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Showers & storms, some intense, are affecting parts of WA's east, SA's north & the NT in a trough. Showers & intense storms for QLD & NSW's north due to another trough. Heat is continuing in the country's north. High pressure is keeping conditions dry and settled elsewhere.
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Today, 2:21AM UTC
Australia could see 10 million lightning strikes this week
Australia is locked into a stormy weather pattern that will generate prolific lightning every day this week, possibly causing around 10 million lightning strikes across the country by week’s end. Monday kicked the week off with more than 1.4 million lightning strikes over the Australian region, some of which were produced by a destructive thunderstorm that tore a roof off a building in Queensland. Image: Lighting over Uluru on Monday, November 11, 2024. Source: @hummerstonneil / Instagram. A combination of abundant atmospheric moisture and a series of low pressure troughs and cold fronts will continue to cause widespread thunderstorm activity over the Australian region each day for the rest of this week. Monday gave an indication of how much lightning the weather pattern currently in place across Australia can produce. There is a good chance that the Australian region will continue to see close to or above 1 million strikes per day for the rest of this week, meaning a weekly lightning count of around 8 to 10 million is likely. Video: Lightning strikes over Uluru on Sunday, November 10, 2024. Source: @lauren_brennecke / Instagram Late-spring is typically an active time for thunderstorms in Australia. Last year, more than 40 million lightning strikes were detected over Australia last November. Image: Observed lightning density in November 2023. Source: Weatherzone Total Lightning Network This November is once again proving to be an incredibly lightning-active month for the Australian region. One reason for this prolific lightning is enhanced atmospheric moisture over the continent, which is a result of: Above-average sea surface temperatures around Australia causing more evaporation A positive Southern Annular Mode (SAM) allowing more moisture to flow over Australia from the east With so much lightning yet to strike over Australia this week, be sure to keep a close eye on the latest severe thunderstorm warnings and fire warnings (lightning can start fires) in your state or territory.
Today, 12:40AM UTC
Outback roofs torn off as gusts exceed 150 km/h
Wind gusts associated with thunderstorms caused some extreme readings on anemometers (wind recording instruments) as well as damage to homes and other structures in some remote Australian locations on Monday. The Queensland town of Julia Creek, about three hours east of Mount Isa, reported a gust of 146 km/h on Monday afternoon during storms that dumped 31.8mm of rain within a couple of hours. A roof was torn off one house, numerous other dwellings reported damage, while many people were left without power, the ABC reported. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-11/qld-julia-creek-bom-winds-outback-storm-damage/104587846 Image: It was the strongest gust at Julia Creek since the weather station commenced wind observations in 2001. But the damaging 146 km/h gust at Julia Creek wasn't even the strongest in outback Australia on Monday. That was the 154 km/h gust recorded around 5:30pm at Woomera, South Australia – the strongest at that site in at least 22 years. As with Julia Creek, Woomera's wildest gusts coincided with heavy rain, with 16mm of rain tumbling down in just 10 minutes, while a further 8.4mm of rain fell later in the evening. The 24-hour total of 24.4mm was the heaviest daily rainfall for 2024 to date at the parched outback RAAF base where the annual average rainfall is just 182.3mm. Meanwhile gusts approaching 100 km/h were also reported at the outback weather stations of Yulara (NT), nearby Giles in WA, and Curtin in the Kimberley region of northwest WA. In total, more than 1.4 million lightning strikes were detected by Weatherzone’s Total Lightning Network on another highly charged day in Australian skies. Why such strong winds in unusual places? When you think of extremely strong winds in Australia, you tend to think of places up north that are subject to tropical cyclones, or places down south that get slammed by Southern Ocean cold fronts, or perhaps even the Tasman Sea coastline during East Coast Lows. All of those types of weather events tend to produce strong sustained winds as well as extreme wind gusts. With thunderstorms, the extreme winds tend to be short-lived as air is expelled in downdrafts during the storm. When a wide area of Australia has the key ingredients for storms – an unstable atmosphere plus an abundance of humidity and warmth – outback regions can cop severe thunderstorms (and the severe gusts that accompany them) just like anywhere else on the continent. Image: Satellite imagery showing the severe thunderstorm developing over Julia Creek in NW Queensland.
11 Nov 2024, 2:41AM UTC
Australia bracing for thunderstorms every day this week
Thunderstorms will develop over large areas of Australia every day this week and likely continue into next week as the country becomes locked into a relentless stormy weather pattern through the middle of November. Thunderstorms require three key ingredients to form: Moisture in the atmosphere An unstable atmosphere A lifting mechanism that causes air to start rising away from the surface These three ingredients will be available in abundance over Australia this week, leading to lots of lightning and thunder. Abnormally warm seas surrounding Australia will help to pump warm and humid air into the atmosphere, while numerous low pressure troughs, cold fronts and mountain ranges will act as triggers for storms. Where will storms occur this week? Early in the week, showers and thunderstorms will target central, eastern, southern and southeastern Australia on Monday and Tuesday. Severe thunderstorms are likely in parts of NSW and Qld on both days and are also possible in other states. Storms will become more focussed on a broad arc stretching across Australia’s eastern and northern states and down into the WA interior through the middle of the week. Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra will all be at risk of severe thunderstorm activity on Wednesday. Showers and thunderstorms will continue then over Australia’s east and north on Thursday and Friday, while also extending towards the south of WA due to the passage of a cold front. This frontal system, combined with deepening low pressure troughs over Australia, will lead to further widespread thunderstorm activity over Australia from this weekend into early next week. Image: Forecast accumulated rain this week, giving an indication of where the rain and storms are expected to occur during the next seven days. Computer models suggest that thunderstorm activity will continue over several Australian states and territories next week as the key ingredients for storms continue to combine over the country. With daily thunderstorms anticipated to affect Australia for the next one-to-two weeks, be sure to keep a close eye on the latest severe thunderstorm warnings in your state or territory each day. Title image: lightning in Surfers Paradise, Qld. Source: iStock / KathyGould