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Heavy rain and grey skies over Sydney are forecast to continue over the weekend, putting the city within sight of a record for consecutive damp days.
The latest weather forecast looks like dashing the hopes of millions of people in eastern Australia who have been counting on a blast of sunshine this weekend.
Meteorologists say rain and thunderstorms will spread over inland parts of New South Wales and southern Queensland during the next few days, before drenching already sodden areas this weekend increasing the risk of flooding in some parts.
The conditions will put Sydney within a whisker of an all-time wet weather record, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
The city’s stretch of rainy days has now reached nine, and with wet conditions almost certain to continue until at least next Monday, the total is set to hit 13, close to the record of 16 days experienced in 1943 and 2022.
The lingering damp conditions are being caused by the atmosphere above eastern Australia being loaded with moisture this week, thanks to a stubborn high-pressure system to the south.
Over the next few days, a pool of cold upper-level air will pass over south-eastern parts and cause some of the moisture in the atmosphere to be converted into rain.
Forecasters compare conditions in the atmosphere to a sponge full with water. The passage of the cold upper-level air is like someone squeezing the water out of the sponge.
This will result in showers and thunderstorms continuing to develop over the eastern interior today, affecting areas of western NSW and Queensland, the north-east of South Australia and the southern Northern Territory.
From tomorrow to Sunday, rain and thunderstorms will then spread further east across NSW, southern Qld and parts of Victoria.
Some areas in western NSW should be in for 50mm to 80 mm of rain, while northern Victoria and southern Queensland should expect 20mm to 40 mm falls.
Forecasters warn there is also potential for heavy rain and flooding in parts of eastern NSW on the weekend as rainfall rates increase along the already heavily sodden coast.
The area most likely to experience flooding on the weekend will be the Illawarra and South Coast regions, where two-day totals of 150mm to 250 mm are possible.
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