Australia is a land of extremes and wild swings in the weather are part of the package when living down under. But even by Aussie standards, this weekend will feature an impressive temperature range across the country.

A mass of cold air will linger over southeastern Australia during the weekend behind a series of cold fronts. Meanwhile, clear skies over northwestern Australia are causing a build-up of heat in WA's Pilbara and Kimberley districts, which happens at this time every year.

Forecasts suggest that there will be a 50-degree temperature range across Australia on Saturday. Minimum temperatures are expected to reach as low as minus six degrees in the NSW alps during the morning, while maximums are tipped to reach 44 degrees in parts of the Pilbara.

Image: A computer model's forecast of surface temperatures across Australia on Saturday afternoon.

The mix of hot and cold air masses over Australia is also likely to cause snow and catastrophic fire danger ratings on the same day. 

This wouldn't be the first time temperatures have ranged by 50 degrees in Australia. Last spring, Thredbo Top Station in NSW registered a low of -10 degrees on the same day WA's Kununurra reached a hot 40 degrees.

Big temperature ranges are common in Australia during spring, as wintry air masses moving up from the Southern Ocean interact with heat building over tour large continent.