The Weather at Armidale NSW

The Official Website
All information from Bureau of Meteorology
weather stations in Armidale



AUTUMN IN ARMIDALE
Right:  Typical autumn scene in Armidale - autumn
trees under clear skies. This image taken at
Sylvia Crescent in North Armidale.

This is the latest temperature and wind information at Armidale Airport. Further data from the airport HERE.
Note: the airport is 93 metres higher and five kilometres from the city weather station resulting in slightly different weather conditions occurring there. Winds are usually around 10 to 15 kms per hour stronger at the airport. Day temps are about one degree lower, and night and early morning temps can be around two to four degrees higher at the airport.

Latest News
(using information from Armidale City weather station)

COLD FROSTY MAY MORNINGS - After the passage of a front through the state on Sunday the 13th, cold dry air from the south-west has given us the coldest frosty mornings so far this year. Minimum temperatures on Monday 14th: -2.7C,  Tuesday 15th: -5.5C,  Wednesday 16th: -5.8C.

APRIL RAINFALL TOTAL:  48.8 mm on 11 days, just 4 mm higher than the average. The rain all fell in the second half of the month with the highest daily fall being 18.4 mm on the 23rd. Full details in the April 2012 Weather Review here.

FIRST FROSTS OF THE YEAR - Tuesday 10 April - Minimum -0.2C - Cool southerly air following the passage of a trough and cold front through northern New South Wales brought early morning frosts to the Northern Tablelands. The minimum in Armidale of -0.2C was recorded at 6.45am. The frost-free period over 2011-2012 was 170 days. A light frost was also recorded the following morning: minimum 2.6C.

MARCH RAINFALL TOTAL:  29.6 mm on 8 days, 36 mm lower than the average. All falls were light with the highest daily fall being just 6.0 mm from a thunderstorm on the 15th. Full details in the March 2012 Weather Review here.

SUMMER OF 2011/12 COOLEST FOR 28 YEARS - Numerous damp cloudy days kept day temperatures well below normal making it the coolest summer since 1983/84. More details in the 2011/12 summer weather review here.

FEBRUARY RAINFALL TOTAL:  121.8 mm on 13 days, 33 mm higher than the average. Full details in the February 2012 Weather Review here.

COOLEST JANUARY FOR 15 YEARS - January 2012 was an unusually cool summer month. The average maximum temperature for the month was 23.7C, 2.7C less than the long term average, the lowest for January since 1997. Temperatures reached 26C or higher on just seven days and there were only ten sunny days. The first half of the month was the warmest, with cloudy cool wet weather setting in from the 14th. More details in the January 2012 weather review here.

JANUARY RAINFALL TOTAL:  51.6 mm on 14 days. Despite January being a cool and cloudy month, the rain total was 50 mm less than the average. The highest daily fall was 11.4 mm on the 5th.

COLD JANUARY MORNING - Thursday 12th January - The minimum temperature was unusually low at just 3.8C recorded at 6.35am. This was eight degrees below the average for this time of year, but not cold enough to break the January record low of 2.6C on 19th January 2010.

2011 ARMIDALE ANNUAL WEATHER REVIEW - It was wetter, cloudier and cool than normal. Full review here.

DECEMBER 2011 COLDEST ON RECORD - Daytime temperatures during December 2011 averaged just 20.7C which makes it Armidale’s coldest December for well over a century according to 147 years of records. The previous lowest was 21.6C in 1927 (figure adjusted for site difference). Temperatures failed to reach the December long term average of 25.0C, the highest for the month was just 24.9C on the 26th. A La Nina event is currently affecting eastern Australia generating cloudy and wet conditions which have been keeping temperatures well below normal. Armidale recorded only six fine sunny days during the month (average 16 fine days).

2011 RAINFALL TOTAL:  1,048.0 mm, 261 mm higher than the long term average, and was the wettest year since 1950. More details here.

DECEMBER RAINFALL TOTAL:  111.6 mm on 14 days. This was 23 mm higher than the average. There were a number of moderate falls throughout the month, the heaviest being 31.2 mm on the 22nd. Full details in the December 2011 Weather Review here.

UNUSUALLY COLD START TO SUMMER - 1st-7th December - Cloudy, rainy conditions and chilly easterly winds kept maximum temperatures to unusually low levels for the first week of summer. The average maximum for the seven days was just 17.2C ranging from 14.0C to 22.4C. This was the coldest first week of December for at least 72 years (daily records for Armidale are only available from 1939). The long term average maximum temperature at this time of the year is 24C.
The maximum temperatures of 14.4C on the 5th, and 14.0C on the 7th were the lowest for December since 6th December 2003 (13.5C).

WET START TO DECEMBER - Thursday 1st - A trough moving through NSW brought moderate rain throughout the morning and early afternoon totaling 24.4 mm. As the ground was already saturated from the rain event a week earlier, moderate flooding occurred in Dumaresq Creek during the afternoon and evening. The waters gradually subsided the following day (Friday 2nd), but several streets within the city remained closed until the afternoon.

NOVEMBER RAINFALL TOTAL:  244.4 mm on 10 days. This was Armidale’s wettest November on record (149 years of records, previous highest: 232.4 mm in 1866). It was also the wettest month since January 1996 (246.2 mm). Although there were moderate falls around the middle of the month, the majority of the rain (170.4 mm) fell in one major event over the 23rd to 26th. Full details in the November 2011 Weather Review here.

MAJOR RAIN EVENT CAUSES FLOODING AND CREATES WETTEST NOVEMBER ON RECORD - 23rd-26th November - An intense low pressure trough over northern New South Wales generated widespread moderate to heavy falls of rain over the Northern Tablelands over the four day period.
Armidale recorded 87.6 mm for the 24 hours to 9am on Thursday the 24th which caused moderate flooding in Dumaresq Creek. This was the highest daily fall of rain for 17 years.
The rain and flooding continued through to Saturday the 26th. The flooding reached its peak early on Saturday afternoon after 15 mm fell between 9am and noon. All low lying areas along the creek including playing fields were inundated. Marsh St, Markham St and Niagara St were the only north-south roads open within the city linking the two sides of Armidale during this event.
Total rain from this event to 3pm on the 26th:  170.4 mm, total for the month: 244.4 mm - wettest November on record.

WEEKEND OF STORMS - 12th-13th November - An active trough over northeastern New South Wales produced widespread thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening of the 12th, and right through the day on the 13th. Several storms were very lightning intensive with almost continuous thunder lasting for extended periods. In Armidale on Sunday 13th there was no hail, but heavy rain fell in the afternoon and evening. Rainfall totals: Saturday 12th afternoon and evening: 14.4 mm, Sunday 13th 9am to 3pm: 5.6 mm, Sunday 3pm to midnight: 28.0 mm. Total for the weekend: 48.0 mm.

TELEVISION REPORTING OF ARMIDALE’S WEATHER - Daily temperatures for Armidale reported on the major TV networks often vary from each other. This is because Prime and the ABC report the temperatures from the city weather station, whereas NBN usually reports temperatures from Armidale Airport. The airport temperatures are not as representative of conditions in the city due to its higher altitude. Overnight minimums in particular are often around 2 to 4 degrees colder at the city weather station which is located in the Armidale valley where temperature inversions are common on calm clear nights. More details on the reasons for temperatures differences between the two stations here.

EBOR FALLS ICE AND SNOW (Historic Event) - In July 2007, after several mornings of sub zero temperatures, Ebor Falls, 80 kms east of Armidale, partly froze and a mini snowfield was created by spray at the base of the falls. Photographs of this amazing event here.

Latest Forecast
Click HERE for the most recent four day forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology.

Forecast Rainfall
Where will it fall, when will it fall, and how much is likely to fall?
Click HERE to access the Bureau of Meteorology's four day rainfall predictions.

This Month’s Daily Data
Click HERE for daily data for this month compiled by the Bureau of Meteorology. Data is from the city weather station at East Armidale except for wind and pressure readings which are from the Armidale Airport weather station.
More detailed daily data can be found under the “Monthly Data Files and Yearly Reviews” link below under the heading “Armidale’s Weather.”

This Month - May 2012
   Total Rainfall up to 9am on the 20th:
    5.2 mm    (Long term average: 43 mm)

This Year - 2012
   Total Rainfall  up to 9am on 20th May:  257.0 mm    (Jan-May average: 344 mm, annual average: 789 mm) 
   Highest Daily Rainfall:  28.0 mm on 1st Feb
   Highest Temperature:  29.4C on 8th Jan
   Lowest Temperature:  -5.8C on 16th May
   Hot Days - Temp above 30C:  0    (Annual average: 14)
   Cold Days - Maximum below 10C:  0    (Annual average: 15)
   Cold Mornings with Frosts:  18    (Annual average: 97)


June in Armidale - what can we expect?
The first month of winter is usually cold and dry with mostly light westerly winds.

Rainfalls are light and intermittent, days are mostly sunny and cool to cold, rarely reaching higher than 18 degrees, and overnight temperatures will often drop well below zero producing the famous New England winter frosts. Residents will often rise in the mornings to be greeted with white ice-covered lawns and a thick smoke haze from hundreds of Armidale wood heaters.

The occasional cold snap may bring cloud and wind, and keep daytime temperatures below ten degrees. Snow is possible with these events. The last June snowfalls were on 23rd June 2007.

Average max temp:  13.1 deg                         Average min temp:  0.7 deg
Average rainfall:  55.3 mm on 10 days             Average fine sunny days: 14
Average days with thunderstorms:  0.5            Average frosts:  17
Average hours of sunshine per day:  4.8
Warmest:  24.4 deg on 2nd June 1923        Coldest:  -11.2 deg on 30th June 2010


National Climate Centre prediction for May to July 2012:  Rainfall higher than the long term average, maximum temperatures lower than the long term average, minimum temperatures higher than the long term average.

Armidale’s Weather

 

Weather at Nearby Locations

DO YOU HAVE ANY PHOTOGRAPHS OF ARMIDALE'S WEATHER?  I'm always on the lookout for a good photo for the top of this page. If you have any which you think look good (interesting clouds, sunsets, hail, frosts, snow, floods etc) in or around Armidale, please email me here.

Information and statistics in these pages referring to Armidale are sourced from the Bureau of Meteorology weather station in East Armidale, station number 56037. Some data is also used from the Bureau’s automatic weather station at Armidale airport, station number 56238.

Feedback or queries: here.