Christmas weather expected to be ‘quiet’ across the country

Farrah Plummer
Dec 23, 2017, updated Dec 23, 2017

A sunny and warm day is expected in Adelaide on Christmas Day. Photo: Getty

There may be family drama at the Christmas party, but the Bureau of Meteorology has forecasted the weather will be smooth sailing for the big day across the country.

The peak Australian weather body has given the all clear for beach-going, backyard cricket and barbecues, with mild and sunny conditions for most of the nation while parts of Queensland and New South Wales may receive late showers and thunderstorms.

“Generally across the country it’s going to be a beautiful day …one of the most stable and quietest weather days we’ve seen for most parts of the country,” BOM meteorologist Dean Narramore said.

Victoria

Melbournians should anticipate a “very different” Christmas compared to last year, according to Mr Narramore.

“It hit 36 degrees last year, but we’ll see a much cooler day for much of Melbourne and for Victoria as well,” he said.

“We should see temperatures around 22 degrees for Melbourne on the big day.”

New South Wales and Queensland

Sydney and Brisbane are both expected to start the day fine.

Christmas Day is forecast to be a lot cooler in Sydney than on Christmas Eve, when temperatures are forecast to hit a maximum of 34 degrees Celsius.

Mr Narramore warned those living in areas between Sydney and Brisbane that that would be where the focus of the weather is, with showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening.

“It’s very typical for this time of year in that part of the world,” he said.

Western Australia and South Australia

For those hoping for a sun-filled Christmas, the meteorologist pinned down Perth and Adelaide as the winners of the weather lottery, forecasting 32 and 29 degrees respectively

“The best forecasts about the country, because we do love warm and sunny weather, is probably going to be around Perth and Adelaide,” Mr Narramore said.

“It’s a great day to get out to the beach and have a bit of backyard cricket and hit up the pool.”

Tasmania

Moving to the southernmost part of the nation, Hobart is expected to see a slightly cooler day than Melbourne with a top of 21 degrees and a slight chance of a shower.

“But it really shouldn’t wreck any outdoor activities for that part of the world and Tasmania itself should be a cool, partly cloudy day, maybe just a few showers on the west coast,” Mr Narramore said.

Northern Territory

In the north of the country, the bureau warned a trough would be moving across the region around Christmas Day and a maximum temperature of about 32 degrees in Darwin.

“We should see a bit of a trough deepening as we move through the Christmas week, and especially mid to late next week, with some monsoonal, low activity developing there to the west of Darwin offshore,” Mr Narramore said.

As for the rest of the summer…

Senior BoM climatologist Dr Andrew Watkins said Sydney and Brisbane should have a little cooler than normal January, while Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide and Perth should see slightly warmer weather.

“We’re looking at some warmer conditions through southeasern Australia and also in the southwest as well – warmer days but also unfortunately a few warmer nights, a bit more uncomfortable for sleeping,” Dr Watkins said.