Yahoo Lifestyle Millions of Aussies facing 10 consecutive days of rain as weather systems 'stall'
The incoming deluge of wet weather comes after the BoM officially declared the end of El Niño, with suggestions another La Niña may now be headed our way.
Millions of Australians could be about to cop an absolute drenching over the next two weeks, as an usual weather system "stalls" over the nation's southeast bringing soggy conditions set to repeated for days on end.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) confirmed to Yahoo News Australia there's expected to be at least seven days in a row of rain in NSW from Tuesday, with other major forecasters predicting that figure could blow out to 10 days, as a "blocking high" restricts the typical eastward movement of weather.
A blocking high is the name given to a high-pressure system that stalls from several days to even weeks, bringing with it an extended bout of conditions that are near identical every day. That's in contrast to the typical day-to-day weather fluctuations normally seen in mid-latitude climates like Sydney.
"Over the next seven days there's a high to very high chance of showers or rain across large areas of the NSW coast, particularly along the northern and central coast," a BoM spokesperson told Yahoo.
"There could be 10mm and above recorded over consecutive days.
"There is also an increased chance of showers and rain with the risk of potentially heavy falls and flash flooding over the weekend, as a costal trough deepens in the later part of the week, possibly forming into a low pressure system."
The spokesperson added that it's important to note there is "still a high degree of uncertainty regarding the development of the system during the weekend", so communities should stay up to date with the latest forecasts and warnings.
The incoming string of wet weather comes after the BoM officially declared the end of El Niño, with suggestions a La Niña may be coming our way in a few months. This would then be the first time in history Australia has seen an El Niño or La Niña weather event declared five years in a row.
The BoM stated "International climate models suggest ENSO will likely continue to be neutral until at least July 2024" before a possible La Niña forms by spring.
NSW to cop the biggest drenching this week
A series of upper-level troughs and low pressure systems will also trigger multiple days of rain and thunderstorms throughout Australia in general this week — including in Western Australia — though NSW is set to cop the brunt.
Showers are expected to be light at first, though when combined with a "developing trough" later this week, systems will intensify and form across western NSW on Thursday and Friday, shifting to the coast during the weekend, which could bring anywhere from between 50 to 200 millimetres to NSW's east.
There could be over 50mm fall in some parts of the state's west during the 10-day period, according to ABC meteorologists, which could be enough to trigger flood watches and warnings.
Sydney's heaviest rainfall is expected from Saturday to Monday, with forecasts suggesting the city's total could exceed 100mm by the week's end, and even pass the May average of 117mm by this time next week.
From Wednesday, a large high pressure ridge will emerge over the Tasman Sea, causing a steady flow of rain-bearing easterly winds over eastern Australia for the rest of the week. This is expected to interact with an upper-level cut-off low pressure system in the second half of the week, causing widespread rain over NSW and southern Queensland.
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