Weekly rainfall wrap & 14 day outlook, 31 Aug 2016

Today’s 14-day rainfall outlook – scroll to bottom of article

Rainfall was recorded in the northwest and southwest of Western Australia, in the east and southwest of the Northern Territory, in South Australia, southern central and northeastern Victoria, eastern New South Wales and most of Queensland except the far north.

Past seven days: At the start of the week, a broad surface trough and associated upper-level trough extended across eastern Australia, with a low developing over northeast New South Wales, generating a cloudband from western and central Queensland to New South Wales. The slow-moving surface trough and low tracked eastwards, bringing moderate to locally heavy falls over western and southern Queensland, eastern New South Wales, and in areas of central and northwestern Queensland. During the second half of the week, a deep low pressure system and associated strong cold front moved across southwest Western Australia and the Bight, while a northwest cloudband developed, extending well into central Australia. Moderate falls were reported in much of the South West Land Division and Gascoyne in Western Australia, Unseasonal moderate falls were also recorded in a broad area from the Kimberley through to the southwestern Northern Territory and pastoral areas of South Australia The system also brought moderate falls to the agricultural districts of South Australia. A second cold front tracked across the Southern Ocean, generating moderate falls in western Tasmania.

100 mm plus: Eastern New South Wales and the Darling Downs in Queensland. The highest weekly total was 129 mm at Jervis Bay in the Illawarra district in New South Wales.

50mm-100mm: A pocket of coastal southwest Western Australia, areas of central Australia, parts of western Tasmania, northeastern New South Wales and parts of the southeast and southern interior in Queensland.

10mm-50mm: In the Pilbara and Kimberley and much of the South West Land Division in Western Australia; across the southwest, south and far east of the Northern Territory; along parts of the south coast and Pastoral districts of South Australia; and western and northern Tasmania. Similar totals were recorded in a pocket of central southern Victoria, eastern and northeastern New South Wales, and across most of Queensland except the far southwest and north.

Little to no rain: Northern Australia, central and southeastern parts of the Northern Territory, the central interior of Western Australia, the east and west of South Australia, most of western, northern and parts of eastern Victoria, eastern Tasmania, western and central New South Wales, and far southwest Queensland recorded little or no rainfall this week.