Queensland weather: slight chance of snow in Granite Belt next week
Snow remains possible next week in parts of Queensland, as the temps are set to drop again. This is what would make it happen.
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A sprinkling of snow remains possible in Queensland’s Granite Belt next week.
Cold air is predicted to track from the Southern Ocean into Queensland on about Wednesday next week. With it may come the rare phenomenon of snow in Queensland.
BOM meteorologist Adam Blazak said the timing and positioning of the cold snap was crucial to whether or not snow would fall in the Granite Belt.
“It would be less than a 10 per cent chance, but that’s enough for us to keep an eye on it,” he said.
“If that really cold air does push over the Granite Belt, than we could see that opportunity (for snow) still but the latest modelling has it further west, like Thargomindah.
“I wouldn’t expect to see snow that far west, it’s going to be too dry out there.”
Mr Blazak said it was too early for BOM to issue a forecast for snow.
Based on current models, Stanthorpe is forecast to be rainy with a minimum temperature of 7C on Wednesday, but that could plummet below zero if the cold air changes direction slightly.
Temperatures would need to drop to at least 0C for snow to form.
“It doesn’t take much for it to move 100km one way or the other, so there’s still a lot of uncertainty,” Mr Blazak said.
Brisbane is expected to feel the cold snap on Thursday morning, with temperatures expected to dip below average for June.
It comes as BOM predicts a wetter-than-usual winter.
Eastern Queensland was the main recipient of rain on Thursday and overnight, caused by a south-westerly change moving through the region.
“We had nice steady rain throughout the day, anywhere sort of east of the Darling Downs and into the southeast, and then that was followed by some short, sharp showers,” Mr Blazak said.
“The way it was delivered was quite good in soaking the soil.”
Eatons Hill received 28mm in an evening shower, while Tewantin on the Sunshine Coast also recorded 28mm in the past 24 hours.
“In general it was sort of 5-10mm for most people,” Mr Blazak.
The last significant snowfall in Queensland was in 2015.
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