Weather in Australia 2023 and up

[Mark]

Felix Levesque
15 Aug 2025, 3:41 PM NZST

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Image: High to extreme fire danger ratings across many northern Australian fire districts on Sunday, August 17, 2025. Source: Weatherzone
Image: High to extreme fire danger ratings across many northern Australian fire districts on Sunday, August 17, 2025. Source: Weatherzone
Increased fire danger across parts of northern Australia, including Darwin, comes with a surge of hot and dry winds from the interior.


75 days without rain

The dry season is living up to its name for Darwin and the Northern Territory, with over 75 days since the last rain recorded in Darwin. This allows the vegetation across northern Australia to dry out and cure – priming it to ignite into a blaze at the smallest of flames.


Hot and dry conditions over the past 10 days have led to multiple bushfires raging across the landscape. One blaze near Katherine, at the intersection of the Victoria and Stuart Highways about a three and a half hours’ drive southeast of Darwin, has been active over the past two weeks.
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/first-extreme-fire-danger-rating-of-the-season-for-darwin/1890804

[Mark]

By April Glover
12:33pm Aug 14, 2025

Perth residents are facing a record-breaking wet winter after rainfall totals edge towards a level not seen in nearly 30 years.
The Western Australia capital's long-term average rainfall for June, July and August are expected to eclipse the most rain Perth has copped since 1996, according to Weatherzone.
Perth has already been drenched with 129.8mm of rain in June and 174.4mm in July – both surpassing the long-term averages for the usually sunny city.

Perth rain and wild weather
The rainfall streak will continue across WA for the remainder of August. (Weatherzone)


There has been 88.8mm of rainfall so far in August.
The halfway point of the month is nearing and the total just needs to beat 122.7mm to break the 1996 record.
The rainfall streak is forecast continue across WA for the remainder of August.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/perth-weather-record-monthly-rainfall-in-west-australian-capital/57b39733-45d2-4737-9997-442f19905339

[Mark]

On August 18, Thredbo Top Station in New South Wales plunged to -13.2C (8.2F), more than 3C (5.4F) colder than any night this year.

More than that, it was also NSW’s coldest reading in more than seven years, and the nation’s lowest since Liawenee, Tasmania, set a state record at -13.5C (7.7F) in July 2024.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/australia-freezes-at-132c-snow-in

[Mark]

Australia’s Snowy Mountains are in the grip of a rescue-heavy winter, with crews already handling more than triple the call-outs of last year.

Heavy early dumps set the tone in June, with blizzards dropping 50–70 cm (20–28 inches) across the ranges and Perisher stacking up a 90 cm (35 inches) base by August — described by locals as the best cover seen in years.

Visitor numbers have surged with the conditions, and so have accidents: 14 rescues so far this season, compared with just four in 2024.

Deputy Zone Commander Matt Price: “Facing one of our most active snow seasons in years, our alpine volunteers have shown exceptional skill in very challenging conditions.”

Police Commander Toby Lindsay warned too many were still heading out unprepared: “There is no such thing as being too prepared. A Personal Locator Beacon can be the difference between life and death.”

Emergency services this week staged a joint alpine rescue drill at Perisher, bracing for more incidents as snow continues to pile up into the back half of the season.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/aussie-alpine-rescues-up-cold-freezes

[Mark]

Warragamba Dam in Sydney's outer south west has begun to spill, as the recent torrential rainfall in New South Wales fills it to the brim.
WaterNSW said in a statement that the dam, in the Wollondilly Shire south-west of Sydney, started to spill at 1pm.
Around 30 gigalitres - or 30 billion litres, is anticipated to spill each day at its peak.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-nsw-rain-flood-risk-forecast-warnings-updates/01a8b26d-c110-46a6-8f1e-dcec52c7bd7e

[Mark]

Spring weather this year is expected to be influenced by several broad-scale features:


A negative Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is expected to emerge to the northwest of Australia this spring, increasing the amount of moisture-laden air flowing over Australia from the tropical Indian Ocean.
The Pacific Ocean is expected to stay in a neutral phase this spring (neither La Niña nor El Niño), although a weak La Niña-like pattern may develop.
Sea surface temperatures in the Australian region are expected to be warmer than average throughout spring. These relatively warm waters will help supply additional atmospheric moisture for rain and clouds over the Australian continent this spring.
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/wet-spring-on-the-way-for-large-parts-of-australia/1890796

[Mark]

Perth endured its coldest day in half a century.

On Monday, Western Australia's capital city posted a maximum of just 11.4C (52F) — the city’s coldest day since July 1975.

Temperatures across the western parts of the state held 5–10C below average, with some towns barely climbing into single digits.

A lingering pool of polar air, coupled with heavy cloud cover, kept the chill locked in.

The chill capped what has been Perth’s wettest winter, overall, since 2000, with the city surpassing its average rainfall in June, July, and August — the first time that’s happened since 1996.

According to the BOM's pre-season outlook, Perth was to expect a "drier-than-usual" winter and a "warmer-than-average" one and all. Wrong again.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/perths-coldest-day-in-50-years-antarctica

[Mark]

Australia has seen one of its snowiest seasons of the century, with a fresh Antarctic blast this week delivering even more.

Resorts are already reporting up to 30 cm (12 in) in the first 24 hours of the storm’s onset, with another 40–50 cm (16–20 in) forecast across the higher ranges. That will push storm totals on the upper slopes close to 1 m (3.3 ft) by Saturday, adding to season accumulations already around 3 m (10 ft) — levels not seen in years.

The Bureau of Meteorology had forecast a weak snow year back in May. Instead, Aussie ski fields are logging bumper levels.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/snow-piles-up-in-the-australian-alps

[Mark]

Ski resorts in Tasmania and on the mainland are celebrating a bumper snowstorm this weekend, as a frigid airmass originating in Antarctica was pushed north over southern Australia overnight, dumping fresh powder over alpine ranges. 


In Tasmania, Ben Lomond Alpine Resort reported at least 15 cm of fresh snow overnight, while Mount Mawson reported around 5-10 cm in the past 24 hours. 


On the mainland, though, there was even more cause to celebrate.


Resorts across the Vic and NSW alpine ranges, all received 20-26 cm of fresh snow in the 24 hours to 9am today. This bumper crop helped Perisher crack the 2-metre mark in total snow depth, with a 2.1 m depth now recorded over the course of the 2025 snow season. There were even reports of people being snowed in at Perisher this morning. Meanwhile, Falls Creek experienced its lowest maximum temperature in four years today in that frigid air, with the mercury rising to only -3°C.


But if you thought it was only the alpine regions that received a healthy dose of powder with this system, think again. In Tasmania, kunanyi/Mount Wellington, just outside of Hobart, was turned white, making for a beautiful winter scene on the summit’s webcam. 
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/gusty-polar-blast-turns-southeast-australia-snow-white-/1890843

[Mark]

Parts of Australia that have received a soaking this month may not get much of a reprieve, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
The Bureau just issued the long-range forecast for the 2025 spring season, which confirmed that most of eastern Australia - including Sydney - is expected to exceed median rainfall between September and December.

The east coast and central Australia will cop the worst of it, with increased flood risks in east NSW and south east Queensland during periods of heavy rain.
Above average rainfall is likely across NSW and the ACT, with Sydney expecting a 65 per cent chance of receiving above average rain in the month of October.

Sydneysiders will get little relief from the rain this spring. (Sitthixay Ditthavong)
The west season is expected to start earlier than usual in Queensland and the NT, both of which have an 80 per cent chance of receiving more rain than usual.
SA, Victoria, and eastern parts of Tasmania are also expecting above average rainfall.
But some parts of the country will escape the downpour
Parts of southern WA, including Perth, have up to an 80 per cent chance of having lower rainfall over the spring months.
The wet season is also predicted to start later there.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/spring-weather-forecast-australia-2025-what-to-expect-everything-to-know-explainer/3e51b48f-caf0-474c-8466-2a6a38451a18

[Mark]

A blizzard has buried Australia’s ski fields under some of the deepest snow in years.

Resorts across the Aussies Alps logged equally impressive totals: Mount Buller in Victoria received 53 cm (21 in) in just two days. Hotham posted 77 cm (30 in), Thredbo 71 cm (28 in), Perisher 67 cm (26 in), Charlotte Pass 70 cm (28 in), Falls Creek 69 cm (27 in), and Buller 62 cm (24 in). Snow even reached lower elevations west of Sydney: "the most significant fall in years," said the locals.




The Antarctic blast delivered temperatures of -5C (23F) and winds strong enough to put chairlifts on hold. Once skies cleared, Perisher reported “perfect winter” conditions, with 87 freshly groomed runs and packed powder across the slopes.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/massive-end-of-winter-snow-buries

[Mark]

Kununurra, in northern Western Australia, posted 8.7C (47.7F) on Sept 4 — its coldest September temp ever recorded.

Looking at the GFS (maps below), there's a lot more to come.

Latest runs show an outbreak of blues and purples engulfing much of the continent Sept 10, driving anomalies well below the 1981–2010 norm.



GFS 2m Temperature Anomalies (C) Sept 10 [tropicaltidbits.com]

The cold is set to expand from WA into SA, Victoria, Tasmania, and New South Wales, bringing widespread frosts and likely additional cold records. Even Queensland isn’t spared, with models pointing to sub-seasonal lows spilling into the state’s interior.
https://electroverse.substack.com/p/australia-turns-blue-records-continue

[Mark]

What is the Indian Ocean Dipole?

The Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is a climate driver that involves the movement and location of warmer and colder waters along the equator in the Indian Ocean. These ocean movements have a corresponding effect on the atmosphere above those waters, that change the regional rainfall patterns.


A negative IOD is associated with warmer waters near Indonesia, and cooler waters near the Horn of Africa. The atmosphere responds by increasing convection near Indonesia, that then flow through to Australia and typically increase rainfall over much of the west and southeast of the country via northwest cloudbands. So far this century, there have been four negative IODs: 2010, 2016, 2021 and 2022.

https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/negative-indian-ocean-dipole-a-nearcertainty-to-develop/1890850

[Mark]

Major cities in south-east Australia will briefly experience warmer temperatures this weekend.
Sydney will hit 21 degrees on Sunday and 27 degrees by Monday, whilst Melbourne, Adelaide, Hobart and Canberra will also experience temperatures in the early-mid twenties over the next few days according to Weatherzone.
The warmer weather is due to northerly winds pushing warmer wind from the interior of the country southwards, giving Aussies in the south-east some sunshine and warmth after a wet August.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/weather-forecast-australia-sydney-melbourne-south-east-warmer-temperatures-spring/57571e88-82df-4777-9661-61d6cd7f547f

[Mark]

Rain is set to ease along eastern New South Wales from later this morning, but strong winds are expected to batter the coast.
The Bureau of Meteorology yesterday forecast that from about mid-morning, the low-pressure system that brought yet another soaking to the state would start to move away from the coast, drawing a lot of the rain with it.
"By the later part of the day, and certainly going into Friday, we're looking at much drier conditions across the mainland," senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/nsw-weather-forecast-rain-winds-storms-updates/7d045c24-8f1a-4432-8913-46813259c219

[Mark]

Severe thunderstorms brought large hail and heavy rain to southeast Queensland’s Wide Bay and Burnett forecast district on the afternoon of Thursday, October 2, 2025.


Skies were clear at midday with light sea breezes, but as as an upper trough moved over southern Queensland. in the afternoon, the combination of warm and humid conditions at the surface with colder temperatures aloft provided all the elements for an explosive afternoon.


Explosive convection near Childers

Satellite imagery from Thursday shows late morning cumulus cloud with cloud top heights of just over 1,500m rapidly exploding upwards to nearly 10,000m near Childers – roughly halfway between Bundaberg and Maryborough – within a space of just half an hour or so.
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/severe-thunderstorms-with-giant-hailstones-lash-parts-of-se-queensland/1890917

[Mark]

Queensland's capital is set to swelter under its hottest October day in years.
The temperature in Brisbane is forecast today to rise more than 9 degrees above the average for this time of year, as the mercury soars to 35 degrees.
Brisbane will be Australia's warmest capital city, while areas including Ipswich, Gympie and Logan will reach the mid-30s.
READ MORE: A wild party broke out at Elaine's house. Weeks later, she vanished
Brisbane temperature
The temperature in Brisbane is forecast today to rise more than 9 degrees more than the average for this time of year today. (Windy.com)
Rockhampton is expected to push 39 degrees.
If today's temperature reaches 35 degrees, it will be the warmest October day for Brisbane since 2021.
Tomorrow and Saturday are forecast to be a little cooler, but temperatures will still in the high 20s.

Sydney is also facing a scorching start to October after its second-hottest September ever.
Last month was a month of extremes for the NSW capital, which endured its wettest September day in 146 years early in September, according to Weatherzone.
The weather reporting site also said the month as a whole was the second-warmest September siince 1858, when weather records began.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-second-hottest-september-on-record-hot-start-to-october-coming/22099183-91e6-49c1-adc1-1395cdc6255c

[Mark]

Wild winds on Friday morning have prompted severe weather warnings for damaging or destructive winds in SA, Vic, NSW, Tasmania and the ACT, as a cold front surges over southeastern Australia.


The engine driving the severe weather is a strong low pressure system over the Southern Ocean, and while the low is centred well south of Tasmania, the winds circulating it are still strong enough to lash that state and southeastern parts of the mainland.


Not long after sunrise on Friday, a gust of 120 km/h was recorded at Mt William in Victoria’s Grampians,
A short while later, a gust of 139 km/h was recorded at Scotts Peak in Tasmania's southwest, marking the sixth straight day when Scotts Peak’s strongest wind gust exceeded 100 km/h.
Friday's strongest gust of 163 km/h came at 3:00pm (AEDT) at the notoriously windy Maatsuyker Island on the the southern tip of Tasmania.

Like Scotts Peak, Maatsuyker Island has also seen six days of remarkably strong winds, with a sequence of peak gusts from Sunday through to Friday morning of 139 km/h, 137 km/h, 133 km/h, 135 km/h, 113 km/h and 163 km/h.
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/severe-weather-warnings-in-five-states-as-wind-gusts-to-163-kmh-in-tasmania/1890931

[Mark]

Thunderstorms stretching more than 800 km across NSW caused large hail and prolific lightning on Friday.


Warm and humid air interacting with an unstable atmosphere and a broad low pressure trough produced widespread and intense thunderstorm activity over NSW on Friday.


While a few storms were rumbling across NSW in the morning, the day’s heat was the key ingredient that caused the storms to spread out and intensify in the afternoon.





Image: A storm cell off Sydney’s Northern Beaches on Friday afternoon. Source: Felix Levesque.


At 3pm there were multiple storm cells building over central and northern NSW and by 6pm, storms were stretching more than 800 km from Sydney to the state’s northern inland. Storms also spread north of Sydney up through the Mid North Coast throughout Friday afternoon.


Around 400,000 lightning strikes were detected within a 500 km radius of Dubbo between 2pm and 7pm on Friday. Of these, around 70,000 were cloud-to-ground strikes and the rest were cloud-to-cloud strikes
https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/severe-storms-pummel-nsw-with-400000-lightning-strikes-in-five-hours/1890949

[Mark]

A large area of outback heat that is set to increase over the weekend and days after could cause record high temperatures across three states.
Weatherzone reports that South Australia, Queensland, NSW, and the ACT could all break their heat records for October, with temperatures expected to reach the mid-40s.
Over the past week, Western Australia's north-west saw a large buildup of hot air that is now spreading across the country.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/record-heat-set-to-hit-three-states-october/a6114dca-4ae5-446e-8765-48d5aa6ffcbf