Rain and thunderstorms will soak most of Australia during the next 10 days as the developing La Niña makes its presence felt. Abundant tropical moisture feeding into a series of low pressure troughs will cause rain and storms across multiple Australian states every day between now and at least Friday next week. This soaking […]
November 2nd 2021 Monday, November 1st, marked the start of Australia’s 2021/22 tropical cyclone season, which will run for the next six months until the end of April. As we pointed out last week, Australia can expect a near to slightly above average number of tropical cyclones this season, which means about 12 to 13 instead […]
The official tropical cyclone season runs for six months, from November through to April. This is the time of year when conditions are most suitable for cyclones to develop near northern Australia. Tropical cyclones are intense low-pressure systems that draw their energy from warm tropical waters, typically when the sea surface temperature is above 26.5°C. Once above this threshold, each degree of warming provides additional energy for developing tropical cyclones. Warmer oceans around […]
A strong cold front passing through WA today will cause temperatures to plummet across southwestern WA today. The front will also elevate winds, and bring large surf to the western coastline during the next few days. The satellite image below shows the cold front crossing the nation’s southwest on Monday morning. The front is […]
Australia’s 2021/22 tropical cyclone season starts in just under two weeks. So, how many tropical cyclones will we see this season and what will they be called? The Australian tropical cyclone season officially runs from November 1st to April 30th. During this six-month period, we usually see around 9 to 11 tropical cyclones in […]
A strong cold front and a river of atmospheric moisture will interact to cause powerful winds, widespread rain and potentially severe thunderstorms in WA during the next 24 hours. The satellite image below shows a large cloud band stretching from WA out across the Indian Ocean on Tuesday morning, reaching all the way to […]
When severe thunderstorms are already hitting parts of central Queensland at 8am, you know it’s going to be a big day. A perfect mixture of thunderstorm-producing ingredients will come together across central and southeast Queensland on Monday: Warm and moisture-laden air near the surface will provide fuel for storm development. Cold air aloft will create […]
A dynamic cut-off low pressure system will produce a dangerous mix of severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, hail and snow over parts of southern and eastern Australia during the next four days. The low can be seen spinning above the Great Australia Bight in the sequence of satellite images below, which was captured by the […]
The likelihood of La Niña occurring this summer has increased to 70 percent, prompting the Bureau of Meteorology to issue a La Niña Alert on Tuesday. Over the past few months, sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean have been getting abnormally cool. This oceanic cooling has also been accompanied […]
Australia’s tropical cyclone season is officially underway, but we may not see much activity for few months yet. The season runs from November to April, and for mining operators and businesses across northern Australia, 2026-27 is shaping up to be a season where the headline numbers and the real risk may not line up. On […]
A positive Indian Ocean Dipole is underway, but this one is unlikely to deliver the textbook dry spring and summer that businesses have come to expect from the pattern. The Bureau of Meteorology officially declared a positive IOD on Tuesday, October 27, which typically like El Niño can cause drier and warmer conditions over parts of […]
Waters off Indonesia have cooled in recent weeks, an indication that a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) event could be developing. It’s an important climate driver for Australia, and it could shape rainfall and temperatures heading into summer, with flow-on effects for farmers, energy and other industries. What is the Indian Ocean Dipole? The IOD […]
Leonora, WA, had its wettest September day on record earlier this month. Three weeks later, more than 1.3 million lightning pulses were detected within 800 km of the town in 48 hours. Why is a stalled trough delivering storms to mining country, and what it could mean for operations? The DTN Total Lightning Network detected […]
