We thought we might finally have been at the tail-end of winter, but don't retire your puffer jacket just yet. According to reports, a blast of Antarctic air is set to send temperatures into chilly terrain over the next few days.

The cold front is forecast to sweep across southern Australia over the weekend, bringing heavy rain, damaging winds, thunderstorms, hail and snow to several states. While winter weather is hardly unexpected in August, forecasters say this will be some of the strongest in the country this season.

Everything you need to know, below.

Which parts of Australia will be affected?

The cold front is expected to arrive in Western Australia first, where rain, strong winds and possible thunderstorms will develop on Friday and into Saturday.

It will then move across South Australia before reaching Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales, the ACT and parts of southern Queensland from late Sunday into Monday.

Ahead of the front, strengthening northerly winds will make way for a surge of icy polar air, which explains why you might have felt colder than usual this week venturing out in anything less than thermals and a scarf.

What exactly should we be expecting?

Unfortunately, this won't just mean reaching for another jumper.

Forecasters have warned of widespread rain, strong wind, thunderstorms, hail and snow (in alpine regions).

The heaviest rainfall is expected in parts of Victoria and southern New South Wales. Some areas could receive between 50 and 100 millimetres of rain in a single day.

Wind chill is also expected to make temperatures feel considerably colder than what's forecast.

How long will it last?

The coldest conditions are expected between Saturday 8 August and Monday 10 August.

While the rain and strongest winds should begin easing early next week, chilly mornings are likely to stick around for a little longer. So if you'd already packed away your winter jackets (optimistic), you might want to keep them within reach a while yet.