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Surf on the way for the East Coast
Craig McIntosh, Saturday May 6, 2017 - 13:05 AEST
A severe tropical cyclone north of New Caledonia will send waves to southern Queensland and northern NSW, while a Tasman Low will generate big swells for NSW, eastern Victoria and Tasmania early next week.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Donna, currently a category 3 system, will deliver quality surf to southern Queensland and northern NSW by Monday. By Monday afternoon, 4-5 foot waves from the ENE will be rolling onto the coast, and by Tuesday afternoon they could be over 6 foot with a period of around 14 seconds. The cyclones current position north of New Caledonia allows a long fetch, that is the distance over water where wind can generate waves, meaning the swell train can be mostly uninterrupted. Winds from the south-southeast will be strong, around 20 knots, meaning it will most likely be more favourable to surf southeast Queensland opposed to northeast New South Wales due to the shape of the coastline.
Unfortunately for our Pacific Island neighbours, the cyclone is predicted to track behind New Caledonia and lash surrounding Pacific Islands with intense wind and rain on Tuesday. That will also block the fetch, however there will likely be a second pulse of swell later in the week, more easterly than before and not likely as big.
For colder-water surfers, a low and cold front currently sweeping across southeastern Australia will deepen as it heads out to sea on Sunday, strengthening winds resulting in large seas. On Monday, the system will be located just off the Tasmanian east coast, meaning conditions will most likely be horrendous for local surfers. Throughout Monday, the swell train is expected to roar up the coast. Waves in excess of 5-6 feet are likely for most of the coast north from eastern Victoria, most likely a few feet bigger at exposed south facing beaches. Brisk SSW winds will accompany the waves so grab some rubber. This swell is likely to travel up most of NSW, meaning there will likely be a combination of swells for northern NSW surfers, hopefully not too bumpy though.
The swells are expected to ease come Wednesday, but with autumn being the best season for east coast surfers, there will likely be another swell-generating storm not far behind.
- Weatherzone
© Weatherzone
2017
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