What's the weather like in Sydney?

Understanding the Australian climate

The first thing to remember about Sydney weather, is that we’re in the southern hemisphere — that means our seasons are the opposite to those in the USA and Europe.

Australian seasons are similar to parts of South America and much of Africa as well, since all these places, including New Zealand, are south of the Equator. For all of us, our north is the hottest, because it is closer to the Equator, and our south is the coolest, since it is closer to the Antarctic (and the South Pole).

Australia is a large continent. It’s even bigger than the United States, so there is a big difference in temperatures between areas in the northermost part of our island continent and those along the southern part. For example, Cairns and Darwin are very hot, while Melbourne and Hobart (Tasmania) are much cooler than Sydney. And they have more rain.

So, what’s the weather like in Sydney Australia?

Our hottest months are December through February, and our coldest months are June, July and August. The dryest month we have here, statistically, is September. (That’s our spring time.) And the wettest months of our weather in Sydney are usually between January and June. But it can also rain in summer, a disappointment for visitors who presume that every summer’s day in Sydney has sunshine.

On the few really hot days we get each year in Sydney, you might want to stay indoors in the air conditioned comfort of your hotel or head for one of our many shopping malls to enjoy the cooler air inside. The average summer temperature is about 26 deg C (79 deg F) but there can be scorchers of 35-plus deg C (95 deg F). If you want to go out on those days, do it early in the day and then aim to be indoors as much as possible. Good time to check out the shopping malls.

By European or North American standards, Sydney’s winters are not severe but that does not mean they do not get cold, even icy. While no snow has ever fallen in Sydney, it does occasionally in the Blue Mountains which is 100kms (62 miles) from the centre of Sydney. This makes the western suburbs closest to the mountains mighty cold sometimes. When Sydneysiders feel the cold, they often say ”it must be snowing in the Mountains today”.

On the coldest days in Sydney, temperatures rarely drop below 10 deg C (50 deg F) as the minimum day’s temperature – then it will warm up to at least 15 deg C (59 deg F).  Even during Sydney’s coldest months, around July, you aren’t going to freeze. In Sydney, it is considered a cold day if the temperature drops below 17 deg C (62.2 deg F).

But still bring a coat if visiting Sydney in winter. You will find that many Sydney homes and cheaper accommodation are not adequately insulated or heated in winter, as much as they are in countries where the cold is more severe – in the same way that conventially cooler countries such as England are generally unprepapred for unusually warm weather.

Average Temperatures in Sydney 

These are average maximum and minimum temperatures of Sydney weather, as recorded by the Australian Bureau Of Metreology (www.bom.gov.au).

Picture Credit: Wikipedia.

No related posts.