Overview
While this past week of rainy gloom wouldn't have inspired too many plans for weekend beach sessions, here's a little news that might just change your tune — ocean temperatures off the coast of NSW are having an especially balmy moment, currently clocking the same heat as you'll find in the tropics in December.
Yep, summer might be long gone, but Sydney's beaches are primed for a dip, with sea surface temperatures (SST) along the NSW coastline sitting at between 22 and 26 degrees — one or two degrees above the March average. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, that puts a good chunk of the state's beaches among the warmest ten percent for this time of year.
The BOM told Concrete Playground that these high temperatures are thanks to the return of the warm East Australian Current, which sat offshore during the first two months of the year when high pressure and northeasterly winds caused unusually cold SST's throughout January and part of February. An especially strong current has helped things along, too, moving warm waters south down the NSW coastline, while a marine heatwave, which developed back in December, has also kicked up temperatures.
Add to that the fact Sydney's expected to hit balmy maximums of 28 and 30 degrees this weekend, and we're forecasting some pretty decent beach sessions ahead. Who needs summer, right?
Need some suggestions of where to hit up this weekend? These are our favourite spots to swim.
Images: Shelley Beach by Paros Huckstepp.