Perth's weather forecast.

Heat wave: Perth braces for 40C day as NSW records hottest minimum on record

Hayley Goddard, Trevor PaddenburgPerthNow

While Perth temperatures have soared to 40C today, spare a thought for our NSW cousins who sweltered through a record hot night.

Residents of Noona, 162km west of Sydney, suffered through a horrendous overnight minimum of 35.9C.

It set a new Australian record for the hottest minimum temperature, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

It is the latest in a series of broken records as a heatwave sweeps the country.

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Shortly before 3pm, the mercury had hit 40.2C at Perth Airport. Goosberry Hill, Swan Valley and Pearce gauges read 40.7C, 40C and 40.3C, respectively.

The weather bureau is advising people to head for the beach, the ice-cream parlour or the air-conditioned bliss of a nearby shopping centre or cinema.

Tomorrow is forecast to hit 40C, but the overnight minimum will be much more pleasant than Noona experienced at 22C.

Will you be hitting the beach to stay cool this weekend? Natalia Sprogoe, 10, with dog Hunter hit the beach at Swanbourne.
Camera IconWill you be hitting the beach to stay cool this weekend? Natalia Sprogoe, 10, with dog Hunter hit the beach at Swanbourne. Credit: Daniel Wilkins

However, the weekend hot spell won’t qualify as a heatwave, with the mercury easing to 31C on Monday, 29C on Tuesday and a forecast top of 23C on Wednesday.

Bureau of Meteorology spokesman Neil Bennett said the hot weather was driven by a lack of tropical storm activity in WA’s north, .

“The heat from the Pilbara and Gascoyne is working its way down the coast as a result of a high-pressure system that’s moved into the Bight, and it’s going to be widespread,” Mr Bennett said.

That includes in the Wheatbelt where temps will hit the low 40s tomorrow and in the South-West which will bask in the mid-30s.

The weekend hot spell comes after Marble Bar recorded its hottest January day on record last Sunday at 49.1C, Meekatharra sweated through its hottest night on record at 33C on Monday, and Norseman in the State’s south set a new all-time heat record of 46.5C on Sunday.

However, the Perth average maximum for January so far is only 29C – less than the long term January average of 31C.

Perth’s hottest day on record for the month of January was in 2015, when the mercury shot up to 44.4C on January 5.

The WA capital has also had a dry start to the year, with just 1.8mm of rain this month thanks to a lack of tropical storms and cyclones off the north-west coast, Mr Bennett said.

PERTH FORECAST

Today: very hot and sunny, 39C.

Tomorrow: very hot and sunny, minimum of 22C and maximum of 40C.

Monday: mostly sunny, min 19C, max 31C.

Tuesday: partly cloudy, min 19C, max 29C.

Wednesday: shower or two, min 16C, max 23C.

Thursday: partly cloudy, min 13C, max 24C.

Friday: sunny, min 12C, max 28C.