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Mere patches of frost seen thus far over New South Wales

Jacobus Cronje, Tuesday May 17, 2016 - 14:33 AEST

For most of New South Wales, frost has been an elusive occurrence thus far this year.

Farmers of the region would expect a sizeable area to have received at least some frost during the month of April. Certainly, during May many locations would have typically chilled below zero in the early hours of the mornings.

However, lingering heat over much of Australia has done away with the usual expectations around frost.

Very few locations, mostly over the Southern Tablelands, had dropped below the zero mark during April, and therefore likely received frost. Cooma and Bombala both dropped to sub-zero during the last week of April, while Tumbarumba along the Southwest Slopes received its first frost on April 18th..

As large parts of the region are remaining clear and unseasonably warm during the day under the influence of an extensive high pressure system, the same clear conditions with weak winds have led to the first significant frost in May.

Inverell received its first cold snap on the 12th when it inced to just under half a degree below zero, while Tenterfield plunged to nearly two degrees below freezing on Friday the 13th. A crisp Saturday morning was felt on the 14th, when Armidale and Lithgow both dropped to -1.2 degrees, and Woolbrook about a half degree under freezing, finally receiving their first frost of the year. Lightning Ridge soon followed, dropping to zero degrees on Sunday.

Frost is not a desirable phenomenon for the agriculture sector, but when it doesn't show up when we expect it to, crop planning and management can become even more stressful than usual.

In terms of frosty mornings, the last time conditions across the country and across the state in particular were similar at this time of year was in 2007. As we are currently seeing in Australia, May 2007 saw above-average temperatures lingering in the wake of dissipating El Nino.

Looking ahead, it's likely that nights/early mornings will generally remain warmer than usual, and remain so longer as we head close to winter. However, it's best not to discount frost for the next week over the ranges and to their west, as these clear skies and light winds can drop temperatures overnight very quickly, especially with the increased frequency of cold fronts over the southern parts of the country.

- Weatherzone

© Weatherzone 2016

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