Parts of western Sydney just had their hottest January on record for the second year in a row. The start of 2018 saw no shortage of hot and humid days in Sydney, thanks to a lack of strong cold fronts and extended periods of northerly winds. A number of western suburbs registered their highest average maximum temperature on record for January, including Richmond (34.2C) and Penrith (34.8C). Richmond's historical record stretches back to the early 1900's. For Penrith, last month's maximum temperature was 0.95 of a degree above the previous record set during January 2017, with data available back to 1995. The notably warm month also featured Sydney's highest temperature since 1939, when Penrith reached a sweltering 47.3 degrees. While records weren't broken in the city, it was far from a mild month. The average maximum temperature at Observatory Hill was 27.9 degrees, making it the second warmest January in 24 years, behind 2017. The city also experienced its warmest, most humid week in 15 years towards the end of the month.