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- Transition to winter ‘remarkably mild’
- 2025 could be hottest year on record
By HARRISON CHRISTIAN FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA
Published: | Updated:
Australia is on track for one of the warmest winters on record, as much of the country enjoys mild temperatures in the lead-up to the cold season.
‘The seasonal transition toward winter has been remarkably mild across Australia,’ Sky News Australia Meteorologist Rob Sharpe said on Thursday.
‘There’s barely been a whiff of winter looming with only a few cool spells. Much of the country has seen summer-like or March-like nights in the past few weeks.’
Mr Sharpe said the two most recent winters in Australia had been the warmest on record, and the current season, which officially starts on June 1, looked similar.
A string of towns in Victoria and Tasmania, including Hobart, recorded their warmest ever May mornings on Monday and Tuesday.
The cause was warmer ocean temperatures, which heavily influence the weather across days, months and seasons. March and April have seen some of the warmest ocean temperatures on record – behind only 2016 – while the previous five months were the warmest.
‘All climate forecasts suggest a warmer than usual winter for the country,’ Mr Sharpe said.
‘It is quite likely this winter will be within the top six warmest on record – with a decent chance of challenging the two most recent.
March and April have seen some of the warmest ocean temperatures on record – behind only 2016 – while the previous five months were the warmest
‘Of course, there will be cold outbreaks just like in the last two winters, but they will almost certainly be less frequent than in the Australia of 70 years ago.’
It comes as 2025 could turn out to be the hottest year the country has ever seen with minimum temperatures for the first four months the warmest recorded.
Taken together, the combination of highs and lows is a little behind the record year of 2019.
But Mr Sharpe believes once May’s data is included, the year to date should become the hottest on record.
The latest forecast from the Bureau of Metereology showed sunny weather in store for Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide weekend, with showers for Sydney. Below is the outlook for major cities over the next few days.
Perth
Thursday: Sunny. Max 30
Friday: Sunny. Min 16 Max 31
Saturday: Cloud clearing. Min 15 Max 26
Showers were forecast for Sydney this weekend, according to the Bureau of Meteorology
Adelaide
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Max 20
Friday: Sunny. Min 7 Max 21
Saturday: Sunny. Min 10 Max 23
Melbourne
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Max 17
Friday: Sunny. Min 7 Max 19
Saturday: Mostly sunny. Min 5 Max 21
Mr Sharpe believes once May’s data is included, the year to date should become the hottest on record
Hobart
Thursday: Showers easing. Max 14
Friday: Cloudy. Min 10 Max 17
Saturday: Partly cloudy. Min 11 Max 18
Canberra
Thursday: Mostly sunny. Max 18
Friday: Morning frost. Sunny. Min -1 Max 19
Saturday: Morning frost. Cloudy. Min -1 Max 20
Minimum temperatures for the first four months of this year have been the warmest recorded
Sydney
Thursday: Shower or two. Max 21
Friday: Showers. Min 13 Max 20
Saturday: Shower or two. Min 14 Max 22
Brisbane
Thursday: Mostly sunny. Max 28
Friday: Possible shower. Min 18 Max 24
Saturday: Shower or two. Min 16 Max 23
Darwin
Thursday: Sunny. Max 33
Friday: Mostly sunny. Min 23 Max 34
Saturday: Mostly sunny. Min 24 Max 34
