Much of the Top End is well below average whilst the Lasseter and Tanami districts have seen above average rainfall

Katherine has had a dry start to the wet with just 22.8mm in October against an average of 29.8mm but as locals will tell you, it is all about storms and being under them at the right time.

November has also started slowly with just 3.4mm officially recorded so far this month against an average of 93.3mm.

The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting “possible thunderstorms” for Katherine for the rest of the week, a traditional build-up forecast.

Some weather websites are even tipping between 10-20mm is likely for Katherine on Saturday.

So far this wet season, Darwin Airport has recorded 87.2mm in the rain gauge – a further 125mm is needed by the end of this month to bring the total back to average

The bureau says we are three times more likely than average to see an El Niño form this year – this climate pattern typically means lower rainfall totals during the build-up and a later start to the monsoon onset which is usually during the last two weeks of December

And looking ahead to the true wet, the first cyclone to be named in Australian waters during the 2018/19 season will be Owen, followed by Penny, Riley and Savannah.

Tropical cyclones that form in the Australian region are assigned names from a predetermined list, provided by the bureau.

The next 10 tropical cyclones to form in Australian waters will be:

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox each Friday at 6am from the Katherine Times. To make sure you're up to date with all the news, sign up here.