Canberra has enjoyed a run of beautiful sunshine and light breezy weather this week and those hoping for a clear weekend may be in luck with a forecast of gradual heating over the next five days.

A windswept Canberra is in for a milder and calmer end to the week with above-average temperatures forecast for the weekend.

The flow-on effects of Fiji's Tropical Cyclone Winston put a dampener on the last weekend of summer, bringing dangerous surfing conditions and closing many Sydney beaches.

Ongoing record warmth in the world’s oceans has increased the likelihood that 2014 will be declared the hottest year since reliable data began more than a century ago, US and Japanese agencies say.

Thunderstorms may have drenched Sydney and other parts of the state but many parched regions of the state largely missed out.