By TERRY WEST
The new year has rolled around and it is time to see what the next month may bring to our region in the way of weather.
As we move into 2016 we find the influencing factors of late 2015 are still in play.
The strong El Nino combined with a warm Indian Ocean has allowed moisture to move into South East Queensland with some large amounts of rainfall recorded.
The 2015 El Nino is peaking now and all indications show it is going to weaken as we move through January.
The rate of decay from the El Nino will be one of the influencing factors for our region receiving any useful rainfall.
During the next month we should see at least three rain events originating from the south and west while events from the north may be less extreme.
Rain is expected from Southern regions during the following dates: 19 January to 23 January, 29 January to 2 February and 5 February to 9 February.
Northern rain events may be possible around the following dates: 19 January to 23 January, 25 January to 29 January and 4 February to 8 February.
January is climatologically the warmest month of the year for Southeast Queensland. Temperatures should remain slightly warmer than average during January and into the start of February although night-time temperatures may remain around average.
