Weather

Weekly rainfall wrap, week ending 15 March 2016

Beef Central, 16/03/2016

2016-3-16-rainfall-map

It was a big week of rainfall for large areas of cattle country in northern Australia in particulara, as the map of rainfall across Australia over the past seven days shows.

Rainfall was recorded in the Kimberley and central Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia, much of Queensland apart from the southeastern interior, southeastern, southwestern and northeastern New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania.

At the beginning of the week, a broad trough of low pressure and a middle-level disturbance over South Australia brought moderate falls to the pastoral districts, with the trough extending into the Northern Territory and producing moderate falls in the southern parts of the Territory. As the system tracked eastwards, light to moderate falls were recorded in the southeastern continent.

Areas of cloud with embedded thunderstorms covered large parts of northern Australia, due to a moist and unstable air mass. A firm ridge extended along the Queensland coast, with moist onshore flow resulting in moderate falls for the northeastern tropics, and light to moderate falls in northeastern New South Wales and southeastern Queensland.

In the middle of the week, a trough near the north tropical coast in Queensland continued to enhance showers and thunderstorms over northern Queensland. Meanwhile, an upper-level trough moved slowly eastwards across central Australia, where a very moist air mass in the lower levels produced areas of rain, showers and thunderstorms across western Queensland.

During the last part of the week, a monsoon trough established across the tropical north, with a low developed near the southern Gulf of Carpentaria. Monsoonal showers and thunderstorms with moderate to heavy falls were reported in the Kimberley, the Top End, and the Gulf Country in both Queensland and the Northern Territory. Moderate falls were recorded in northern and central parts of South Australia, central and southern New South Wales, eastern Victoria, and in Tasmania.

Rainfall totals between 100 mm and 200 mm were recorded in northern parts of South Australia, areas of the Kimberley, the Top End, eastern parts of the Northern Territory, the Gulf Country, Cape York Peninsula and the north tropical Queensland coast. Falls in excess of 200 mm recorded on the north tropical coast, and small areas of the Gulf Country. The highest weekly total was 363 mm at Cardwell Range in northern Queensland.

Rainfall totals between 50 mm and 100 mm were recorded in areas of the Kimberley, the Top End and central and eastern parts of the Northern Territory, and a broad area of the Gulf Country and the Cape York Peninsula. Similar totals were recorded in northern and eastern South Australia, a small area of southeastern New South Wales, southeastern Queensland, and northeastern Tasmania.

Rainfall totals between 10 mm and 50 mm were recorded across much of northern tropics, central and southern parts of the Northern Territory, western and northern Queensland, southeastern Queensland and across the border into northeastern New South Wales. Similar totals were recorded in western and southeastern New South Wales, across parts of western and eastern Victoria, much of South Australia and western and eastern Tasmania. Small areas in central Western Australia also recorded similar totals.

The remaining parts of Western Australia, western South Australia, central and southeastern Queensland away from the southeast coast, northern and central New South Wales, and small pockets of the Northern Territory and central Tasmania recorded little or no rainfall this week.

New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory

144 mm Uki (Tweed River)

106 mm Boat Harbour (Rous River)

99 mm Brays Creek (Misty Mountain)

 

Victoria

63 mm Mount Wellington

60 mm Reeves Knob

53 mm Valencia Creek (Little Plain)

 

Queensland

363 mm Cardwell Range

351 mm Tully Sugar Mill

345 mm Innisfail

 

Western Australia

116 mm Mount Winifred

113 mm Kimbolton

112 mm Drysdale River Station

 

South Australia

92 mm Parachilna (Motpena)

90 mm Tarcoola (Mobella)

86 mm Todmorden

 

Tasmania

151 mm Larapuna (Eddystone Point)

94 mm Swan Island

85 mm Gray (Dalmayne Rd)

 

Northern Territory

306 mm Centre Island

234 mm Central Waterhouse

211 mm Maranboy Hill

Source: BOM

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