This year’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras could become a soggy celebration, with rain and possibly thunderstorms expected to develop at some point on Saturday night.
The lead up to this year’s Mardi Gras has been very wet in Sydney. The city’s official rain gauge at Observatory Hill has registered rain on all of the last 11 days. This wet spell included 10 consecutive days with more than 13mm, which is a new record for the city, with data going back to 1858.
Thankfully, this relentless run of rainy days has come to an end just in time for the Mardi Gras.
Saturday is likely to be a dry, warm and partly cloudy day, with temperatures expected to reach around 28ºC in the afternoon. While there may be the odd light shower in the Sydney Basin on Saturday afternoon, it should stay dry over the Sydney Cricket Ground through the afternoon into the early evening.
However, a cold front crossing eastern NSW on Saturday night has the potential to rain on the parade.
Rain and thunderstorms could develop over Sydney on Saturday night with the arrival of this cold front. There is some uncertainty around the timing of this wet and stormy weather, with forecast models suggesting that it could reach the SCG any time between about 8pm on Saturday and early Sunday morning.
Image: Forecast accumulated rain between 8pm Saturday and 2am Sunday according to two different computer models. This shows the uncertainty in the forecast, with some models predicting rain and storms on Saturday night and others anticipating a dry night before wet weather on Sunday.
Once the rain does arrive, it is likely to stick around throughout Sunday, with the potential for heavy falls and more thunderstorms.
Anyone planning on attending the Mardi Gras celebrations on Saturday night or Sunday should have a poncho handy, if they don’t want to get wet. The event organisers are discouraging the use of umbrellas at the SCG and will post any news about severe weather disruptions or cancellations on their social media pages.
You can track rain and thunderstorms on the Weatherzone App using the radar viewer and stay up to date with any warnings that get issued throughout the night.
Weatherzone wishes everyone a happy Mardi Gras and whatever the weather brings, don’t let it ruin your night. For more information, please contact us at business@weatherzone.com.au.
