Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane weather: Warning issued as polar blast sets in

Freezing air from Antarctica is making for a cold weekend in Australia, with the icy air expected to continue into next week.

The Meteorological Office has warned that temperatures will be up to eight degrees below average for this time of year.

Meteorologists say the arrival of a strong high pressure system in the Tasman Sea will keep the icy air in the southeast well into next week.

‘The icy air is being pulled away from Antarctica this weekend by a cold front moving across the continent’ said Weatherzone.

‘A high pressure system will quickly follow the path of the front and remain over South Australia until at least the middle of next week, prolonging this cold snap.’

There is also a good chance of snow in areas from Tasmania to northern New South Wales, even outside the alpine regions.

Gale-force winds, gusting in excess of 90km/h, are set to hit Tasmania and eastern Victoria on Sunday and Monday, and are expected to spread to New South Wales on Monday.

“The strong winds expected to hit southeastern Australia this weekend could cause trees to fall after a prolonged wet spell left the landscape waterlogged,” Weatherzone said.

‘While winds will remain strong across eastern Australia on Tuesday, they are likely to weaken to damaging strength as the low pressure system moves further east across the Tasman Sea.’

The winds could even reach Sydney and the Illawarra region.

According to Weatherzone, the strengthening low pressure area could lead to large and dangerous waves along the coasts of Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales from the weekend into early next week.

Tasmania and Victoria are also forecast to experience heavy rainfall from the weekend through Wednesday.

Sydney

According to Weatherzone, a shower or two is expected on Friday, but the rain will not be as heavy or frequent as July so far.

Sydney has had four rainy spells of five days or longer so far this year.

From May 1 to 14 it rained for 14 days, from June 30 to July 9 it rained for 11 days, from January 14 to 18 it rained for five days, and from March 15 to 19 it rained for five days.

Five of the six months in 2024 exceeded the monthly average, with June being the wettest month so far this year with 368.4mm of rain.

This was almost three times the long-term average of 131.7 mm.

Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Dean Narramore said Sydney could see a “prolonged break” from the wet weather.

“The sun is finally shining again, not just in Sydney but all over the east coast,” he said.

‘(The showers have) all cleared now, the depression that caused this weather has now moved into Tasmania.’

Meanwhile, snow showers are expected in the NSW Central Tablelands from Sunday or Monday at elevations around 12,000 metres.

Australians can expect some very cold nights as temperatures drop due to the Arctic wind

Melbourne

Victoria is set for a wet weekend with showers expected for the rest of the week.

On Friday, temperatures will hardly rise above 15 degrees, with lows of only 5 degrees.

Meanwhile, snow is expected in higher areas outside the Victorian Alps as a prolonged outbreak of freezing air arrives from Antarctica.

Brisbane

In the Sunshine State, you can expect a cool and dry weekend.

Temperatures will remain below 24 degrees Celsius in the coming days, with lows around 10 degrees Celsius. Next week, temperatures will drop to just 8 degrees Celsius, with highs around 20 degrees Celsius.

The cold snap follows a thick layer of fog that developed over south-east Queensland on Tuesday evening, reducing visibility at Brisbane Airport to less than 200 metres by Wednesday morning.

Canberra

Temperatures in the country’s capital will drop significantly in the coming days. It will remain cloudy and cold, as the air is trapped in a low-pressure area.

The higher parts of the Australian Capital Territory, including the relatively low hills on the outskirts of Canberra and possibly even parts of the city itself, may see some snow over the coming days.

A prolonged outbreak of freezing air originating in Antarctica will cause temperatures to plummet (shown in the image is a map from Weatherzone)

Perth

Cold fronts are moving across Western Australia, bringing heavy rain and showers, with the chance of thunderstorms.

In Perth it will be difficult to get the temperature above 20 degrees Celsius. Saturday we will get some winter sun after a series of cloudy days.

Adelaide

From Saturday, Adelaide will experience very cold weather conditions as a long-lasting cold air current from Antarctica spreads across the southeast.

A high pressure area is expected to remain over the southern parts of the country for the next five days, prolonging the cold weather.

Rain is also expected in Adelaide over the coming days, with highs of 16 degrees Celsius and lows of just 8 degrees Celsius.

Hobart

Tasmanians will face another cold weekend as a low pressure area moves inland from the east coast.

Like Victoria and South Australia, Tasmania is set to experience cold, gusty winds and rain.

Temperatures in Hobart are expected to drop to 3 degrees Celsius on Sunday.

Darwin

Further north, in the Northern Territory, conditions are favourable and sunny.

The rest of the week temperatures will remain between 19°C and 33°C.