The Top End and the northern region of Western Australia had its warmest July on record - the previous warmest July recorded was in 1988.

Earlier this year, the Top End experienced its warmest and driest wet season since 1992.

This unusual set up is not likely to promote any significant rainfall in the Albury-Wodonga region for a while yet.

The April to July rainfall at most locations has been well below normal this year.

For locations north of Forbes, it was the third successive very dry April to July period on record.

At Coonabarabran, the April to July rainfall for the past three years was 34.6mm, 30.3mm and 62mm against the long-term average of 220mm.

In Coonabarabran, the current bad drought conditions are now continuing for the third successive year, with no prospects of heavy rain until 2021.

From rainfall records, there were only seven other very dry April to July periods with less than 75mm rainfalls.

These were 26.9mm in 1902, 68mm in 1946, 50mm in 1965, 67mm in 1972, 73.8mm in 1982, 52.8mm in 1994 and 68.2mm in 2002.

More than half of these occurred over the past 47 years, however, the driest period was recorded in 1902.

Coonabarabran has experienced its third successive July, with daily maximum temperatures two degrees above normal and many other nearby centres have also recorded this temperature pattern.

This temperature pattern for July has never occurred before in the last 130 years although there were a few individual warmer months of July from 1880 to 1885.

Further south into Victoria, frequent frontal passages have kept daily maxima nearer to normal.

August has commenced with colder days, fogs and also low minimum temperatures.

Mudgee recorded minus six last Sunday morning, August 4 - its coldest August morning since 1995.