WE ARE at the start of what many are hoping won't be a dry July after parts of NSW experienced their lowest June rainfall on record.
Abnormally high pressure over southern Australia and an associated lack of cold fronts last month saw large swathes of NSW register below average rainfall, warmer than usual days and notably nippy nights.
Most inland areas of NSW received below average rainfall during June, with the state’s southern districts hit hardest.
It was the driest June on record for Deniliquin (1.8mm), Urana (1.6mm), Tumbarumba (5.2mm), Corowa (3.7mm), Tucomwal (1.8mm), Culcairn (5.6mm) and the Riverina as a whole, in more than 100 years of observational history.
NSW had its driest June since 2002 and the 26th driest in 118 years.
This ranking was influenced by above-average rainfall along the eastern seaboard and the Murray-Darling Basin’s driest June since 1986. Canberra (2.4mm) also registered its driest June on record.
The average daytime maximum temperature was warmer than usual for most of NSW during June, which was to be expected from the lack of strong cold fronts.
It was the state’s warmest June in nine years based on maximum temperatures, with Bathurst, Dubbo and Walgett all experiencing their warmest June days in more than 20 years.
In contrast to the warm days, overnight minimum temperatures were below average for most of NSW, particularly in the south and west.
Unusually high pressure over the state caused clearer than usual skies and lighter winds, which allowed daytime heat to escape easily during nighttime hours.
It was the state’s coldest June in 10 years based on minimums, while Wagga Wagga (-0.1C), Condobolin (0.2C), Tucomwal (1.2C) and Corowa (0.3C) all had their coldest June nights on record.
So after a dry June with warm days and cool nights in many areas, what can we expect heading into July?
The start of the month has already thrown out some bone-numbing low temperatures, with widespread severe frost affecting a number of districts last weekend.
Canberra dropped below minus seven degrees for the first three mornings of this month, which was its coldest start to July on record and the coldest string of mornings in 46 years.
Fronts have become a bit more active in Australia this week, which has temporarily eased the frostiness and is bringing welcome rain and snow to the thirsty south. Albury registered 33mm of rain during the first five days of the month, which is four times more than all of June.
Looking ahead, further fronts will bring rain and snow to southern districts again between Friday and Sunday, although another dominant high looks to bring a return of drier days and cold nights west of the ranges for the majority of next week.
