Australian Weather

10 Apr 2026, 5:31AM UTC

A cold polar airmass has pushed into Tasmania and southern Victoria, while north of the Murray River, it has been a sweltering day in parts of New South Wales, especially in the north and east of the state. Let’s take a closer look at the contrasting weather conditions this Friday afternoon, in the warm and chilly airmasses either side of a cold front sweeping across the southeast corner of the country . Cold in Tasmania and Victoria Heavy snow has fallen in Tasmania, with ongoing snowfalls expected overnight and into the weekend. This was the scene at Mt Mawson, about 90 minutes northwest of Hobart, on Friday afternoon. Image: Snowflakes can be seen floating to the ground at the day shelter at Mt Mawson, Tasmania on Friday April 10, 2026. Source: Mt Mawson. Hobart is shivering through its coldest day of 2026 to date this Friday, with an early maximum of 14.5°C at 11:33am. But since midday, the mercury has hovered between 10 and 12 degrees during daylight hours, with a "feels like" temperature of just 2°C at 2pm. On the mainland, Melbourne reached 18.5°C just before 2pm, which isn’t unusually chilly for autumn, but strong northwesterlies have made the apparent or “feels like” temperature up to five degrees cooler all day, and the coldest air in this system is yet to arrive. Melbourne is expecting maximums of 17°C and 16°C on Saturday and Sunday respectively, ahead of a gradual warming trend in the new week. The polar airmass is also yet to reach the Victorian and New South Wales ski resorts, where a few flakes will fall overnight and into the weekend, although snowfalls will be much heavier in Tasmania due to more available moisture. Heat in New South Wales Sydney didn’t get quite as hot as expected this Friday due to high cloud which spread across the city during the morning, keeping a lid on diurnal heating. The hottest temperature in the metropolitan area to 3pm was 31°C at Penrith in the outer western suburbs, while the city reached 28.2°C just after 1pm. Further north in the state, the mercury topped 38°C at a few locations, including: 38.9°C at Brewon, a rural locality in the Central West Slopes and Plains forecast district 38.4°C at Walgett in the North West Slopes and Plains forecast district, a record for April in data going back to 1993 (both this Thursday and Friday broke the old April record of 36.7°C) Image: Forecast NSW maximums according to the ECMWF model for this Friday, April 10, 2026, with the hottest zone near Walgett in the state's north. Source: Weatherzone. Northern parts of New South Wales will remain warm on Saturday, albeit with maximums a few degrees less than Friday. The south of the state will be cooler, with another significant temperature drop by Sunday. Sydney is expecting maximums of 27°C and 23°C on Saturday and Sunday respectively, while Canberra is going for highs of 16°C on Saturday and just 14°C on Sunday.

09 Apr 2026, 4:20AM UTC

Wilds winds are gathering strength, with widespread storms developing across Victoria and southern New South Wales on a dynamic afternoon of weather across southeastern Australia. Severe weather warnings for damaging winds have been issued for parts of Victoria, northern Tasmania and southern NSW, with peak gusts of 100 km/h or stronger expected by Thursday evening in each state, likely persisting into Friday morning. Of the southeastern capitals, Adelaide was the only city to see storms by Thursday lunchtime, with 11.6mm in the city gauge between 9am and 1:30pm (ACST), after 7.8mm overnight. However, storm activity commenced in Melbourne just after 2pm and it appears likely to continue into Thursday evening. Heavy downpours have already occurred in some suburbs, with Melbourne Airport receiving 13mm in just 15 minutes not long before 3pm. Image: Four-hour combined satellite and radar loop from 8:30am to 12:30pm (AEST) on April 9, 2026. Source: Weatherzone. What’s causing this wild weather? As detailed in our story on Wednesday, a strong low pressure system in the Southern Ocean is the engine of today’s potentially dangerous conditions. As polar air surges northwards (indicated on the loop above by the speckled airmass), warm air from the interior of the continent is being dragged southwards in strong northwesterly winds, as air flows naturally from areas of high pressure to low pressure. A classic Australian weather feature called a northwest cloudband can also been seen in the satellite loop above, like a giant sash across the country. Sometimes, northwest cloudbands bring widespread soaking rain. At other times (like today), they produce more scattered rainfall and storms. READ MORE: What is a northwest cloudband? What to expect next from this weather system As mentioned, winds will strengthen in exposed areas tonight, particularly in elevated districts, with showers and storms persisting into Friday morning in many of the areas mentioned. Parts of the NSW coast can then expect near-record April heat on Friday, as cooler air arrives in Victoria and Tasmania. But the coldest air down south isn’t due until Friday night or Saturday, when snowfalls will occur in the Victorian high country, the Snowy Mountains of NSW, and higher parts of Tasmania. Image: Snow forecast for Tasmania and the SE mainland at 1am on Saturday, April 11, 2026. Source: BoM. This looks like it will be a particularly significant autumn snowfall event for Tasmania, with temperatures cold enough for snow to fall down to 700m above sea level or slightly lower. Accumulations of at least 20 centimetres are likely at higher elevations, given the abundant available moisture.