Friday, 1 June 2012 - Monthly Climate Summary for Sydney - Product code IDCKGC25L0

Sydney in May 2012: Warm, dry, sunny May for Sydney

• Below average rainfall
• Longest dry spell since 2002
• Warm days and cold nights across the city
• Fewest cloudy days on record

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top

Rainfall

Sydney Observatory Hill recorded 37.2 mm of rain during May, well below the historical average of 121.2 mm and the driest May since 2008. Rainfall was low throughout the city, with most of western Sydney recording less than 20 mm during the month. The rain fell over 5 days, well below the May average of 13 days, with only two days exceeding 2 mm. These were associated with a surface trough on the 25th, bringing 13.8 mm in the city, and 21.4 mm from overnight showers on the 29th.

The start of May was particularly dry in the city, with 25 consecutive dry days at Sydney Observatory Hill between April 26 and May 20. This is the longest dry spell since 34 days in winter 2002, and one of only 17 such spells on record. The first rain during May fell on the 21st, the latest rain day on record for May.

Temperature

The average maximum temperature at Sydney Observatory Hill was 20.9 °C, 1.5 °C above the historical average and the equal 16th warmest May on record, with temperatures above average throughout the city. Sydney has not recorded below average daytime temperatures in May since 1979.

There were 20 days above 20 °C during the month compared to an average of 13 warm days, including two consecutive days above 27 °C on the 9th and 10th. Such a warm spell has only occurred 6 times before, while the maximum of 29.1 °C on the 10th was the 4th warmest May day on record for Sydney. The warm days were associated with generally westerly winds and clear conditions during the month.

The average minimum temperature at Sydney Observatory Hill was 11.2 °C, slightly below the historical average of 11.5 °C. Temperatures were below average throughout the city but particularly in the west, with Parramatta, Bankstown and Prospect Dam recording their coolest nights on average since records began in the 1960s. The cool nights were associated with generally clear conditions during the month, with 9 nights reaching 10 °C or less in Sydney (average for May) but only one dropping below 9 °C (average 5).

The average temperature at Sydney Observatory Hill was consequently 16.1 °C, 0.6 °C above the historical average.

Some sites had their lowest May mean daily minimum temperature on record.

Wind

The prevailing wind direction at Sydney Airport during May was westerly in the morning, with 100% of 9am winds between N and SW, while 62% of 3pm winds were between SE and W. There were four strong wind days reported at the airport, with a maximum wind gust of 70 km/hr on the 26th.

Other phenomena

Sydney Airport recorded an average of 7.7 hours of bright sunshine during May, well above the historical average of 6.2 hours and the highest since 8 hours in May 2007. There were only three cloudy days during the month, the fewest on record for May, with no fogs reported at the airport for the first time since 2006.

No thunderstorms were reported anywhere in the Sydney Metropolitan Region during May.

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top

Most values are the precipitation in the 24 hours to 9 am on the day indicated. Days marked with »» are part of a longer accumulation, which is marked like this on the final day. Values over 100 mm have been rounded to the nearest whole millimetre. Days marked with - have a rainfall report of zero; days left blank have no rainfall report (which often indicates no rain fell).
This table is very wide; you may have to scroll sideways to see all the days, and you may need to set the paper to 'landscape' to print.

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top