Alice Springs received 41 mm of rain in the 24 hours to 9 am this Thursday, thanks to storms that began late on Wednesday afternoon. This was a new 24-hour rainfall record for October.
But the broader story is that Alice Springs now has a running rainfall total of 508 mm to date in 2026. That makes it the wettest year since 2010 in the the iconic outback town, and also its 5th-wettest year on record with two months remaining.
While the record wet year of 1974 (728.5 mm) is still a way off, it's still very rare for Alice Springs to pass the 500 mm rainfall threshold in a calendar year.
It's also very unusual for Alice Springs to be wetter than any of the capital cities over a 10-month period. But at present in 2026, Alice Springs has received more rain than Melbourne, Canberra and Hobart – and it's only marginally behind Adelaide and Perth.
Alice Springs rainfall statistics (compared to other cities) to date in 2026
Alice Springs average annual rainfall: 283.7 mm
Alice Springs rainfall to date in 2026: 508.0 mm
Melbourne average annual rainfall: 642.9 mm
Melbourne rainfall to date in 2026: 464.0 mm
Canberra average annual rainfall: 636.7 mm
Canberra rainfall to date in 2026: 476.8 mm
Hobart average annual rainfall: 608.6 mm
Hobart rainfall to date in 2026: 370.8 mm
It's also worth noting that Alice Springs (508.0 mm year to date) is within a whisker of topping Adelaide's running total of 512.2 mm so far in 2026, and Perth's running total of 519.0 mm.
Why has Alice Springs been so wet this year?
Image: Monthly rainfall (sky blue bars) vs the monthly average (pale blue bars) over the over the last 12 months in Alice Springs, NT. Source: Weatherzone.
Like most years, Alice springs has seen a mix of months with moderate rainfall totals, or even no rain, during most of 2026. But heavy rain in February and March made all the difference.
In February, a very slow-moving low pressure system and associated trough linked up with a tropical moisture feed from the north. Due to the unusually persistent nature of this system, Alice Springs recorded 15 days of rain throughout the month, including a very rare nine-day rainy streak.
According to the Northern Territory Department of Lands, Planning and Environment, the Todd River reached its second-highest flood level on record after more significant falls of rain in March, including an extremely heavy rain day of 71.8 mm on March 17.
What caused the overnight downpour, and is more rain likely this week?
The airmass over much over the Northern Territory is unstable at the moment, due to a deep and humid northerly airstream flowing into a destabilising trough lying across the south of the NT.
This trough will contract to the northeast during Friday, taking the bulk of instability and humidity with it, however more showers and possible storms are likely in Alice Springs and nearby areas this Thursday, and some showers could stick around for at least another day.