Oh wow, it’s not pouring torrential rain in Sydney’s summer this year 
From what I notice, Melbourne will only have one extremely hot day, whilst the rest of the week will be quite mild, with temps over the next week (Thursday to Wednesday) being:
26, 29, 41, 22, 24, 23, 25
By comparison, at Penrith in Sydney’s west over the same period:
31, 37, 42, 45, 39, 27, 31
In areas away from the coast, Sydney will stay warm to hot for quite a lengthy period, which combined with high humidity on at least some of the days, is quite unbearable, at least to my liking.
From what I can see so far this summer, Melbourne has been much milder than Sydney on average. Last month, the average minimum-maximum temperature in Sydney CBD was 19.9-27.8°C, whilst out west in Penrith, it was 18.7-33.4°C, and down in Melbourne, it was 15.2-25.0°C.
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Melbourne and Penrith aren’t exactly like-for-like are they?
Western Sydney should always be ignored on a national perspective, often talked about just so they can say ‘we’ve got 40 degrees here’.
Use Sydney’s forecast for fairer comparison I say. No?
Penrith (and other Western Sydney suburbs, particularly those West of the Parramatta River) often gets hotter during the Summer, colder during the Winter and harder hit by severe thunderstorms compared to the city/coastal areas of Sydney!
The local media are well aware of this, which explains why you always hear “currently it’s 23 in the City, 25 in the West” and other instances of including both the City & West weather (including 7 day forecasts, etc.) on Sydney TV and radio.
Brisbane weather forecasts usually give bayside, city, Ipswich and both coasts. It is always noticeable how the ocean-side temps are moderated by the water.
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I’ve never heard of temps being moderated by “the water” as such, here in NSW, it’s the seabreeezes that keep the coastal suburbs cooler.
Inland, whilst its hotter, it’s generally a drier heat, and the sea breeze can feel a bit “sticky” at times. But overall, the coastal areas are still more comfortable.
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In winter - at least in Melbourne - it’s often warmer by the water, places like Frankston and Geelong a degree or two warmer than the city or suburbs like Viewbank or Scoresby.
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The seabreeze is one aspect of the moderating effect of the ocean. There are plenty of sources that will explain the exact details.
http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/Ce-Cr/Climate-Moderator-Water-as-a.html
Liquid water at the surface also can play a significant role in climate moderation. Water takes much longer than air to heat up, and also longer to cool, because it has much higher specific heat. Thus, on hot days, water (oceans, lakes, and rivers) absorbs heat, keeping the air somewhat cooler. When the air gets cool, however, water slowly releases heat to the atmosphere, raising air temperatures. This is why temperatures along coastlines are cooler in summer and warmer in winter relative to inland areas. Temperature vary more the farther inland one travels.
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I feel for you all!
I’m in Mackay (Central Queensland) at the moment, and we’ve just had a heatwave over the last few days. Yesterday hit 37.6°C which was the hottest January day here in 103 years, and boy was it hot!
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Wow, 37.6… and I see the humidity was still over 50% !!
That would have been very uncomfortable.
At least down here when it gets that hot, the humidity usually drops below 20%.
Though with that comes the increased risk of bushfires.
Wow.
But the humidity!
In VIC, it’s that bone dry, hot, northerly wind.
Really hits you for six.
I loathe humidity. Give me a dry heat any day of the week.
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Okay, see you tomorrow 
I’ll be over at 10:30
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Latest is 42 for Melbs tomorrow.
Some burbs 43, other areas of VIC as high as 45.
Potentially hottest day in 2-3 years (42.2 in Jan 2016).
Me tomorrow: 
Some big fire danger ratings / warnings for tomorrow too (change set for ~5pm, squally, hottest part of day).
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Areas outside Melbourne should always be ignored on a national perspective, often talked about just so they can say ‘Frankston, on the Mornington Peninsula’
Use Melbourne’s forecast for fairer comparison I say. No?
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Frankston is a bit like Ayr.
I say.
No?
Luke stopped reading here.
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Some bush / grass fires broke out in my neck of the woods today, just saw on the news.
One in Carrum Downs (near Frankston) and another just now in Hastings on the Peninsula.
An emergency warning was in place west of Colac too.
My weather station on the roof said 42.5 degree max (not sure how accurate that is, but close enough I suppose).
Certainly felt like the hottest day in a couple of years, as it was fully sunny / blue sky as well as fairly calm (previous near 40s recently have been windy or overcast I seem to recall).
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It’s air-conditioner weather for just about all the Sydney metropolitan area for the next 24 hours or so. Not even Katoomba or Terrey Hills (the usual “cool” spots for the Sydney metropolitan area) is expecting a minimum temperature below 20°C tonight or early tomorrow morning.
The forecast for Sunday is predicting 40°C in the city with the real hot spots being Penrith and Richmond which are expecting 45°C! Cronulla are the lucky ones, expecting “only” 33°C tomorrow.
A slight cooldown is expected for on Monday, but the real relief (if only temporarily) isn’t expected until Wednesday.
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