Snow in Australia
Snow in Australia is very rare at sea level, but is common on the highlands of the southeast, in the states of New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and in the Australian Capital Territory.
[1] The Antarctic oscillation (AAO) is the primary driver for snow in Australia, where a negative phase allows cold airmasses off the Roaring Forties to push further north.
In southern New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and eastern Victoria, the elevated regions of the Snowy Mountains, Brindabella Range and Victorian Alps experience an alpine climate, where the areas above 1,400 metres (4,600 ft) are subject to a consistent heavy winter snowpack.
[7][8] A freak snowfall had occurred in the Central West on 5 July 1900, bringing an impressive 1 ft 10 in (56 cm) of snow to Mudgee, while Bathurst measured at 68 centimetres (27 in) in the main street.
[9][10] Heading east to the upper Blue Mountains, in towns such as Katoomba, Medlow Bath, Wentworth Falls, Leura, Mount Victoria, Blackheath and Lithgow, 3–4 snowfalls per year are recorded.
[13][14] Snow is relatively rare in the Southern Highlands of the Illawarra due to its eastern location, though the last significant snowfall occurred in Berrima, Bowral and Mittagong in July 2015.
The northern and north-western parts of the region are substantially higher in elevation, with moderate to heavy snowfalls occurring most years in Crookwell and to a lesser extent Taralga.
[19] In western New South Wales, particularly in the Riverina, snow is observed to much lower altitudes than elsewhere in the state, being more exposed to cold south-westerly airmasses.
[23] The far northern town of Inverell, 580 metres (1,900 ft) and nearing the 29th parallel, last saw snow in August 1923, with an impressive 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm) falling in September 1892.
[24][25] Due to their latitude and exposure to cold south-westerly airmasses, snow regularly occurs to much lower elevations than in New South Wales, with some occurrences to sea level.
Unlike the rest of the state, this region receives the majority of its snow events from southerly weather systems (being largely sheltered from the west).
In southern Victoria and West Gippsland, there is a greater chance of late spring and summer snowfall, with an occurrence of snow on 25 December 2006 in the Dandenong Ranges, not more than 600 metres (2,000 ft) in elevation.
The Darling Downs and Granite Belt in South East Queensland occasionally receive snowfall in winter, with heavy falls being recorded in 1960, 1974, 1984, 2007 and 2015.
[42] In Stanthorpe, light snow is occasionally recorded, with the most significant snowfall in over 30 years occurring on 17 July 2015, where 8 centimetres (3 in) fell there and nearby areas that day.
[46] Whilst snow at sea level is a very rare occurrence in mainland Australia, it is more occasionally recorded in southern and south-western Tasmania, where it occurs on a near-annual basis during the winter and early spring months.
[55] The lowest known snowfall in New South Wales had occurred in the town of Hay on 24 July 1936, just 90 metres (300 ft) above sea level in the far west of the state.
2023 had a weak snow season owing to the remarkably warm and wet conditions from June to July, and drier from August to September with extreme positive anomalies in monthly mean temperature.
