Locations that enjoyed warmer than normal days during the first week of July are now enduring a cold change, with a series of cold fronts, showery periods and strong winds.
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The first week of July saw some unusual weather events, as a large high-pressure system moved southward across the Albury-Wodonga region and then took up a position south of Tasmania, becoming very intense - the central pressure 1042 mbs.
At the same time, an upper-level disturbance brought heavy rain to coastal Queensland between Rockhampton and Townsville. Mackay recorded 83mm from July 5 to 7.
This upper-level system moved to inland Queensland but weakened and very few places recorded more than 5mm of rain.
However, a warm humid north-east air mass was transported southwards into the Albury-Wodonga region on Friday, July 5 and also to around Adelaide, which last Saturday recorded a minimum temperature of 16.0 degrees. This was easily a record high for early July and was only one degree less than the record high minimum of 17.0 which occurred at the end of July 1975.
The day's maximum temperature last Saturday at Adelaide reached 21.8 degrees and this just pipped the 21.7 record for early July in 1933. There was actually widespread rain in the Albury-Wodonga region in July 1933 and again in early August 1975.
Quite a few places in the region have experienced notably above- normal maximum temperatures for the first week of July.
Moree has experienced its warmest first week of July on record, the mean maximum of 23.6 was more than five degrees above normal. The previous warmest first week of July was 22.5 in 1959 and before that in 1918 and 1911.
Coonabarabran, Narrabri and Dubbo all had maximum temperatures for the first week of July four degrees above normal and the warmest since 1994 - a notable drought year.
Maximum temperatures in North East Victoria and the Riverina during the first week of July were only about 1.5 degrees above normal but there were a few morning frosts with minimum temperatures below normal. Cloud and light showers in outback Queensland kept temperatures closer to normal.
It is also very dry in Eastern Tasmania despite the western part of Tasmania being excessively wet the past two months. Hobart has had only 144mm this year to date, the driest since 1967.
