Large, windy, cold weekend
Large, windy, cold weekend
Windy, cold and with low level snow but large prolonged surf.
Windy, cold and with low level snow but large prolonged surf.
Here comes that classic winter pattern we see every year. Onshore winds and building stormy surf from mid-latitude lows and fronts.
Current ASCAT (satellite wind speed) passes show gales to severe gales extending down to 55S with a tighter core of storm force winds just emerging from behind Tasmania as it tracks NE into the Tasman Sea. The synoptic flow from the fronts and Southern Gyre remains W to W/SW and that will continue all weekend with plenty of wind chill to boot.
An improvement in the wind outlook for Monday with some decent sized S'ly swell in the water.
Good waves tomorrow out of the wind, with larger stormy surf developing Sunday.
Sunday is a different story. The most powerful front in the series sweeps up past the state with severe gale to storm force winds sling-shotting around the parent low.
Strong high pressure support from a 1033hPa elongated high in the Bight is providing tight pressure gradients for the multiple fronts spinning off the gyre. That will lead to numerous over-lapping S’ly pulses over the coming week with a general step-ladder effect expected at least through to Mon. A general offshore flow will accompany these pulses as the fronts drive W’ly biased winds across the temperate to sub-tropical East Coast.
I can't remember forecasting such a sustained run of large, stormy surf for the South Arm.
Strong high pressure support from a 1033hPa elongated high in the Bight is providing tight pressure gradients for the multiple fronts spinning off the gyre. That will lead to numerous over-lapping S’ly pulses over the coming week with a general step-ladder effect expected at least through to Mon. A general offshore flow will accompany these pulses as the fronts drive W’ly biased winds across the temperate to sub-tropical East Coast.
We've got god pulses of W/SW groundswell due over the coming days but winds will be the main issue.