Snowfall in several states as polar blast chills Australia’s south-east | Australia weather

It’s shaping up as a decent season for skiers and snowboarders, with a number of Australia’s most popular alpine areas getting an early coat of snow.

A cold front has moved across south-eastern parts of the nation, where ski resorts have capitalised on the overnight snowfall.

Chilly temperatures were rife through Victoria, Tasmania, southern New South Wales, ACT and parts of South Australia.

“All of these spots will have somewhere between about 2C and 8C below average”, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Angus Hines said.

“In Victoria, we saw snow actually fall to some reasonably low levels … to around 400m in altitude”.

“So quite a few people will have woken up to a bit of a winter dusting … for some areas it was really quite an uncommon dump of snow.”

Light snow at Thredbo, NSW. Photograph: Thredbo ResortThredbo recorded -1C on Thursday afternoon. Photograph: Thredbo Resort

Ski resorts have taken advantage of their snow guns, which mix cold air and water to shoot white powder across the mountain slopes.

Mt Buller has been testing their guns for weeks, and a spokesperson said Thursday was the first time it had produced results.

“Today’s the first day it’s been -5C, so that water’s coming out as snow”, they said.

“We were wearing shorts a week ago … then it’s proper winter this week and we’re all in our full ski gear”.

“That’s the thing that’s kind of really caught people’s attention”.

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Ski resorts including Mt Hotham, Falls Creek, Thredbo and Selwyn also showed their snow guns in action on social media.

For the rest of the country, average temperatures can be expected, the bureau said.

Sydney can expect chilly mornings, with a low of 9C and a high of 21C on Friday, a low of 11C and a high of 22C on Saturday, and a low of 11C climbing to 23C on Sunday.

Melbourne can expect a low of 10C and a high of 16C on Friday, a low of 11C and a high of 17C on Saturday, and a low of 12C warming up to a high of 16C on Sunday.

Falls Creek village in Victoria was picturesque amid the polar blast. Photograph: Toby RoyceFalls Creek village is 4.5 hours from Melbourne and 7.5 hours from Sydney. Photograph: Toby Royce

Inland parts of Queensland and much of the Northern Territory will experience temperatures in the mid-to-upper 20s.

“It really is the weather in the south-east which is dominating the headlines,” Hines said.

“We’re heading towards winter so the days are getting shorter, the nights are getting longer, it’s more likely at this time of year we’ll be getting those cold bursts”.