, breaking that record is pretty phenomenal for Brisbane,†Bass said.

 

“The average for this time of year is 12C, so Brisbane was about 9C below average, it is pretty impressive really, to have the coldest morning in 103 years is a big record.â€

 

The coldest place across the state was Oakey which got down to -6.1C, which was the coldest temperature for the town since 2011.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/brisbane-hits-coldest-temperature-in-103-years/story-fnihsrf2-1226986116278?nk=9572620627534018b94c156fba4812a9

 

The all time Brisbane low is 2.3 in July 1896/1894/1890.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

Glen Innes Airport on the northern NSW ranges got down to -11.3ºC last night (the record is -12.8ºC for that site, but it is still very cold). The official record low for a place on the northern NSW ranges is -14.5ºC at the village of Woolbrook (http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_055136_All.shtml). The northern ranges are particularly known for their "frost hollows", during clear, dry and calm nights, it is not uncommon to see differences of 4-8ºC (and sometimes more!) between the temp of the valley floor and the hilltops. A waterfall near Ebor produced a novelty event a few years ago after a series of very cold nights: http://www.weatherarmidale.com/images1.html

 

No rain here for the past fortnight. 13.4mm over the past 30 days. Level 3 Water restrictions were introduced yesterday, which means:

- Sprinklers and fixed hoses are banned.

- The use of one hand held hose for 1 hour (in two 30 minute sessions), every second day on “odds & evens" days matching your house number (For example, if your house number is 2, then you can water on all the even days of the month i.e. 2nd, 4th, 6th etc). From 6:30am to 7:00am and 6:00pm to 6:30pm.

- No garden watering will be permitted on 31st day of the month.

- Hoses must be fitted with a water cut-off trigger or control nozzle.

- Watering cans and buckets can be used at any time when filled from a fixed tap.

- No restrictions apply to internal use, however all water saving initiatives are encouraged.

 

Two days ago there was a bit of snow on the northern NSW ranges, with light settlings or snow flurries in some places (judging by some photos perhaps tending closer to a moderate settling than a light settling on some parts of the Barrington Tops).

 

"Snow falls in the New England" - Northern Daily Leader (10 photos):

http://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/2408954/photos-snow-falls-in-the-new-england/

 

"Snow falls across the Barrington Tops" - Gloucester Advocate (12 photos):

http://www.gloucesteradvocate.com.au/story/2410968/gallery-snow-falls-across-the-barrington-tops/

 

Barrington Tops:

 

 

(Source: Mansfield Cottage Barrington / Barrington Tops Holiday Accomodation - Facebook) (all three photos)

 

According to a weather report from the Barrington Tops earlier today, a small amount of settled snow still remained on some parts of the Barrington Tops this morning.

 

They showed a cute video on the local news of a Tasmanian Devil in the snow on the Barrington Tops: http://www.nbnnews.com.au/index.php/2014/07/11/devils-at-home-in-the-snow/

 

Tazzie Devils in the recent snowfall on the Barrington Tops:

 

(Source: Devil Ark - Facebook) (both photos)

Edited July 12, 2014 by NorthNSW

[knocker]

. Current temp anomaly map: cold high pressure pic.twitter.com/XX9vjEaEwF

[Styx]

I haven't managed to find a single cold weather record in Australia that has been set this month* - but the national anomaly in terms of minimum temperature alone is probably the lowest for July since 1982. This is very hard to determine though because there is no monthly rolling averages that are released, either state based ones or national...such as a CET (  I am just having the best guess I can based on the release of the BOMs colour coded anomaly charts ). The ones below are for the week ending last Tuesday, and I suspect the charts for the second week released this Tuesday will show something similar!

 

Of course, July is only half way through and the end of the month may end up being spectacularly warm ( although early indications suggest that won't happen ).

 

 

 

Glen Innes Airport on the northern NSW ranges got down to -11.3ºC last night (the record is -12.8ºC for that site, but it is still very cold). The official record low for a place on the northern NSW ranges is -14.5ºC at the village of Woolbrook (http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_055136_All.shtml).

 

(Source: Devil Ark - Facebook) (both photos)

 

-11.2C is the coldest so far for the year in Australia.

Last year's national low was -12.2C ( in Tasmania ).

 

...and I'm really happy the Tasmanian devil arks are working as intended. I think there are a few around, here in Tasmania and on the mainland  The demise of the devil in the wild in Tasmania has been quite catastrophic.

 

------------------------

* Edit/Correction: Actually, there's been a few. (.but in no way over-representative for an average month.) Clermont in Queensland was one such place, with a record database of just over 50 years. The remaining sites ( less than 10 up to Friday ) broke their July record but each site apparently has a record history of less than, near, 20 years.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

The Barrington Tops received a light settling of snow yesterday morning.

 

A very cold day in Alice Springs yesterday, only reaching a maximum of 7.5ºC. Not record-breaking, but not too far off the mark really (the record low max being 7.0ºC in July 2010 and Aug 1966) (that site has 72 years of records. The July max avg. is 19.7ºC). The previous Alice site (1878-1953) recorded a record low max of 6.7ºC in July 1901. Yuendumu had its coldest day (8.1ºC) in 45 years of records (July max avg. 22.0ºC). Territory Grape Farm had its coldest day (9.2ºC) on record too, but it only has 20 years of records (July max avg. 22.5ºC). Here is yesterday's max temp anomaly map:

 

25.6mm of rain for the Alice too yesterday. The same northwest cloudband / trough brought localised heavy rain to an area of the Kimberley (in WA), where up to 242mm fell in 24 hours. Cygnet Bay (50 years of records) received that 242mm fall, well and truly smashing its wettest July (86.8mm) and wettest July day on record (78.6mm). Its July average is 6.2mm. Only February and March have received a higher daily fall than that (Feb highest daily - 269.4mm / Mar highest daily - 268.0mm).

Bidyadanga in the southern Kimberley wasn't far off its July record low max (17.3ºC) (54 years of records), getting to 17.9ºC two days ago (July max avg. 29.5ºC). Mandora, near the Kimberley/Pilbara district border, had its coldest July day on record two days ago (17.2ºC) (July avg max. 28.9ºC) (51 years of records).

Edited July 14, 2014 by NorthNSW

[NorthNSW]

Forgot to add that a tornado hit the Perth suburbs of O'Connor, Hilton and Claremont earlier today (the tornado has been confirmed by the Bureau).

http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/strong-winds-and-heavy-rain-damage-homes-across-perths-southern-suburbs/story-fnhocxo3-1226987966373?nk=11c8e6227ca0250aef40296c73485e50

 

 

 

(Source for all three photos: Perth Weather Live - Facebook)

 

20 more photos from Perth Weather Live here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.723197654388116.1073742050.269003509807535&type=1

 

7 News story:

[NorthNSW]

Cold weather on the way again tomorrow/Friday.

In summary, BOM have forecast snow falling as low as:

- 600-800m in Tasmania (depending on which district you're in)- 600m in Victoria- 600-700m on the southern and central NSW ranges.- 800-900m on southwestern parts of the northern NSW ranges. 1000m elsewhere on the southern half of the northern NSW ranges (precipitation isn't expected to reach the northern half).

 

0.4mm fell here today, which ended a 17 day dry spell. At this stage, the next fortnight is looking pretty dry around the local area.

[NorthNSW]

Photo of snow falling today on the central ranges of Victoria: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=731333700238994&set=a.362247350480966.79713.138092056229831&type=1

Probably more out there if I had time to go through all the social media.

 

Here is NSW BOM's summary of the weather situation:

 

 

Weather Situation

A cold front crossed southeastern New South Wales this afternoon with strong westerly winds and scattered showers in its wake, the front will move through the northeast this evening. A strong upper level cold pool will follow the front, moving over southern inland NSW this afternoon and evening and over the ranges tonight and early tomorrow morning. Showers are expected to increase with this very cold system, with snow expected to lower to around the 600 or 700 metre level on the southern and central ranges early tomorrow morning and 800 metres on the northern ranges. A complex low pressure system looks set to deepen over the Tasman Sea, east of Tasmania tonight and Friday morning in response to the cold pool, with a small low centre likely to move northeast offshore the southern then central coast during the day Friday. Winds are expected to turn strong and gusty southwesterly over most eastern districts tomorrow, locally reaching gale-force in the southeast. By tomorrow night the main low centre should lie over the central Tasman Sea and is expected to move only slowly to the east on Saturday as a high moves towards western NSW, resulting in further strong southerlies along the coast Saturday. A significant easing in the wind is expected Sunday as the high moves towards the east of the state. Morning frost is likely to be a feature of the weather for the inland over the weekend with shower activity mostly constrained to the coastal fringe.

 

 

District forecasts with snow mentioned in NSW/ACT:

Snowy Mountains:
Tonight: Isolated showers, tending widespread in the west and falling as snow above 600 or 700 metres

Tomorrow: Scattered snow showers, becoming less likely during the evening.

(Isolated snow showers above 1100m on Saturday as well)

 

South West Slopes:

Tonight: Scattered showers, becoming widespread during the evening. Possible thunder and small hail. Scattered snow showers above 700 metres.

Tomorrow: Showers, becoming less likely in the morning, clearing in the afternoon. Showers falling as snow at times above 600 metres. Possible thunderstorms early in the morning.

 

South Coast:

Tomorrow: Scattered snow showers about the coastal ranges above 900 metres during the morning. Scattered showers, becoming less likely in the late afternoon.

 

Riverina:

Tomorrow:  Isolated showers and possible thunderstorms in the east early in the morning. Showers falling as snow above 600 metres.

 

Australian Capital Territory:

Tonight:  Isolated showers, becoming more widespread at night and falling as snow above 800 metres.

Tomorrow: Scattered showers, becoming less likely in the morning, clearing in the afternoon. Showers falling as snow at times above 700 metres.

 

Southern Tablelands:

Tonight:  Isolated showers, becoming more widespread later tonight with snow developing above 800 metres.

Tomorrow: Scattered showers during the morning, more frequent in the northwest. Isolated snow showers above 600 metres during the morning.

 

Central Tablelands:

Tonight:  Isolated showers, becoming more widespread later tonight, with snow developing above about 800 metres.

Tomorrow: Showers, becoming less likely in the morning, clearing in the afternoon. Showers falling as snow at times above 600 metres.

 

Central West Slopes & Plains:

Tomorrow:  Isolated showers in the morning. Snow showers on the slopes above 500 metres, becoming less widespread in the morning, clearing in the afternoon. Possible thunderstorms on the southern plains early in the morning.

 

Northern Tablelands:

Tomorrow: Isolated showers during the morning, falling as snow above 800 metres.

 

North West Slopes & Plains:

Tomorrow: Isolated showers in the morning. Scattered snow showers on the southern slopes above 600 metres during the morning.

 

Mid North Coast:

Tomorrow: Isolated snow showers about higher ground above 700 metres during the morning. The chance of showers, contracting to the coastal fringe in the afternoon.

 

District forecast map if you aren't familiar with the districts:

~~~

 

A chilly maximum of 16ºC with strong winds expected here tomorrow.

Edited July 17, 2014 by NorthNSW

[Styx]

Good morning Hobart...

 

 

A typical winter scene here but we are currently in the middle of one of the warmest Julys on record.. a stark contrast to the rest of the country ( in the most part ) which has been anomalously cool this month. 

 

It is not cold in Hobart presently either although it looks it... with a minimum of 7C ( 2 above average ).. but there was plenty of rain overnight so the temperature threshold was low enough for settled snow near 600 metres.

 

The city is yet to have a low level snow event this winter ( settled snow in the suburban hills ( less than 300m altitude ). I don't recall a year without a low level snow event...perhaps 1988?

 

Low level snow event:

 

Edited July 17, 2014 by Styx

[NorthNSW]

Had to finish off an assessment, so this post is late.

From the snow events on the NSW ranges three days ago:

 

Northern NSW-

"Snow falls across the New England" (71 photos) (2 brief videos):

http://www.armidaleexpress.com.au/story/2426178/mega-galleryvideos-snow-falls-across-the-new-england/

 

"Road closed as icy conditions make Tops travel hazardous" (18 photos):

http://www.gloucesteradvocate.com.au/story/2426276/gallery-road-closed-as-icy-conditions-make-tops-travel-hazardous/

 

Barrington Tops:

(Source [all photos]: Mansfield Cottage Barrington Tops Holiday Accommodation - Facebook)

 

Central NSW-

"It's snowing again: Orange's third fall of 2014" (83 photos):

http://www.centralwesterndaily.com.au/story/2426086/readers-photos-its-snowing-again-oranges-third-fall-of-2014/

 

"Snow in the Lithgow region" (11 photos):

http://www.lithgowmercury.com.au/story/2426694/snow-in-the-lithgow-region/

 

"It's snowing in the Central West" (88 photos):

http://www.westernadvocate.com.au/story/2426323/gallery-its-snowing-in-the-central-west/

 

Good news in the alpine resorts too. Falls Creek (Vic) snow base has reached a 25-year high of 163cm. The first season that's achieved 150cm since 1990:

 

SNOW! Falls Creek hits 163cm-record

Ski operators at Falls Creek say the snowfall has been the best since 1990.

The mountain claimed the title as the first resort in Australia and New Zealand to reach 150 centimetres of snow on Thursday, with 163cm recorded by Saturday morning.

Mt Hotham has also exceeded 150 centimetres.

Falls Creek Ski Lift marketing manager Anthony O’Shea said the cold and rain had created good quality snow.

“There’s amazing snow all over the mountain,†he said.

“Very few people have experienced conditions as good as this at this time of year in the last 25 or 30 seasons.

“It’s the first season we’ve had 150 centimetres since 1990.â€

Mr O’Shea said there was a buzz around the resort.

“We’re talking about this being the season for the record books,†he said.

The Bureau of Meteorology predicts the next snow will come next Thursday and Friday, but before then temperatures will rise.

(http://www.bombalatimes.com.au/story/2428183/snow-falls-creek-hits-163cm-record/?cs=2452)

 

 

Perisher and Thredbo's record-beating snow welcome despite risks

Three cold fronts in the space of a month mean that ski resorts have the best depth of snow this early in a season since 2002.

Apart from an almost comparable dump in 2011, the records monitored by Snowy Hydro at Spencers Creek, whose figures are used by Thredbo and Perisher, show the depths this far into the season are unrivalled until as far back as 12 years ago.

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Deryn Griffiths said that there had been a good start to the season and that recent falls had been as low as 600-700 metres in the resorts. She said low pressure over the Tasman meant that temperatures would remain low (approx -5 degrees in resorts) although further falls were unlikely before next Wednesday when it would be less cold.

"I think we just call it good luck as far as the ski resorts are concerned," she said.

Thredbo resort spokesman Luke Kneller said: "We have had back to back storms, this will probably be one of the best weekends this season. We have had 25 centimetres of snow and it has been super windy, which at Thredbo doubles the amount of snow we receive."

Commenting on the deaths of two snowboarders lost in an avalanche he said: "We are just urging people not to take risks if they don't have the appropriate equipment or knowledge." 

Perisher spokesman Richard Phillips described conditions as fantastic.

"In 2011 we had about the same amount this early but outside that you have got to go back probably to 2002. For this time of year these are some of the best conditions we have had for 10 to 15 years."

(http://www.smh.com.au/national/perisher-and-thredbos-recordbeating-snow-welcome-despite-risks-20140719-zujq7.html)

 

Edited July 20, 2014 by NorthNSW

[knocker]

Interesting to keep an eye on this.

 

Weather story next week may be cold conditions in Australia from strong High pressure. pic.twitter.com/m8KIcYLpzN

[NorthNSW]

Warm to very warm temperatures yesterday for July, with nearby Kempsey reaching a max of 27.3ºC (the July max record being 28.2ºC in 41 years of records).
Overall, the month has otherwise been fairly normal temp wise around the local region. Generally, nights are tracking a bit below average, and days are a little above average. Some warmer nights in the past week in response to some cloudcover and more humidity has seen the min temp anomaly reduce.

Thunderstorm activity about northern NSW today. We were on the southern end of a line of thunderstorms this evening, getting a quick shower with a few bits of lightning. The weather cam at Bonny Hills about 85kms away from here was able to capture some of the lightning. A storm moved through that area where the webcam is during the early afternoon.

 

Locally, mild to warm days and cool nights are expected under an area of high pressure until what looks like possibly being a decent-strength cold front moving through at the beginning of August, which will flush that warmth away.

Edited July 26, 2014 by NorthNSW

[crikey]

Current snow depth for spencer crek Snowy hydro shows the extent of the last cold/snow episode

http://www.snowyhydro.com.au/water/snow-depths-calculator/

 

There is another really decent cold pool arriving around the 2nd August with a decent area of 532 thickness over the south east alps and Victoria

Edited July 27, 2014 by crikey

[Styx]

Potential to be the coldest outbreak for Victoria and Tasmania for 9 years with some forecasts suggesting snow lower than 500m for Victoria and close to sea level in Tasmania this Friday. Excitement building. In the meantime it is cool to mild and very windy as low pressure paces eastward to the south of the continent. The last few days in fact have been anomalously warm in eastern and central Australia.

[knocker]

Winter cold coming on strong for Australia due to 1035-1040 mb high pressure. pic.twitter.com/eSMahtOUoK

[Styx]

Significant snowfalls in southern Tasmania over the last 2-3 days, with snowfalls forecast to the lower hills later today. There's an event like this every year, two times a year if we are lucky, but it's been so mild this season that I never thought it'd come.

Probably the best snow cover on the mountain range for 10 years ( going on sight alone ) with a months worth of cold rain in Hobart in two and a half days.

 

 

Severe weather conditions produces the season's highest snowfall on Hobart's Mount Wellington

By Sam Ikin

5:15pmThu 31 Jul 2014, 5:15pm

Photo: Snow covered Mt Wellington taken from the Hobart suburb of Glebe. (ABC: Sam Ikin )

Related Story: Woman killed by falling tree as wild storms lash Tasmania

Map: Hobart 7000

 

Tasmania's wild weather over the past few days has produced the most snow for Hobart's Mt Wellington this season.

 

Snow is expected to fall in areas around the 200-metre level tomorrow morning, which includes some of Hobart's higher outlying suburbs like Mount Nelson, Ferntree and West Hobart.

Photo: The frosty peak of Mt Wellington with the suburb of West Hobart in the foreground.

 

Tim Boulden, from the Bureau of Meteorology, said the weather patterns which are wreaking havoc in other parts of the state are creating perfect conditions for snow on Hobart's iconic mountain.

 

"We have a very active cold front moving over the state at the moment and then there's another cold front across the state tomorrow," he said.

 

"They will see showers (in the state's south) increase quite a bit, hail becoming fairly likely. Also becoming very windy in the overnight period and tomorrow morning."

Photo: Snow covers the peak of Mt Wellington above the cliff known as the Organ Pipes. (ABC: Sam Ikin )

 

The snow is expected to remain through Friday and start to retreat late on Saturday.

 

Magic....

 

 

Winter cold coming on strong for Australia due to 1035-1040 mb high pressure. pic.twitter.com/eSMahtOUoK

 

Very low overnight temperatures forecast for several days over inland south-east and east side of country.

Edited July 31, 2014 by Styx

[Styx]

Surprising news...but the final week of July was quite warm across quite a large area. 

 

 

Australia in July 2014 In Brief

Maximum temperatures during July were warmer than average across the Top End, much of the eastern States and northern South Australia as well as the west and southwest of Western Australia. Area-average maximum temperatures were equal-second-highest on record for July for Tasmania. Minimum temperatures were warmer than average for Tasmania and along most of the southern coastline of the mainland, but cooler than average for large areas of the remainder of the mainland. The national maximum temperature anomaly of +0.89 Â°C and minimum temperature anomaly of −0.30 Â°C combined to give a mean temperature anomaly of +0.29 Â°C.

http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/current/month/aus/summary.shtml

 

LAST TWO YEARS:

 

Edited August 1, 2014 by Styx

[keithlucky]

Victoria winter wonder land http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/its-a-winter-wonderland-snow-falls-in-ballarat-lorne-mt-macedon-as-victoria-shivers-through-winter-blast/story-fni0fit3-1227008140006

[NorthNSW]

Meteorologists are saying that the snowfall yesterday was the most widespread in Victoria in 25 years: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbourne-rugs-up-for-coldest-day-of-the-year-bitter-blast-in-the-afternoon-20140801-zz8ag.html

Ballarat got a settling snowfall: http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/2457772/snow-falls-in-ballarat-city-centre/?cs=61 (114 photos and a couple brief videos)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMVKyo5_uSg

 

Snow flurries reported from some Canberra suburbs yesterday: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/chilly-weather-brings-snow-to-canberra-20140801-zzlr6.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vSov9XP51I

 

Snow getting as far north as the central ranges of NSW: http://www.westernadvocate.com.au/story/2459555/its-snowing-in-the-central-tablelands-photos/?cs=115 (17 photos)

Including a light settling at Katoomba:

(Source: Blue Mountains Gazette - Facebook)

 

No snow on the northern ranges of NSW as precip associated with the frontal system did not make it that far north (as forecast).

Edited August 2, 2014 by NorthNSW

[NorthNSW]

Adelaide's just had its coldest August minimum temperature in 126 years!

 

 

Adelaide’s coldest August morning for 126 years - August 04, 2014 11:01AM

 

ADELAIDE folk have shivered through their coldest August morning for 126 years, the minimum of 0.9C at 6.29am equalling the August record set in 1888.

Forecasting group Weatherzone says it was even frostier in the northern suburbs, getting as cold as -1.3C at Parafield and -0.7C at Edinburgh.

But as the sun appeared the temperature soon climbed. And the rest of the day should be sunny, with an expected top of 15C

Severe frost also fell away from the city, including the Murraylands, Riverland, Mid North and North East Pastoral.

Yunta was one of the coldest spots in the state, freezing to -5.8 degrees, only a day after recording a minus six-degree minimum.

Other really cold centres including Snowtown, where the low was -2.7C, Loxton with -3.9C and Renmark with -5.6C.

Weatherzone says the next few mornings will still be chilly with widespread frost but generally it won’t be quite as cold as the last few due to a bit more cloud cover.

Only twice in 127 years of records has Adelaide dipped below freezing.

On June 7 and 8 in 1982 it got as cold as -0.2C and -0.4C respectively.

Despite the cold blast there was no repeat of Friday’s snow and strong winds.

(http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/adelaides-coldest-august-morning-for-126-years/story-fnii5yv7-1227012614276?nk=3333bada975fe8c11ae0be24bffefc03)

 

[Styx]

-13.0 at Perisher in the Snowy Mountains New South Wales ( 1700m ) Saturday night, Australian low for the year but a near typical value for an average year.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Styx