This year, unusually cold weather affected the whole of Australia in May. Several weather stations reported record minimum temperatures.
Occasional snow
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) was expecting a drier, warmer month than in previous years. But this year, Australia experienced a very different May, with frequent frosts in large inland areas of eastern and southeastern Australia, occasional snowfalls and below-average precipitations, with snow as early as May 3 in the mountains, with a layer reaching 20 cm on the 8th, by which time the snow had fallen to an altitude of 700 meters. Snow fell even lower at the end of the month under an active cold front. Meteorologists agree that this year's weather was a considerable departure from the norm.
Unusually low temperatures
Sydney experienced its coldest May in 53 years, with an average temperature of 15.0 degrees. The city's average minimum temperature plunged to 10.0 degrees, the first time this has happened since 1935. Brisbane experienced its coldest May in 29 years, particularly at night. The Australian outback also experienced cooler temperatures, with absolute minimums between 5 and 10 degrees below average.
On a national average, the coolest May on record dates back to 2011. Average minimum temperatures were the 7th lowest since 1944.
