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A cold pool (above) sweeps
across NSW and SE QLD. This 12-hourly sequence of charts, from 12.00
UTC (11pm EDST) Saturday
to 12.00 UTC (11pm EDST) Monday, shows the situation at the 500hPa pressure
level, about 5.5km above sea level. The trough with an embedded low shows
the
location
of
cold upper air, while the blue shading indicates an area of strong vorticity
-- the level of spin around the vertical axis of the low, which both
because of its cyclonic curvature and increasing speed or shear towards
the centre,
generates widespread upmotion and condensation. COLA
The surface chart for 11am
today (below) shows the broad, slow-moving trough
over NSW and QLD, but only the weak low over the southern NSW inland
reflects what is going
on
aloft. By late today, the surface trough had moved off the QLD coast
and southeasterlies were sweeping the eastern half of the continent.
However,
the continued presence of the upper low ensured these unstable southeasterlies
would continue to deliver rain on and east of the Great Divide. BoM.
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 The significant
rain and storm event that has crossed Australia over the past week or more
went out with a bang today as a cold pool swept across
southeastern Australia. Areas of rain continued to give useful falls
in eastern NSW as the airstream turned southeasterly behind the trough, while
afternoon storms fired up along and west of the surface trough line from
Mackay QLD
to SE
NSW.
Most of NSW from the ranges east recorded between 50 and 200mm from this rain
event, helping restore water storages particularly on the South Coast. Among
the heaviest totals for the week from 9am 20 November to 9am 27 November, when
showers from the southeasterly stream died out, were:
200.5 NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY
181.8 ULLADULLA AWS
161.0 FITZROY FALLS (RED HILLS)
152.2 PATERSON (TOCAL AWS)
148.8 KATOOMBA
139.6 CARROW BROOK
138.9 PATERSON POST OFFICE
138.9 CASTLE COVE
133.0 ROBERTSON
131.8 RICHMOND RAAF
128.2 MOUNT BOYCE AWS
128.0 LAWSON (WILSON STREET)
128.0 BLACKHEATH (WOMBAT STREET)
Heavy downpours and falls of small hail were reported
today with thunderstorms across eastern NSW and SE QLD. Among the more noteworthy
events:
- A heavy and prolonged hailstorm left snow-like drifts of hail over
30cm deep along an 8km length of the Lithgow to Mudgee Road near the
Rylstone
turn off during the afternoon. In another storm on the Blue Mountains,
pea-sized hail covered the ground at Leura.
- Another hailstorm around 1.30am Monday morning
left up to 30cm of ice on the ground at Yarrawonga, 15km east of Gulgong.
- Minor flooding was reported around Canberra, where 53mm was recorded over
two days at the Airport, the heaviest two day fall since February 2002.
- Heavy rain fell in the lower Hunter, Newcastle University recording 111.4mm
for the 24 hours to 9am Monday, by far the heaviest total in the nation.
37.2mm fell in the hour to 7 this evening at Tocal, south of Paterson, and
26mm was recorded in the hour to 5am Monday at Nobbys, Newcastle.
- More than 700 properties around Rockhampton QLD lost power after
substations were struck by lightning. Wind brought down gum trees and
damaged a light aircraft east of the city.
- Caravans were overturned and unroofed at Caboolture.
- 19.8mm fell in 18 minutes at Tewantin, north of Brisbane, soon after 3pm.
News sources: ABC, Mudgee Guardian, Northern Daily Leader (Tamworth) |
