Australian Weather

[Styx]

1992 is now the most comparable year for late season snow depth on the elevated parts of Australia's main mountain range ( the Snowy mountains ). Spencers Creek is at 1830m. The historical average for late October is near 70cm on the ground, it was 135cm on Thursday.  This weekend there is more snow in the south-east mountains, mainly in Victoria this time, but much lower. There are nice snow pictures online but I won't bother with those because European landscape snow pictures are so much prettier. 1992 is going to be hard a year to beat because it was so good for so long so I'll finish up with this story unless there is an early November snow surprise.

 

 

 

 

[seaside 60]

I am sure we would like to see a couple of pics, to see what its like there.

[Styx]

On 10/22/2016 at 20:22, seaside 60 said:

I am sure we would like to see a couple of pics, to see what its like there.

OK.. here's one from the weekend ( I'll just to stick to something really local ). The snowline is near 700m. The photographer has taken it from a yacht on zoom lense I suspect which makes the mountain look more dominant compared to the naked eye but it's a great shot.  We occasionally get snow at this elevation even at the start of summer,  but there's been a lot of snow days this month even though the overall temperature has been near average.  SE Tasmania is the only place in Australia by the way you will see the juxtaposition of sea and snow.

 

 

[Summer Sun]

30c possible in Sydney this Friday it's looking quite warm till next Tuesday with temperatures in the mid to upper 20's throughout

[tropicbreeze]

After a long run of 37's the forecast is showing a drop in temperature later in the week. That's a better indication of rain than all their pretty pictures of storm clouds, lightning and rain. One can only hope.

[Styx]

Brisbane Airport was hit by a severe storm this afternoon. Wind speed 157kmhr/97 miles/ph.

 

Edited November 13, 2016 by Styx

[Styx]

 

 

Quote

 

State’s first hint of summer brings fire alert

HELEN KEMPTON, Mercury

November 18, 2016 12:00am

TASMANIA has finally enjoyed a taste of summer.

Hobart hit 30C and other parts of the state also basked in the warmth as recent poor weather gave way to sunshine.

Quick to cool off were British bulldog Rosie and beagle-jack russell cross Milo, who both made a splash at Kingston Beach.

Not quite 30C but 29.6C ( 11 above average ). So nice, it's been so soggy and kind of cool with only a few warm peaks. The first 30 degree day of the season is usually in mid November, we might get another shot on Monday. In recent years it's happened earlier. November is still running almost 1C cooler than average at the moment for us.

 

 

Edited November 17, 2016 by Styx

[Styx]

I should be sleeping but I usually take Fridays off so thats alright. 17C outside not too bad at all. There's a 21C on Tasmania's east coast. Some fresher air is coming through.

[Styx]

A squally thunderstorm in Melbourne whips up pollen and dirt killing two in an asthmatic emergency, with hundreds of calls to emergency services. It's been a wet winter and spring producing high grow of grasses and flowering plants.

News on the "asthmatic thunderstorm":

http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/11/22/12/03/what-is-the-condition-that-swept-the-state

[Styx]

BOM have released their analysis for Spring.

National temperature anomaly ( 61-90 ):

September...0.0

October....-0.5

November....+0.5

• Regional flooding events, most severe in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania
• Cool start to Spring with snow persisting in the mountains giving highest snow base so late into the year for 25 years
• Severe storms and tornadoes in the state of South Australia in September knocks out electricity to entire state.
• Asthma outbreak in Melbourne in November triggered by thunderstorm ends up causing the death of  8 people, sends 8500 to hospital.

 

Edited December 1, 2016 by Styx

[Styx]

There's no snow left to measure at the exposed Spencer's Creek measuring station ( 1830m ) in the Snowy Mountains, but there's still swathes of big snow patches on the upper slopes of Mount Kosciuszko ( 1900-2200m ). I am not aware of any year that snow patches have survived throughout the summer into the next winter - it just gets too warm.

 

[Summer Sun]

Sydney has recorded its hottest December night on record with a low of 27.1C / 80.8F

The record overnight heat follows a very hot Tuesday when temperatures reached 37.8C / 100F

[tropicbreeze]

A monsoon trough is developing over the Timor and Arafura Seas and is expected to cross the Top End coast Monday/Tuesday. During the week a low is expected to develop in the Arafura Sea and may develop into our the first tropical cyclone of the season.

Although the wet season got off to a good start, my rainfall so far for December is under 7% of average at over half way through the month. But the arrival of the monsoon trough and associated cyclonic activity could push the rainfall back up over average, even if a little windy in the process.

[RJBingham]

Great Lakes Hotels Tassie, earlier today, some Aussies might get a white Christmas

 

[Styx]

Great Lake is at 1000m in Central Tasmania. Looks like the snow fall was persistent overnight because there was a few centimetres covering everything apart from the roads. They had a temperature range of -1-11C. A summer novelty for the recreational fisherman who use the inland lakes and camp there at the hotel. In Hobart the mountain was dusted to about 700m at first and the temperature range was 6-18C.

The white Christmas scenario for the highlands would be nice but it won't be happening this year. Southern Australia is in for a mid-range heatwave beginning around the 25th, warm to hot then very hot, climaxing to possible 40C readings on the mainland coast a day or two later ( Melbourne and Adelaide ). Bad fire conditions coming up. 

 

Edited December 18, 2016 by Styx

[tropicbreeze]

Weather in the north west has been livening up with the development of 2 tropical lows, one in the Timor Sea and the other further out in the Indian Ocean. Time lapse satellite images look quite impressive: www.oceanviewweather.com.au/Satellite/HimawariSatellite-Pilbara.asp

The Timor Sea system was hugging the coast but has now crossed into the Kimberley without reaching tropical cyclone strength. However it's currently bringing high rainfall to the western Top End and eastern Kimberley areas with winds to 120kph around the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf.

The Indian Ocean system is expected to eventually cross the coast between the Kimberley and the Pilbara over the Christmas weekend. Current indications are that it may reach category 3 by landfall. Interaction with the Timor Sea system raises the level of uncertainty.

Meanwhile in the north east of the country rainfall is relatively low.

On another note, we just had a very strong earth tremor, just before 00:30UTC. We normally get tremors here from quakes under the Banda Sea. USGS site has just published details,
 
M6.5 - 278km ENE of Dili East Timor.
Time: 2016-12-21 00:17:15 (UTC)
Location: 7.527°S 127.874°E
Depth: 158.7 km

[Styx]

42.4C in Perth this afternoon - the second hottest December day on record. A stand alone extreme heat day, cooling to the low 30s over the next few days, then the 20s.

Perth's hottest December days since records began in 1897

1. 44.2.....2007

2. 42.4.....2016

3. 42.3....1968

4. 42.2....1904

5. 42.0....1968 again and 1974

[tropicbreeze]

When cyclones start moving around up north heat waves usually start affecting the south.

TC Yvette is still well off the coast but the tropical low that developed in the Timor Sea is over land in the Kimberley. It's bringing heavy rain to the Kimberley and the NT Top End. I've had 143.4mm in the past 48 hours with some places recording up to 200mm in that time. Despite that I'm still only 56% of December average for 71% of the month.

[Styx]

 Here is the situation for Christmas down here. I have superimposed some forecast temperatures from the BOM over a temperature gradient map from their Meteye service...

Mt Wellington/kunanyi ( 1270m ) - behind Hobart - is likely have the coolest officially recorded temperature in the country .. 18C.  It's a 25 minute drive to the top from the city. Albany on the south coast of Western Australia is likely to be the coolest town in the country ( 34,000 people )..

Hobart will have seabreezes but away from the coast it will be up to 10C hotter, the township of Ouse ( pronounced ooze ) has 36C, about 14 up on average. 

Port Augusta in South Australia has 43C, likely to be the hottest town in Australia ( 13,500 people ).

Tropical moisture is streaming into central Australia bringing rain and very cool temperatures. Alice Springs and Uluru have forecast maximums of only  24 and 23C, near 14 down on average. I am thinking those numbers could possibly be record lows for the date?

[tropicbreeze]

The tropical moisture brought in by the low that developed in the Timor Sea is certainly making an impact on the central regions. Wulungurru, situated between the Gibson and Tanami Deserts 23.27S 129.38E,  got 231.6 mm rain in the 24 hours up to 9:00AM this morning. The previous 24 hours they got 55.4 mm. Their average annual rainfall is 274.2 mm.

Minimum and maximum temperatures remained consistently between the mid to low 20's and relative humidity in the high 90's. A nice tropical change to their normal arid desert environment.

[Cakie]

A friend posted this link on Facebook Flash flooding in Central Australia

232mm in 24 hours 

[Styx]

Warm and moderately wet in Australia in 2016 ( 4th warmest +17th wettest ). Tasmania ( warmest + 2nd wettest ).

 

 

 

Edited January 3, 2017 by Styx

[Styx]

There is a widespread and lengthy heatwave over inland eastern Australia which is presently getting some reporting. It is really going to ramp up the national anomaly for the month of January but maximum temperature records are unlikely to be challenged, and it has been hotter for a longer periods in the past. New South Wales has a forecast maximum of 47C at an outback town today which is a very high reading for the state, but it exceeded that mark comfortably during heatwaves in 2013 and 2014. The heat is occasionally reaching the coast with Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne and Adelaide spiking into the mid-upper 30s at times. Overnight temperatures on the other hand are well up everywhere. Sydney has a forecast minimum of 26 into Saturday and 27 into Tuesday ( January record is 26.2C ). 

[CycloneGail]

Well its 11.12pm here in Sydney and is still currently 30.5c, so not very conducive to sleeping.  It looks like it will cool down slightly in time for the weekend, only to ramp back up to full furnace strength again on Monday. Think I need to move back to the UK LOL

Edited January 17, 2017 by CycloneGail

[Styx]

Sydney has recorded its hottest month in 159 years of records ( min: 21.6 max: 29.6 ) representing a 3 degree departure from the long-term average. A four week heatwave covering a good proportion of New South Wales sees numerous locations breaking records for days over 35 or 40C, and consecutive days over 35 or 40C. It would be appropriate to call it historical. Canberra has also recorded its hottest summer month for mean maximum in 78 years of records ( max: 32.9 ), almost 5 degrees above the long-term average.

Elsewhere across the country temperatures have been more moderate. Large cool patches in the west under persistent tropical activity.