Saturday at 3am, the astronomical spectacle will entertain those willing to head outdoors. Earth’s shadow will fall on the moon, causing a lunar eclipse while one of the brightest meteor showers in the southern hemisphere streaks across the sky.
However, hopeful stargazers will shudder as temperatures plunge to their lowest in six months in Sydney and parts of NSW are blanketed in snow over the weekend.
A downpour of snow fell at Perisher ski resort in New South Wales on Wednesday, with more snow expected this weekend.Credit: Ruixue
Friday night will hit a low of 9 degrees, making it the coldest night since October. An Antarctic airstream is set to blanket the Blue Mountains with snow, with Sunday set to be Sydney’s coldest day of the year with a high of 18 degrees, according to Bureau of Meteorology measurements at Observatory Hill.
Weatherzone meteorologist Maryam Al-Ansari said the cold front had moved across South Australia and Victoria, bringing the southern states their coldest early May weather in three years and hitting New South Wales on Sunday.
“[The cold front] A sub-low pressure will develop over the Tasman Sea on Sunday. This will add a lot of gusty southwesterly winds to the coast, which will trigger more rain and also snow in a lot of the mountains.
“Sydney is going to get colder, it’s going to be very, very wet on Sunday, especially at night, and there’s also a chance of thunderstorms.”
Weatherzone is forecasting 15mm of rain for Sydney on Sunday, with 50mm possible for the Shoalhaven area.
However, tonight’s skies will be clear for those keen to watch a lunar eclipse and one of Australia’s brightest meteor showers this year.
