Australia Weather News

The heart of the Northern Territory's dry season is probably over, with some towns experiencing record temperatures and averages well above normal on the weekend, a weather forecaster says.

Duty forecaster at the BOM in Darwin, Peter Markworth, said during the weekend Borroloola and the Tiwi Islands both experienced their hottest recorded August days.

Borroloola reached 37.7 degrees Celsius, beating its previous record of 37.3C, Mr Markworth said.

Batchelor, about 70 kilometres south of Darwin, hit 37C on Friday, beating its previous record of 36.8C.

On Saturday it hit 37.2C, breaking the record again.

Goodbye dry, humidity coming

BOM regional manager of climate services, Greg Browning, said the Bureau's seasonal outlook suggested above-average temperatures will continue for the next three months.

"The heart of the dry season is probably over," he said.

While cooler night-time temperatures were expected for about the next week, he said that was unlikely to last, and over the same period daytime temperatures would probably remain warm.

He said it was only a matter of time before the humidity kicked in.

"It might be a pretty stinking hot October and November. We'll have to see how that all pans out," he said.

The warm weather comes on the back of record-hot July temperatures across many parts of Australia, including the NT.

In the Top End temperatures have been 2-3C above August average temperatures on the weekend, he said, while Alice Springs had experienced temperatures seven degrees above average.

"Alice Springs saw about 30 degrees, and its average is only about 23 degrees" he said.

'Consistent with global warming signals'

Mr Browning said the NT had experienced a different weather pattern to normal.

"We seem to have been seeing more of the winds coming from the east than the south-east," Mr Browning said.

"The south-easterlies really bring the cool temperatures from down south, but we're just not seeing that as much."

He said the warmer-than-expected weather seen in July and so far this month were "consistent with global warming signals".

"Whereas you might see something that's normally a couple above average... we're seeing three degrees or more," he said

ABC