Sydney has shivered through its coolest March day in 50 years on Saturday as a strong cold front roared up the coast.

After a strong cold front arrived around 6am on Saturday, cool winds, thick cloud, and afternoon showers all made for a cool, topsy-turvy day.

Sydney Observatory Hill’s official maximum temperature from Saturday was 17.9 degrees, its coldest March day in 50 years. What makes this temperature more unusual was that it was recorded at 11pm at night. 

The official minimum temperature was a cool 13.3 degrees, the coldest Sydney has been since 9th November last year. The strangest part about this cool temperature was that it occured in the typically warmest part of the day, occuring at about 3pm in the afternoon.

Image: Sydney Observatory Hill’s temperature on Saturday was coolest during the daytime, and considerably warmer overnight.

Wind chill also made the temperature feel about 4 to 6 degrees colder than the actual temperatures, particularly with the showers between 2pm and 5pm.

Around other parts of Sydney, Richmond failed to warm beyond 16.6 degrees, making for its coldest March day in 33 years, and its 3rd coldest March day on record behind 16.4, and 16.1 degrees on 2nd/3rd March 1987.

Penrith's March top of 16.8 degrees was its coldest in at least 24 years.

While the cool conditions are persisting on Sunday, clearer skies and weaker winds will make for a warmer day in Sydney, already rising to 20 degrees by 11am.