A storm which put on a spectacular light show across the ACT has dumped about 20 millimetres of rain in the national capital.
The storm attracted amateur and professional photographers alike, keen to capture nature’s show.
But Canberra managed to avoid the destructive winds which ripped roofs from houses in New South Wales and Victoria overnight.
ACT Rural Fire Service Chief Officer Andrew Stark said there were only 10 requests for assistance overnight.
“Although there’s been plenty of it, it’s come down reasonably gently,” he said.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Sean Carson said there were a few more showers expected around the territory this morning.
“Last night was certainly the real deal as we picked up 20mm right across the ACT,” he said.
“After only 26mm for the month of October, we’ve had nearly that much already in November.
“And it looks [like there is] some more to come this week.”
Pretty sure this is a direct strike at Mount Stromlo tonight. #Canberra #lightning #storm pic.twitter.com/waNo9IeaUS
— Glenn Martin Photos (@GlennMarPhotos) November 1, 2015
The rain came after Canberra experienced its hottest October on record, with the ACT far exceeding the October long-term average of 19.5 degrees Celsius.
“It was welcome rain after the hottest October on record,” Mr Carson said. “We came out with an average temperature of 24.8 degrees Celsius, which is more like the December average.” October 5 was the earliest October day to surpass 30 degrees Celsius in Canberra since records began in 1939.
Public servant and keen photographer Glenn Martin said it was near impossible to miss getting a shot of the lightning on Sunday night. “It’s a little bit of patience, a little bit of luck and being able to point your camera in the right direction most of the time,” he said.
“Sometimes it can be like watching a toaster for your toast to pop – the second you turn your camera away ‘boom’, there’s that big strike you were waiting for. “[But] last night it was pretty hard to miss the shot, there way down in the south right up to the north there was that big front that came across. “You could point your camera in any direction and with that bit of patience get a great shot.”
Spectacular image from last night’s storms across Canberra (image credit: Abhinay Mukunthan). Wow! pic.twitter.com/vI1WsNOqt4
— BOM ACT (@BOM_ACT) November 1, 2015
Mr Martin said there were multiple ways to take good photos of lightning.
“You can either try to catch the shot manually, have your finger on the trigger and wait for the flash, but that can be really hit and miss, and bumping the camera can ruin a good shot,” he said.
“The method I use is to use a remote trigger, just a little hand-held device that connects to the camera.
“I have all my settings and then lock it open for continuous exposures and hope within those shots a nice big strike happens.”
– ABC News
