As much of the country shivers through a cold end to autumn, the Bureau's winter outlook shows the next three months are likely to be warmer and drier than average for large parts of the nation.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Bureau of Meteorology's winter climate outlook, released on Thursday, May 30, shows that eastern and central Australia is unlikely to receive the above average rainfall many have been hoping for.
"Southeastern Australia could see a dry start to winter, with the models showing June rainfall is likely to be below average in NSW, Victoria, eastern South Australia, and southern parts of both Queensland and the Northern Territory," the Bureau's manager of long-range forecasting, Dr Andrew Watkins said.
"Drier than average conditions typically mean more cloud-free nights, which increases the risk of frost in susceptible areas."
Dr Watkins said temperatures across the rest of winter were very likely to be warmer than average.
"Our climate outlook shows most states and territories have large areas where chances are greater than 80 per cent for warmer than average days," he said.
The likelihood of El Nino developing in 2019 is around 50 per cent - or double the normal risk for this time of year. El Nino events typically mean reduced rainfall for eastern Australia during winter-spring.
Our climate outlook shows most states and territories have large areas where chances are greater than 80 per cent for warmer than average days.
- Dr Andrew Watkins
The Bureau's autumn summaries will be released on Monday, June 3 but preliminary figures show autumn 2019 is likely to go down as one of Australia's five warmest autumns on record.
Daytime temperatures have been much warmer to very much warmer than average for much of Australia, with the only exception being near average temperatures in Queensland away from the south.
View the latest outlook at www.bom.gov.au/climate/outlooks/#/overview/summary.
Videos and maps are also available at www.bom.gov.au/climate/ahead/.