Wednesday, 1 August 2012 - Monthly Climate Summary for Sydney - Product code IDCKGC15L0

Sydney in July 2012: Warm, dry July for Sydney

• Below average rainfall
• Warm days and nights across the city
• 28th consecutive July with above average mean temperatures

Extremes Records Summaries Important notes the top

Driest July since 2004

Sydney Observatory Hill recorded 56.2 mm of rainfall during July, half the historical average of 98.6 mm. There were thirteen days of rain during the month, normal for July. Only one day exceeded 10 mm (average 2-3 days), with coastal showers producing 19 mm on the 6th, reaching 35 mm at Cronulla in the eastern suburbs. Most of the remaining rain fell during a period of persistent showers between the 21st and 25th, with a total of 21.4 mm at Sydney Observatory Hill and 29.2 mm at Cronulla.

Warm conditions across the city

The average maximum temperature at Sydney Observatory Hill during July was 17.6 °C, 1.3 °C above the historical average, with temperatures above average across the city. This is the 14th consecutive warm July, and the warmest July since 2009. Only three days were below 15 °C during the month, well below the historical average of 10 days, while 6 days exceeded 20 °C (average 2 days), reaching 22.9 °C on the 13th.

The average minimum temperature was 8.9 °C, 0.9 °C above the historical average and the 10th consecutive warm July, with nights warmer than average across the city. No nights dropped below 5 °C during the month, while six nights exceeded 10 °C, close to normal for July.

The average temperature at Sydney Observatory Hill was consequently 13.3 °C, 1.1 °C above average. This is the 28th consecutive warm July at Sydney Observatory Hill; the last time the temperature was 12.2 °C or lower was 12.2 °C in July 1984.

Wind

The prevailing wind direction during July was southerly, with 58% of 3pm winds between SE and SW, while remaining winds were between W and NE, above normal for July. There were three strong wind days, with a maximum wind gust of 65 km/hr on the 30th.

Other phenomena

Sydney Airport recorded an average of 6.7 hours of bright sunshine during the month, close to the July average of 6.6 hours. There were two fog days, normal for July, with a particularly heavy event on the 25th. AWS visibility remained below 2 km between 5:30 and 8:49 am, with fog persisting until 10 am, causing disruption to flights.

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