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1-2-12, Wednesday 5pm: Mt Boyce AWS tells us that the average minimum temperature for January was 12.4C, which is 0.8C below the average. The average maximum temperature for January was 21.3C, which is -2.7C below the average. Rainfall for January was 152mm, which is well above the average of 116.5mm. Blackheath's coldest maximum for January was 15C on the 14th and the 3rd of January produce our hottest day at 29.4C. Our wettest day was on the 26th with 45.4mm.
Katoomba came in at 12.9C for the average minimum which is right on the long term average and 21.4C for the average maximum, which is -1.9C below the long term average. Rainfall recorded for January at Katoomba was 205.4mm which is also well above the long term average of 157.9mm. Will February continue this chilly trend, its always hard to say but the chances are better than average this summer...
15-1-12, Sunday 10am: Katoomba ended up recording its lowest January minimum in more than fifty years on the 12-1-12, with a 4.2C. NB: Minimum records actually date back to 1957 for Katoomba but some years are apparently missing data, so it actually covers forty eight years of data since 1957. Mt Boyce broke its twenty year record, with a 4.5C. More news here.
12-1-12, Thursday 8am: A very cold start to the morning, for January. Looks like we have broken a twenty year record at Mt Boyce for coldest ever minimum in January (to be confirmed) and the longer term records at Katoomba weather station show we are very close to breaking the January minimum record there. View a summer snow, YouTube video, at Charlotte Pass here.
12-1-12, Thursday 7am: Thanks to Homer from Weatherzone forums for the above YouTube video and the following flickr image of snow at Charlotte Pass, here.
6-1-12, Friday 9am: Blackheath didn't see any major storms last evening although there was a lot of lightning. There certainly were some strong storms across the Central Tablelands last night with a tornado causing damage to boats on Lake Burrendong, the popular holiday area north of Orange. All boats have now been found after a rescue helicopter search and Police, SES and volunteers assisted. Winds reached 90kph in Parkes and also near Trangie where trees and powerlines were brought down. The winds at Lake Burrendong were likely much stronger than 90kph. Tornadoes do occur in Australia although they are usually under 160kph wind speed and only very rarely get as strong as some of the tornadoes in the USA etc. Read more here.
The following link is a strong Tornado that occured in 2008 in Australia, click here for image.
22-12-11, Thursday 9am: The amazing cold we've experienced this summer continues with December average maximum temps currently 6.1C below average, based on the long term averages from the Katoomba site. December average minimums are 3C below average. Even though it has felt constantly wet, the Katoomba recorded rainfall so far for December is only a little above the average at 140.6mm (average 121.8mm). Mt Boyce AWS has currently recorded 93mm and the average is 78.1mm for December. Its just that we've had constant drizzle, mist or rain from easterly winds, rather than the typical heavy bursts from storms then back to sunshine again, which is the more usual experience in summer.
Currently our average maximum temps for December are colder than those of November and October this year and nearly as cold as September. That is a very rare occurence. Still, there is more than a week to go of December, so it may still turn out slightly warmer than October. There are signs of some warmth coming later in this month and into January, so lets hope its not just a sign but a reality as we move into the new year.
Its not just the Blue Mountains that has seen summer chill, Sydney is going through one of its coldest Decembers in recorded history and it may even turn out as the coldest December ever, down in the city. Meanwhile, over in Western Australia, it appears Roebourne has recorded the states hottest ever day, yesterday, at 49C. Still to be confirmed.
12-12-11, Monday, 1pm: 16mm in my gauge for the 24 hours to 9am today after that storm approached from the south yesterday, not much lightning from it though. That's 57.5mm for December, so far, from my gauge. We could still get decent showers from today's low off the coast but the chances are lessening as the day goes on. Check out this photo from yesterday's storm action that brought around 125mm, south of Bethungra in NSW. Click here.
8-12-11, Thursday 8am: The cold start to summer continues with Mt Boyce AWS showing our current average maximum for December is running at more than 7C below average. Minimums are currently around 6C below the average. Further north in Brisbane, it looks like they may have had their coldest December day in 123 years at 19.1C, according to Weatherzone. In the short term, this chilly weather looks set to continue. Don't worry, we will get warmth at some point, its just a little hard to believe that, when you have the heater on and are wearing two jumpers in summer!
5-12-11, Monday 5pm: A chilly start to summer! We recorded our coldest ever December minimum this morning with 2C at Mt Boyce. There was a good frost at Sunny Corner too where it reached 2.2C. The Katoomba minimum of 2C looks like it is an all-time record for December in seventy five years of records. This is yet to be confirmed. Sydney is also set to achieve its coolest summer in fifty one years over the next few days, according to Weatherzone. Stay tuned.
5-12-11, Monday 9am: November was a wet month, thanks to the trough system we had at the end of the month. It would have been a below average month if not for that strong system. Mt Boyce AWS recorded 173.8mm for the month, which is around 70mm more than the average. Average maximum and minimum temps were 21.3C and 11.5C, which is +1.7C and +2C above the average, respectively. Katoomba recorded 180.8mm for the month, the average being 107mm. Katoomba's maximum and minimum averages for the month were 21.8C and 12.1C, which is +1.7C and +2.4C above the long term average, respectively.
30-11-11, Wednesday 10am: Check out some of Greg Sorenson's fantastic lightning photos from yesterday's action in NSW. Click here.
It pretty much played out as expected on Tuesday, some isolated storms up this way but nothing much for the Blue Mountains. That should change today with a higher chance of storms moving over the Blue Mountains. I'd rate it a 60% to 70% chance. Its possible (about a 15% chance) they could be severe storms (hail 2cm or larger, damaging winds, flash flooding) although the most likely outcome is light to moderate showers with the possibility of thunder/lightning. Keep an eye on the warnings and radar, in case a rogue storm or two comes this way.
29-11-11, Tuesday 10am: Some more nice sunshine today although winds are notably fresher. This wind shear may help storms make the passage from further inland to the Blue Mountains today although the weather balloon soundings from Wagga and Sydney show a lack of mid and lower level moisture. So, it should cloud over by this afternoon and winds could freshen but I would only rate it a 30% chance of significant storms. Still, the potential is there for hail or isolated flash flooding so be careful.
28-11-11, Monday midday: Some lovely sunshine today, giving us a welcome respite from all of that rain. There is another approaching trough (not unusual for spring/summer) that should reach us by later tomorrow or into Wednesday. Its unlikely to produce anything like the last event but there could be some notable storms and/or showers at times across the central tablelands. Tassie should also see snow by the first day of summer atop Mt Wellington, with the front associated with this trough.