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Unstable air brings a few showers to western Tas, southeast SA, southwest Vic and southern inland WA, with thunderstorms developing over WA. Tropical moisture is also producing patchy rain in northwest WA. Mostly dry elsewhere under high pressure.
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Today, 2:08AM UTC
More than half a metre of fresh snow likely at high elevations of the Australian Alps
Fresh snow, and plenty of it, is coming to the Australian high country in a prolonged snowfall event which is set to persist from Sunday through to next Thursday. This looks like being a classic winter pattern, where the arrival of the first cold front is preceded by warm air and a few hours of rain across the mountains, before a southwesterly stream establishes, potentially enabling multiple bursts of fresh snow over several days. All told, this system has the potential to deliver more than half a metre of fresh snow at elevations around 1800 metres, with heavier accumulations possible on the nation’s highest peaks between 1800 metres and 2228 metres (the height of Mt Kosciuszko). Let’s break this event down into two distinct phases: Phase one: rain, then snow at high elevations from Sunday into Monday Image: Precipitable water and mean sea level pressure for Australia predicted for 4 pm (AEST) on Sunday, August 9, 2026. Source: Weatherzone. On Sunday, the cold front approaches southeastern Australia. A strong pressure gradient between the outgoing high pressure system and the low pressure system centred over waters west of Tasmania will ensure wild winds, with severe weather warnings for damaging winds likely to be issued across several states. Please check the Weatherzone warnings page for the latest warnings. The band of rain preceding the cold front should turn to snow at higher elevations later on Sunday. By Monday morning, the snow level should drop to around 1000 metres, meaning snow falling well below the base level of all mainland ski resorts. At this stage, the greatest confidence for heavy snowfalls in the coming week is currently focused on this first cold front. Half a metre of snow could fall with this system alone at higher elevations, with snowfall totals of at least 30 centimetres looking highly likely. Phase two: potentially heavy snowfalls on Tuesday and Wednesday The second phase of this event is a period of greater uncertainty for now, with a significant divergence between forecast models. This is not unusual for predicted weather systems which are five or more days in the future. The ECMWF model predicts as much as another half a metre of fresh snow for both the Central Highlands of Tasmania and the mainland high country over the 72 hours leading up to the evening of Thursday, August 13. The GFS model (right) also predicts heavy snowfalls for Tasmania, but accumulations of no more than about 10 centimetres for the mainland over the same period. We’ll update you on both systems in coming days. 2026 snowpack nears the one-metre mark up high Image: Comparison of the 2025 season (light blue) and the 2026 season to date (dark blue) at Spencers Creek, NSW. Source: Snowy Hydro. Even before the arrival of the impending snowy period described above, there’s good news in the Australian Alps about the 2026 snow season. On Wednesday, hydro-electric operator Snowy Hydro released its latest measurements at the three sites where it has regularly measured snow depth throughout the cooler months since 1954. The depth at Spencers Creek – the highest of the three sites, roughly halfway between the NSW ski resorts of Perisher and Thredbo – was 87.1 centimetres. That’s still below average for this time of year, but it does mean that 2026 has now exceeded the peak depth of 85.1 cm in 2006 – the worst season on record. Whatever happens over the next week, it’s extremely likely that the natural snow depth at Spencers Creek will be well over a metre by this time next week, and that Australia’s ski resorts will have the majority of their lifts open. Earlier this week, Thredbo became the first Australian ski area to operate at full steam in 2026, with all 15 of its lifts spinning. Please check the Weatherzone snow page for the latest forecasts, live cams and much more.
05 Aug 2026, 5:00AM UTC
Severe wintry weather to hit southern Australia later this week
A powerful cold front will cause damaging winds, heavy rain, hail, snow and bitterly cold temperatures across the southern half of Australia towards the end of this week. This blast of wintry weather is likely to cause severe weather in at least four states. Antarctic low heading for Australia A low pressure system that is currently lurking at the edge of Antarctica is expected to track towards the northeast over the next few days. Computer models suggest the low will travel more than 4,000 km between Wednesday and Saturday, allowing the system to pass to the south of Australia this weekend. This low pressure system will drag a large mass of polar air towards Australia as it traverses the Southern Ocean. Based on the forecast trajectory of the low, this Antarctic air mass will get driven across southern Australia between Saturday and Monday. Image: 850 hPa temperature and mean sea level pressure on the morning of Saturday, August 8, showing a cold air mass reaching southwestern Australia as a complex low pressure system passes to the south of the country. Source: Weatherzone. Western Australia The cold front is expected to arrive in the southwest of WA on Friday night into Saturday morning, before pushing across the southern half of the state on Saturday. The passage of the front will cause rain, thunderstorms and blustery winds across the state’s south and southwest. Some areas in the south could also see small hail as the coldest air arrives behind the front. Perth will see pre-frontal rain on Friday before more wintry weather arrives on Saturday, including cold southwesterly winds, showers and possibly thunderstorms and small hail. The temperature in Perth is only forecast to reach 16°C on Saturday, although brisk winds should make it feel lower than 10°C for most of the day. South Australia The cold front will cross SA from Saturday afternoon into Sunday, likely reaching Adelaide on Sunday morning or early afternoon. Showers will develop over SA on Saturday ahead of the cold front and increase to more widespread rain as the front passes over the state on Saturday night and Sunday. Strong and blustery winds will also develop with and behind the cold front, with damaging wind gusts possible in some parts of the state during Sunday. Adelaide is forecast to see a maximum temperature of 16°C on Sunday, although like Perth, most of the day will feel colder than 10°C due to wind, cloud and showers. Southeastern Australia Wind and rain will increase over southeastern Australia from Saturday into Sunday, as northerly winds strengthen ahead of the approaching cold front. This pre-frontal air will be relatively warm, allowing most of the precipitation to initially fall as rain and not snow, except for higher terrain in the Alps. At this stage, the cold air will spread over NSW, Victoria, southern Queensland and the ACT from late Sunday into Monday, then Tasmania on Monday. Blustery winds, rain, hail, thunderstorms and snow will all occur in southeastern Australia on Sunday and Monday under the influence of this wintry system. This should include damaging to destructive winds and flooding rain. Damaging wind gusts are likely to develop in parts of Vic, NSW and the ACT and may also extend to Tas. This should include destructive gusts and blizzard conditions in the Alps. Image: Forecast wind gusts at 10am AEST on Monday, August 10, 2026. Source: Weatherzone. Rain will be widespread across Australia's southeastern states on Sunday and Monday, with the heaviest falls expected to occur along the ranges in central and northeast Vic and southern NSW. Northern Tas could also see heavy falls on Sunday and Monday. Some areas could see 50 to 100 mm of rain within 24 hours. Heavy snow potential This is shaping up to be one of the biggest snow-bearing systems of the year for southeastern Australia. Despite warm air and heavy rain ahead of the front on Sunday, the arrival of cold air late Sunday into Monday will provide ideal conditions for a decent amount of snow in the mainland Alps. It might even get cold enough for snow to fall in parts of central and northern NSW on Monday. Staying safe during this weather event This cold front is likely to cause severe weather over several states this weekend and early next week. This could include damaging to destructive winds, heavy rain, flooding and blizzards. Check the latest warnings in your area for the most up-to-date information on severe weather impacts. If you need emergency assistance, contact the SES on 132 500. Always call triple zero if you are in a life-threatening situation.
05 Aug 2026, 1:37AM UTC
Equal-lowest South Australian minimum in five years
A deep midwinter chill descended on South Australia overnight, with the state recording its lowest minimum in three years – and the equal-lowest in five years – when Yunta fell to -5.0°C just before 7 am on Wednesday. Yunta is a small town 275 km NE of Adelaide in the far south of SA’s North East Pastoral forecast district, at an elevation of about 300 metres above sea level. The tiny map speck of 60 residents has an arid climate with just 205.2 mm of rainfall annually, and August is typically the driest month with just 12.7 mm on average. Last night was the sixth consecutive night that the town has shivered through sub-zero temperatures. Last night’s minimum in Yunta was also just 1.6 degrees warmer than the record state August low of -6.6°C, which also occurred in Yunta (in 2014). Widespread frigid temperatures in South Australia overnight It was chilly in plenty of other South Australian locations overnight too, with the mercury falling below zero at some coastal weather stations including Port Pirie (-0.4°C) and Port Augusta (-0.3°C). Adelaide had its coldest night of the month so far with a low of 4.4°C while the airport fell to 1.9°C. Clare, at the centre of the famous Clare Valley wine area about 130 km north of Adelaide, had its coldest night of 2026 to date with a low of -1.9°C. Why was last night so cold in parts of South Australia? A high pressure system centred over the region around the SA/NSW border ensured calm, dry conditions overnight. This allowed rapid cooling of the wintry airmass lingering over parts of SA in the wake of a cold front that moved through on Monday. It’s worth noting that the far southeast of the state – which often provides the statewide low at towns like Keith – wasn't quite as cold as some other areas overnight due to slightly higher humidity. Western parts of SA also weren’t unusually cold, due to slightly warmer air ahead of the next cold front approaching Western Australia, and thickening cloud cover which provided a blanket effect. Will the very cold SA nights continue? The short answer is no. Yunta is expecting a minimum of 1°C on Thursday morning, which is hardly warm, but it would still be six degrees warmer than Wednesday's minimum. Windy weather will prevent overnight cooling to freezing levels across virtually the whole of SA in coming days, as a procession of troughs and weak cold fronts surges across southern parts of the state ahead of a strong cold front due Sunday. Image: Predicted rainfall totals across South Australia up until Tuesday, August 11, 2026, according to the ECMWF model. Source: Weatherzone. The South Australian weather story will then be dominated by chilly maximums and low “feels like” temperatures rather than cold minimums. Rainfall will also be a big part of the picture, with Sunday looking particularly wet for Adelaide and many other areas.