Australia weather: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth: Cyclone and rain forcast
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Intense heat, heavy downpours EVERYWHERE and an entire state under cyclone threat – a single map reveals the weather chaos set to hit Australia in the coming days – here’s the forecast for your city
- North Queensland sees little relief from torrential rains
- Australian capitals will receive sweltering heat followed by storms
- Tropical lows create the risk of a cyclone forming later in the week
Australia is bracing for a wild week of weather extremes as sweltering heat gives way to torrential rain and the threat of a major tropical cyclone.
Every state in the nation will be affected by a deluge in the coming days, with an extraordinary radar image forecasting rain on almost every inch of the continent on Sunday.
Only a small area inside will be spared from the downpour.
Despite wet weather and severe storm warnings, temperatures are forecast to be hot and sweaty as warning air descends from the inland before a cold front approaches out to sea.
This rain map shows that Australia will receive downpours in all states and territories on Sunday.
Pedestrians brave rain and cold weather in Sydney’s CBD on January 6, 2023
“The mercury is likely to hit the mid to high thirty degrees in Adelaide and Melbourne on Tuesday and could also hit the low thirty degrees in Hobart, Canberra and Sydney on Tuesday or Wednesday,” Weatherzone’s Ben Domensino said.
“This week could feature Sydney’s first day above 30C since February 2021, ending the city’s second-longest stretch without a 30C day on record dating back to 1859.”
Further north, large parts of North Queensland already cut off by flooding will continue to be bombarded with heavy rain from a massive low pressure system settling out to sea.
“While it is too soon to know how any of these lows will behave yet, there is an increased risk of tropical cyclone development in and around the Coral Sea beginning Thursday,” Domensino said.
The Met Office recently warned all Queenslanders to be on high alert for cyclones until May.
Sydney, where these two walk Bondi Beach, may have its first day above 30C in almost a year.
Southern capitals are poised for sweltering heat in the coming days before a cold front brings storms and rain.
Professor Iain MacKenzie, an expert in disaster management and response, said that as the wetter-than-normal weather patterns of La Niñas continue to ease, the risk of devastating cyclones is increasing dramatically.
“If you live anywhere along the Queensland coast you should expect cyclonic conditions at some point, they are moving further south,” MacKenzie told the Courier Mail.
“We shouldn’t be too worried or excited when the conditions are for a certain number of cyclones because it only takes one to cause devastation, be prepared every season.
‘Know what the cyclone ratings are and what your home can withstand, know where you’re going in the event of a cyclone, how you’ll get there, and let friends and family know if you’re staying with them. ‘
Townsville residents show there is a silver lining to all the rain the region is getting, with the rain set to continue
Meanwhile, as the cold front moves south over the next few days, it may bring severe thunderstorms to southern Australia, Victoria and southwestern New South Wales.
Canberra and Sydney may receive the brunt of the storms on Wednesday night.
Western Australia and the Northern Territory will also have to battle with heavy rain and storms forecast for the next few days.
“Rain and thunderstorms will continue over the northern parts of Qld, NT and WA through the first half of this week as a broad trough of low pressure persists over northern Australia,” Domensino said.
“This shower and storm activity will spread further over WA by mid-week as tropical moisture feeds into a deeper depression near the nation’s west coast.”