It’s shaping up to be a scorching end to 2023 for northwestern WA, with the region is currently in the midst of an extreme heatwave that has the potential to break some records over the weekend. 

Image: Heatwave warning area for Saturday to Monday covering large areas of northern and eastern WA, Source: Bureau of Meteorology 

The small town of Marble Bar, about 150km southeast of Port Hedland is currently the focal point of this heatwave. Almost every day since December 20th, Marble Bar has been the hottest place in the country and has cracked 45 degrees each day since Christmas day. For the record, the town’s long term December average is a blistering 42.1 degrees.  

Over this weekend, the heatwave looks like reaching its peak putting some big records at risk. As you’ll see in the image below, mercury is currently tipped to reach at least 45 degrees across large swathes of northern WA and the NT and even across to western QLD, but the small patch of land south of Port Hedland, including Marble Bar, is expected to reach at least 48 degrees!  

Image: Forecast maximum temperatures for northern WA and the NT on Sat 30th 

The record for Marble Bar’s highest temperature is 49.3 degrees, set 5 years ago, and while unlikely, there is a small chance that this record is eclipsed on tomorrow. On Sunday and Monday, the hottest area is likely to shift further west with temperatures in Marble Bar dropping back to the low to mid 40s during the first week of 2024. 

If you want to keep track of Marble Bar’s temperatures tomorrow, you can do so here.