Mixed bag of weather on its way

A storm front comes across Gympie.

Craig Warhurst

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THE Christmas to Boxing Day period will deliver a contrasting set of weather conditions across the continent with showers, thunderstorms and large swell on the seas forecast.

Gympie can expect scattered showers today and tomorrow, overcast conditions on Christmas Day and then fine weather for Boxing Day.

It will be a warm and humid Christmas Day over south-eastern Australia with afternoon showers and thunderstorms likely over Tasmania, Victoria and southern New South Wales.

"The rest of New South Wales, along with most of Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia, should be dry," Weather Channel senior meteorologist Tom Saunders said.

"The wettest part of the country will be the Top End due to a developing tropical low," he said.

"Boxing Day will be up to 10 degrees cooler over southern states and thankfully the rain will clear for the Boxing Day Test match.

"New South Wales will remain warm and humid with widespread showers and thunderstorms.

"It will stay hot and dry through most of Queensland and Western Australia, but heavy rain is likely to continue.

"For the Sydney to Hobart yacht race, thanks to a northerly tail wind we can expect a fast start, but the fleet will run into a gusty southerly change as it moves down the New South Wales coast.

"The yachts will also contend with a building cyclone swell from the Coral Sea, and later in the race a large Southern Ocean swell off the south-east coast of Tasmania," Mr Saunders said.

"Southern Queensland can also expect a large cyclone swell over the Christmas period with surf up to 10 feet (3m).

"The variable weather will continue in the lead-up to New Year's Eve with eastern and northern parts of the country wet while southern and western parts will be dry and hot," he said.