News

Extreme heat returning to southeastern Australia

Source Weatherzone Wed 21 Jan 2026

A large portion of southeastern Australia is set to see furnace-like conditions from Thursday or Friday across the Australia Day long weekend and into the new week, with inland areas experiencing the most extreme heat as temperatures soar as high as 47°C at some locations. The timing of the coming heatwave means that many locations will see an extremely hot day next Monday, January 26, which is Australia Day. Huge, persistent pool of hot air to bake inland areas As you can see on the image below, large parts of inland South Australia, New South Wales, southern Queensland and northern Victoria will see the worst of the heat. The far SE corner of the Northern Territory will also be impacted. Image: Predicted maximums across the SE Aus mainland for Tuesday, January 27, 2026, according to the ECMWF model. Oodnadatta in South Australia’s North East Pastoral forecast district is expecting a run of maximums of 47°C, 47°C, 46°C and 45°C from Saturday through to Tuesday. Mildura in Victoria’s northwest corner is expecting a run of maximums of 44°C, 45°C, 46°C and 46°C from Saturday through to Tuesday. Bourke in the NSW Upper Western forecast district is expecting a run of maximums of 43°C, 45°C, 46°C and 47°C from Saturday through to Tuesday. Birdsville in far SW Queensland’s Channel Country is expecting a six-day run with maximums of 44°C or 45°C from Thursday through to Tuesday. Alice Springs will see maximums of 43°C, 42°C and 42°C from Friday through to Sunday, and while you expect to see summer temperatures like that in The Alice at times, it’s worth noting that the city’s average maximum in January (the hottest month) is 36.5°C. Temperatures rise in Melbourne and Adelaide The capital cities should be spared the worst of the heat, although it will still warm up significantly in Adelaide and Melbourne. Adelaide can expect maximums of at least 35°C from Friday through to Tuesday, with the two hottest days looking like Saturday (41°C) and Monday (40°C). For Melbourne, the hottest day looks like next Tuesday, when the forecast maximum of 37°C could activate the Australian Open’s Extreme Weather Policy. Coastal parts of Sydney won’t see anything like the sweltering conditions of January 10, when the mercury topped 42°C for the second time this summer. But while the city is expecting 33°C on Sunday, the mercury will approach 40°C in places like Penrith in the city’s outer west. Canberra has not quite hit 40°C this summer, with three days when the mercury reached 39°C. That temperature should be reached again as the national capital experiences a hot run of days with maximums of 35°C, 39°C, 37°C and 39°C from Saturday through to Tuesday.  Like most Australian locations south of the tropics, January is Hobart’s hottest month. And while the city’s average January maximum is a relatively mild 21.9°C, the mercury has risen as high as 41.8°C (in January 2013). In the days ahead, the hottest air won’t cross Bass Strait, with Hobart’s hottest day of the forecast period looking like Saturday, with a top of 29°C. What’s causing this spell of extreme heat? "This heatwave is being driven by a slow-moving weather pattern over southern Australia," Weatherzone meteorologist Yoska Hernandez explains. "With minimal change expected in the overall circulation, hot air continues to spread across southeastern parts of the country, allowing the extreme heat to persist. "At the same time, a tropical low in the eastern Indian Ocean is forecast to strengthen, with a possible tropical cyclone approaching the Kimberley coast late this week. "This tropical system is influencing large-scale atmospheric circulation, helping sustain upper-level ridging and reinforcing the pattern that is keeping extreme heat entrenched across southeastern Australia." - Weatherzone © Weatherzone 2026