Australia has officially recorded the hottest temperatures in the world as sweltering humidity grips the nation.
Marble Bar in Western Australia’s Pilbara region was the hottest place on Earth on Tuesday, recording a sweltering temperature of 46.4C, according to Ogimet.
Learmonth Airport and Leonora Aero, near WA’s North West Cape, hit 46.2C, while Leonora Leinster Aerodrome AWS recorded 45.8C and Lavertown AWS 45.7C.
WA also took out the remaining 10 spots in the maximum temperature list.
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a warning ahead of the heatwave.
Large parts of New South Wales, WA, ACT, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia are forecast to swelter until at least Friday, with the Bureau of Meteorology warning temperatures to be the worst since the 2019/20 Black Summer bushfires.
Meteorologist Angus Hines said the warm temperatures recorded on Tuesday will drastically change overnight.
‘It will be an absolute scorcher on Wednesday, with Victoria and South Australia copping the brunt of the heat,’ he said.
Millions of Australians are expected to suffer through severe heatwave conditions this week (pictured, temperatures on Wednesday)
‘Melbourne and Adelaide are both forecast to reach 41C.
‘The capital cities may see some cooler weather kick in at some stage in the afternoon as sea breezes develop near the coastline, but inland parts of Victoria, NSW and South Australia will stay extremely hot all through the day.
‘A few areas, in particular northern parts of South Australia, likely to be around 45°C. It will be very hot along the Murray River as well.’
While temperatures are expected to drop to a cooler 30C in Melbourne on Thursday, Adelaide will swelter at 39C and Canberra will reach 37C.
Temperatures are expected to spike on Friday in Melbourne and Canberra.
‘[It will get] very hot through the centre of the country, down into northern parts of Victoria and getting quite hot around Sydney,’ Mr Hines said.
‘It’s likely to be 33C in the CBD and the oceanside suburbs, western parts of Sydney more likely 39 or 40C.
‘Saturday will be the warmest day of the week in Sydney, 39C this time in the city. And again, those western suburbs looking warmer, potentially 43 or 44C around the likes of Penrith and Parramatta.’
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned of fire dangers across the country
Mr Hines said he expects to see ‘pretty significant fire weather’ this week.
‘It is also going to be very dry across the country. It’s fairly windy. We don’t have howling winds every day, but fairly breezy enough to really whip up any fires which do happen to start,’ he said.
‘And there is the potential for some lightning strikes as well, which gives us some ignition sites across south-eastern Australia.
‘If any bushfires do get going under these conditions, they can spread extremely quickly and be very difficult or impossible to control and contain.’
He warned Aussies to expect stress on the power and infrastructure networks with ‘everyone turning on the AC at the same time’.
Sydney
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Max 30C. Low 19C.
Thursday: Sunny. Max 32C. Low 20C.
Friday: Sunny. Max 33C. Min 21C.
Saturday: Sunny. Max 40C. Min 24C.
Sunday: Sunny, possible shower. Max 26C. Min 20C.
People flocked to Clovelly Beach in Sydney to cool off on Tuesday
The severe to extreme heatwave will expand and peak across NSW later this week, before easing from the south over the weekend and early next week as a southerly change brings milder temperatures.
Locations likely to be impacted include Albury, Broken Hill, Batemans Bay, Bega, Camden, Campbelltown, Goulburn, Hornsby, Liverpool, Nowra, Orange, Richmond, Wagga Wagga and Wollongong.
Melbourne
Wednesday: Sunny. Max 41C. Low 18C.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Max 30C. Low 21C.
Friday: Possible shower or storm. Max 38C. Min 18C.
Saturday: Possible showers. Max 23C. Min 18C.
Sunday: Partly cloudy. Max 20C. Min 14C.
Locations likely to be impacted by the heatwave include Melbourne Metropolitan Area, Albury-Wodonga, Ballarat, Bendigo, Horsham, Mildura, Melton, Maryborough, Seymour and Shepparton.
Melbourne is expected to hit 41C on Wednesday
Brisbane
Wednesday: Partly cloudy. Max 30C. Low 22C.
Thursday: Possible shower. Max 29C. Low 22C.
Friday: Showers. Max 30C. Min 22C.
Saturday: Possible showers. Max 31C. Min 22C.
Sunday: Possible shower. Max 33C. Min 22C.
Canberra
Wednesday: Sunny. Max 35C. Low 15C.
Thursday: Mostly sunny. Max 38C. Low 19C.
Friday: Sunny. Max 38C. Min 19C.
Saturday: Sunny. Max 38C. Min 21C.
Sunday: Partly cloudy. Max 27C. Min 14C.
Locations likely to be impacted by the heatwave include Canberra, Belconnen, Gungahlin, Tuggeranong and Woden Valley.
Severe heatwave conditions are expected to hit millions of Aussies later this week
Perth
Wednesday: Sunny. Max 30C. Low 18C.
Thursday: Sunny. Max 28C. Low 18C.
Friday: Partly cloudy. Max 29C. Min 16C.
Saturday: Mostly sunny. Max 32C. Min 15C.
Sunday: Sunny. Max 34C. Min 17C.
Despite severe heatwave conditions easing over the North Interior and Kimberley, they are expected to return later in the week and over the weekend.
Locations likely to be impacted include Exmouth, Laverton, Leinster, Leonora, Meekatharra, Newman, Paraburdoo, Wiluna and Warburton.
Adelaide
Wednesday: Sunny. Max 42C. Low 25C.
Thursday: Sunny. Max 39C. Low 23C.
Friday: Sunny. Max 34C. Min 23C.
Saturday: Cloudy. Max 23C. Min 15C.
Sunday: Cloud clearing. Max 26C. Min 13C.
Locations likely to be impacted by the heatwave include Clare, Coober Pedy, Leigh Creek, Maitland, Mount Barker, Port Pirie, Port Augusta, Renmark, Roxby Downs and the Barossa Valley.
The severe to extreme heatwave will expand and peak across NSW later this week, beachgoers pictured at Clovelly Beach, Sydney
Hobart
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Max 28C. Low 13C.
Thursday: Possible shower. Max 25C. Low 15C.
Friday: Shower or two. Max 23C. Min 14C.
Saturday: Shower or two. Max 21C. Min 15C.
Sunday: Cloudy. Max 21C. Min 12C.
Darwin
Wednesday: Shower or two, possible storm. Max 33C. Low 26C.
Thursday: Showers, storm. Max 32C. Low 25C.
Friday: Showers, storm. Max 32C. Min 25C.
Saturday: Showers, storm. Max 32C. Min 25C.
Sunday: Showers, possible storm. Max 32C. Min 25C.
