Rockdale in Summer

In summer (December, January and February), Rockdale sees average daytime highs around 23°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 227 mm of rain over about 28 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 23°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 39% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels muggy.

Summer is Rockdale's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Rockdale's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
23°C
warmest season of the year
Avg overnight low
20°C
Rainfall
227 mm
28 wet days
Avg wind
19 km/h
Travel score
7.0
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Rockdale in Summer

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 23°C.

A typical summer day in Rockdale reaches about 23°C and drops to 20°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

15°20°25°30°DecJanFeb

Rockdale weather by month

How the three summer months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan23° / 20°759147.2
Feb24° / 21°9310.513.36.8
Mar23° / 20°8312.112.36.7
Apr21° / 17°7810.511.26.6
May19° / 15°849.910.36.3
Jun17° / 13°10010.59.85.5
Jul16° / 12°598.2105.5
Aug17° / 12°556.910.76.0
Sep18° / 14°506.811.86.6
Oct19° / 15°618.312.96.6
Nov21° / 17°729.413.86.6
Dec22° / 19°588.814.27.0

Cloud cover in Summer

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 39% of the time across summer.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Summer

Any precipitation

Rockdale gets around 227 mm of rain over 28 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%50%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Summer

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of summer feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Summer

Winds average 19 km/h across summer.

0510152025DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Summer

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 06 min in early December to 12 h 48 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Summer

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 6.4 kWh/m².

02468DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in summer

Hazard calendar for Rockdale

In seasonPeak

In summer, Rockdale overlaps its cyclone season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Rockdale sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.

Cyclone
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is summer a good time to visit Rockdale?

Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

7.0
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
5.4
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

summer is one of the better times to visit Rockdale for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Rockdale in Summer

From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In summer, Rockdale sees daytime highs around 23°C and nights near 20°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes and rain gear. About 28 days see rain.

sun protectionlight clothesrain gear

Sea temperature near Rockdale in Summer

The nearest coast averages about 22°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 19 km away) is warmest in February at about 23°C and coldest in August near 18°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Nov 16 to Jun 2 — about 6.5 months when the water holds above 20°C.

16°18°20°22°24°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan23Refreshing
Feb23Refreshing
Mar23Refreshing
Apr22Refreshing
May21Refreshing
Jun19Cool
Jul18Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep18Cool
Oct19Cool
Nov20Refreshing
Dec21Refreshing

UV index in Rockdale in Summer

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Rockdale peaks around January 15 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 15UV 12Jun 18UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan12Extreme
Feb12Extreme
Mar9Very high
Apr6High
May4Moderate
Jun2Moderate
Jul3Moderate
Aug4Moderate
Sep5High
Oct8Very high
Nov10Very high
Dec12Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Rockdale?

Rockdale sits at 34.0°S, 151.1°E, 42 m above sea level, in Australia. The nearest listed city is Bexley, 2.0 km away.

Topography around Rockdale

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Rockdale.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Rockdale has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 81 m around an average of 25 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 195 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,047 m.

The land around Rockdale is covered by artificial surfaces (66%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (41%), water (27%) and trees (25%) within 16 km, and trees (51%) and water (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
81 m
16 km
195 m
80 km
1,047 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmangroves
Summer weather nearby: Bexley 2.0 km · Kogarah 2.0 km · Earlwood 3.0 km · Hurstville 4.0 km · Campsie 5.0 km · Marrickville 5.0 km · Mascot 6.0 km · Lakemba 6.0 km

Australia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type I
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 90% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$65,130
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
4.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
none 38%Roman Catholic 20%Protestant 18%other Christian 4%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Rockdale (-33.95°, 151.1333°, elevation 42 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.