WINTER WEATHER REVIEW - ARMIDALE NSW
2011

Winter 2011 was cold, cloudy and wet.
June was cloudy and wet, July was cloudy, dry and cold, and August was cloudy, wet and cool.
June recorded 96.0 mm of rain, July 13.6 mm and August 56.8 mm. The highest daily fall was 28.4 mm on 15th June, and the total for the three months was 166.4 mm.
The harsh winter weather commenced on 24th May and lasted for 13 weeks until 24th August with the exception of five mild to warm days on the 1st to 5th August. July was coldest month, and August was the mildest with cloudy, damp conditions and did not experience the usual gusty dry westerly winds which are normal for late winter.
Maximum temperatures were lower than 10 degrees on 10 days and there were no snowfalls in the city centre. Despite the numerous cloudy nights there were 61 frosts, 5 higher than the average, although many of these were light frosts.
From 24th July through to 16th August there was a frost every morning making a continuous run of 24 frosts. The previous record was 25 frosts from 20th June to 14th July 1971. In this present run of frosts minimums were lower than -3.9C on seven mornings, and the lowest was -6.0C on 30th July.

There were four severe cold changes and these are summarized below.

21st June - A fast moving severe cold front passed through the region at around 8pm with strong winds and brief rain. There was no snow or sleet with this system as temperatures did not drop to freezing levels. Winds were strong throughout the day and were highest between 11am and 4.30pm. The peak gust at Armidale Airport was 74 km per hour at 1.16pm. The winds were a little lighter in the city, being located in the more sheltered valley. This system brought moderate snowfalls to the Central Tablelands.

19th July - An upper level pool of cold air moved over northern New South Wales from the south bringing gusty winds, low temperatures, small hail and snow. There were several light showers of soft hail from noon, and there was a light shower of snow in South Armidale at around 2pm. The maximum temperature was just 7.2C at the city weather station, and 6.0C at the airport. Wind chill temperatures were below zero most of the day. Light to moderate snow fell in nearby areas including Walcha, Ebor and Guyra.

9th August - A broad area of cold air in the upper levels brought cold conditions with light snow and hail to the Northern Tablelands. No snow fell in Armidale, but there were several showers of soft hail during the morning up until around lunchtime. Maximum temperature for the day was 9.9C.

18th August - A severe cold front passed through the region in the early hours bringing showers and cold temperatures. The showers persisted throughout the day with several brief showers of small/soft hail. At 12.25pm a shower produced a few melting snowflakes mixed with rain (sleet). The maximum temperature for the day was 9.1C. The 3pm wind chill temperature was zero degrees. Light falls of snow and soft hail occurred around Walcha, Guyra and Ebor.

WINTER STATISTICS (long term averages in brackets)
Rainfall: 166.4 mm (151.2 mm)
Rain days: 37 (28)
Average maximum temp: 13.0 deg (13.2 deg)
Average minimum temp: 0.6 deg (0.1 deg)
Highest maximum temp: 20.4 deg on 25th August
Lowest maximum temp: 7.2 deg on 19th July
Highest minimum: 7.9 deg on 15th June
Lowest minimum temp: -7.7 deg on 12th July
Fine days: 37 (48)
Days with thunderstorms: 3 (1)
Days with frosts: 61 (56)