New South Wales has shivered through a frigid start to Friday morning with the state’s interior plunging below zero, with another frosty night ahead.
Conditions in the central tablelands and Riverina regions were so cold it resulted in foggy conditions that were able to be detected by satellite, while in the Australian Capital Territory, temperatures were just -5C at 7am.
The satellite is showing areas of frost in inland #NSW, including #Riverina and #CentralTablelands. with some fog also present as a darker grey colour. Chilly conditions inland tomorrow morning bringing the chance of frost and fog, see your local forecast: https://t.co/SPHgGeA3yx pic.twitter.com/vuTgwSXhSR
— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) July 14, 2022
The coldest temperatures were recorded down near Cooma and Bega which saw -8C, and Goulburn which recorded temperatures of -6C.
The chill extended right up into Queensland, with widespread frosts along southern and central Queensland and as far north as Ravenshoe, west of Innisfail.
Coastal areas were spared the frost with cloud cover keeping temperatures above zero.
The frost was brought by a high pressure system moving over the state that resulted in light winds and clear skies at night.
Current temperatures across #NSWWeather. A chilly start to the morning for the inland areas while along the coast a bit of cloud is keeping temperatures above 0°C. Widespread frost this morning, also possible tomorrow morning. Forecasts: https://t.co/SPHgGeA3yx pic.twitter.com/xTq42hCgWD
— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) July 14, 2022
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned the situation means the cold could continue into Saturday morning.
Weatherzone meteorologist Ben Domensino said the situation was produced by a cold front that moved over Western Australia late last week and has been sweeping across the continent, merging with a cold front over Tasmania.
The system originated in the Southern Ocean before moving north across Australia, and brought similar conditions to Western Australians who shivered through zero-degree temperatures on Wednesday.
“This time of year, you get these periodic bursts of cold air originating over the Southern Ocean,” Domensino said. “It’s cold, but it’s not as cold as it can get.”
“If it comes up all the way from the fringes of Antarctica, we can see low-level snow in northern New South Wales. This time around, we haven’t seen that occurring.”
Meanwhile Darwin residents also “suffered” through their longest run of days and nights below 30C since 2011 earlier this week – though fire warnings were in place for much of the Territory.
#Satellite image from earlier this afternoon shows a Low to the southwest of WA that will be captured by and then merge with a cold front to the bottom left of the image, and brought over #Tasmania on Sunday as a strong cold front. #Snow to around 600m is possible Sunday evening. pic.twitter.com/GsoAzNnW62
— Bureau of Meteorology, Tasmania (@BOM_Tas) July 14, 2022
Domensino said those on the east coast could expect another cold and frosty night on Friday before conditions eased over the weekend as the system moves into the Tasman sea.
But he warned more wintry weather was right around the corner with temperatures expected to drop again on Monday.
“In Sydney, for example, daytime temperatures on Friday and Saturday are forecast to reach about 16C and then climb up to 20C by Sunday but early next week we’re likely to see those maximums dropping back to 16C or 17C,” he said.
