Temperatures hitting 31C this weekend had Canberrans digging out their swimwear and watching spectacular thunderstorms.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Friday, Saturday and Sunday were seven degrees above the monthly average and the hottest spring days so far this year.
Forecasters predict the hot spell of 30C plus weather will continue until Tuesday and broken by a cool change and rain late on Tuesday evening.
Weatherzone meteorologist Graeme Brittain hot air moving from the interior over NSW and the ACT was causing the unstable and hot weather.
"Heat will dissipate through this week with temperatures returning to the November average of 24C," he said.
"Up to 5mm of rain is forecast for Tuesday and Wednesday."
Tuesday is predicted to remain particularly warm with rain due in the late evening bring cloud cover after a hot day.
After a daily high of 31C the overnight low on Tuesday is forecast to be 15C, double the average nightly low for November.
"Heavy rain isn't predicted," he said. "But it will be a bit of a light show."
A drying off period will come later in the week with temperatures picking up again to hit 26C on Sunday.
Mr Brittain said the variable weather was typical of November with the seasonal transition from spring to summer.
"The southern half of Australia is like a battle zone between the hot air in the north and the cooler air in southern ocean," he said. "The turbulent, up and down range in temperatures is quite normal for this time of year."
Manuka Pool manager Bryan Pasfield said after a poor start to the season, hot weekend weather was very welcome.
"When the weather doubled in temperature on Friday, Saturday and Sunday we had awesome days here," he said. "Over the weekend there would have been 900, or 450 people a day through our gates."
The big weekend kicked off the 2017 season and Mr Pasfield said he was thrilled to see more warm weather forecast for the weekend.
The paddling pool areas have been popular places for tots to cool off but Mr Pasfield said there had been a boost in the numbers of laps swimmers too.
"The heat has brought everyone outdoors," he said. "The pool is open from 6am-7pm on weekdays and 8am-7pm on weekends. So there is plenty of time for a pre- or post-work dip."
