Winter finally arrives in Sydney, plans to stay for only a few days
It's nearly a month late but winter will finally arrive on Friday bringing frigid temperatures averaging in single digits in the southeast states.
Sydneysiders have been told to brace for chills, with minimums of 9 degrees on the coast, reaching down to 6 degrees in Penrith and 4 degrees in Campbelltown, the Bureau of Meteorology forecasts.
And the cold is expected to hang about town for the next four days, with the minimum in Campbelltown dipping as low as 1 degree on Sunday.
By Sunday the average minimum across Sydney is set to drop to just 7 degrees.
Fortunately the wind-chill factor will be low and there is only a 40 per cent chance of rain forecast for Monday.
Melbourne can expect the usual mix of wet and sunny weather but the cold will dip down to 3 degrees on Saturday.
People in the Blue Mountains could wake to morning frosts with a low of -1 degree predicted for Saturday morning.
It was roughly 12 months ago when a cold front swooped across the NSW central west and the mountains, which copped a light dusting of snow.
But the winter white is not expected to be repeated in the same way.
Weatherzone meteorologist Tom Hough told Fairfax it had been slow start to winter but the mild weather was about to cease sharply.
"It was a pretty cold start this morning but it will be even chillier over the next few days," he said.
"It's looking like the coldest days for Sydney so far this year but it will warm up a little bit early next week."
And according to the Bureau of Meteorology it's going to be a balmy start to spring.
The bureau is forecasting warmer-than-average temperatures for most parts of Australia for the rest of winter and into September.
The bureau's latest climate update says daytime and evening temperatures will be higher than usual, particularly in the southwest and southeastern parts of the country.
However rainfall is expected to be below average during the three-month period.
Newsbreak - June 29
