Monthly Weather Review Australia August 2015
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Monthly Weather Review Australia August 2015 The Monthly Weather Review - Australia is produced by the Bureau of Meteorology to provide a concise but informative overview of the temperatures, rainfall and significant weather events in Australia for the month. To keep the Monthly Weather Review as timely as possible, much of the information is based on electronic reports. Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of these reports, the results can be considered only preliminary until complete quality control procedures have been carried out. Any major discrepancies will be noted in later issues. We are keen to ensure that the Monthly Weather Review is appropriate to its readers' needs. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact us: Bureau of Meteorology GPO Box 1289 Melbourne VIC 3001 Australia [email protected] www.bom.gov.au Units of measurement Except where noted, temperature is given in degrees Celsius (°C), rainfall in millimetres (mm), and wind speed in kilometres per hour (km/h). Observation times and periods Each station in Australia makes its main observation for the day at 9 am local time. At this time, the precipitation over the past 24 hours is determined, and maximum and minimum thermometers are also read and reset. In this publication, the following conventions are used for assigning dates to the observations made: Maximum temperatures are for the 24 hours from 9 am on the date mentioned. They normally occur in the afternoon of that day. Minimum temperatures are for the 24 hours to 9 am on the date mentioned. They normally occur in the early morning of that day. Mean temperatures are the average of the daily maximum and daily minimum temperatures. Daily rainfall is for the 24 hours to 9 am on the date mentioned. This means a significant fraction of the rain may have occurred on the previous calendar day. Monthly rainfall is for the period from 9 am on the last day of the previous month to 9 am on the last day of this month. Maximum daily wind gusts are in the 24 hours from midnight to midnight. Climatological values The climatological averages shown in the text and tables are generally long-term means based on observations from the years 1961–1990. They are not shown for sites with less than 25 years of record in that time, as they cannot then be calculated reliably. Climatological extremes are generally taken from all available years of record; the number of years can vary markedly from site to site. Records The tables of records are not exhaustive, as they only show sites with at least 30 years of record. This may exclude locations where a new site has been established; this means even some major cities and towns may not be listed. Maps The temperature and rainfall maps are intended to give an overview of the country. There could be discrepancies between the values shown on these maps and those at individual locations, as a result of the way the maps are generated. A wide range of maps of rainfall, temperature and other variables, covering the whole country and smaller regions can be found at www.bom.gov.au/climate/maps. Accessing data Tables of daily values for selected sites are included toward the back of the Monthly Weather Review. Data from many more sites and for other times are available from www.bom.gov.au/climate/data/. Copyright © Commonwealth of Australia 2015 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced without prior written permission from the Bureau of Meteorology. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to: Publishing Unit, Bureau of Meteorology, GPO Box 1289, Melbourne VIC 3001 Product code IDCKGC1AR1. Prepared on 23 September 2015 Cover photograph Snow fell to near sea level several times during August. Some roads and schools were closed at times, causing disruptions. Snow blankets the ground at Allens Rivulet, southwest of Hobart, at around 150 m elevation. Photograph by Paul Fox-Hughes, near sunrise, 3 August 2015. Used with permission. Overview • above average maxima and minima nationally, average for scattered areas of the eastern mainland, although cooler for the southeast and in the coolest 10% of historical observations for • a particularly cool August for Tasmania (equal-third Tasmania. For Tasmania as a whole August maxima coolest August mean temperature) were the equal-eighth coolest on record and minima • some record-high daily temperatures in the north the fourth coolest on record. • mixed rainfall, but below average nationally Rainfall was slightly below average for Australia as a Nationally, maxima were well above average for whole (6% below the long-term average), with Australia as a whole with an anomaly of +0.68 °C, significant regional differences. August rainfall was with minima not far behind at +0.54 °C. A number of below average for most of Victoria except Gippsland, sites set new records for high daily or monthly mean southeast South Australia, northern Tasmania, along temperatures (see page 13). the west coast of Western Australia and between the August was a warm month for Western Australia, Pilbara and adjacent inland regions, as well as for with anomalies for each of maximum, minimum and pockets of Queensland. Rainfall was higher than mean temperatures in excess of +1 °C. Daytime average for much of southern Western Australia away temperatures were also above average for the north from the west coast, the central Northern Territory, of the Northern Territory, much of Queensland, and southeastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria, the northern half of coastal New South Wales. Days and an area stretching from western New South were cooler than average for Tasmania, most of Wales across northern agricultural districts of South Victoria, parts of southern South Australia, and central Australia. Some daily rainfall records (see page 16) for southern New South Wales. Nights were in the August were set at the start of the month in Western warmest 10% of historical observations for August for Australia, and late in the month in New South Wales most of the southern half of Western Australia and when an East Coast Low brought heavy falls. adjacent western South Australia, warmer than Areal averages in August 2015 Rainfall anomaly Mean maximum Mean minimum Mean temperature temperature anomaly temperature anomaly anomaly Australia −6% +0.68 °C +0.54 °C +0.61 °C Western Australia +9% +1.12 °C +1.07 °C +1.10 °C equal 5th- Northern Territory +18% +0.33 °C −0.23 °C +0.05 °C South Australia −6% +0.54 °C +0.79 °C +0.67 °C Queensland −32% +0.82 °C +0.39 °C +0.61 °C New South Wales +2% +0.24 °C +0.43 °C +0.34 °C Victoria −31% −0.59 °C +0.17 °C −0.20 °C Tasmania −6% −0.96 °C −1.60 °C −1.27 °C equal 8th-lowest 4th-lowest equal 3rd-lowest 1 Monthly Weather Review - Australia - August 2015 Extremes in August 2015 Hottest day Coldest night Wettest day Warmest overall Coolest overall Wettest overall Strongest wind gust Australia 37.6 °C −12.8 °C 27.0 °C −2.3 °C 489.0 mm 148 km/h at Warmun (WA) on at Perisher Valley 277.6 mm at Coconut Island at Thredbo AWS at Beaumont (The at Hogan Island the 25th and AWS (NSW) on the at Kangaroo Valley (Qld) (NSW) Cedars) (NSW) (Tas.) on the 3rd Wyndham Aero 4th (Main Rd) (NSW) on (WA) on the 31st the 26th Western 37.6 °C −3.4 °C 61.0 mm 26.4 °C 10.6 °C 180.2 mm 100 km/h Australia at Warmun on the at Eyre on the 6th at Dunolly on the at Browse Island at Wandering at Northcliffe at Cape 25th and Wyndham 1st Naturaliste on the Aero on the 31st 8th Northern 37.5 °C −2.3 °C 19.2 mm 26.9 °C 13.8 °C 40.0 mm 69 km/h Territory at Bulman on the at Arltunga on the at Tennant Creek at Jabiru Airport at Arltunga at Tennant Creek at Centre Island 25th 14th Airport on the 26th Airport on the 6th South 34.8 °C −3.9 °C 50.0 mm 15.4 °C 7.2 °C 134.4 mm 106 km/h Australia at Moomba Airport at Renmark Aero on at Murray Town at Oodnadatta at Mount Lofty at Ashton at Cape on the 23rd the 30th (Murratana) on the Airport Willoughby on the 12th 20th Queensland 37.3 °C −5.1 °C 84.2 mm 27.0 °C 9.6 °C 159.0 mm 83 km/h at Century Mine on at Stanthorpe Leslie at Rainbow Beach at Coconut Island at Applethorpe at Corbould Park at Brisbane Aero the 24th Parade on the 7th on the 22nd Racecourse and Cape Moreton Lighthouse on the 12th New South 31.1 °C −12.8 °C 277.6 mm 17.1 °C −2.3 °C 489.0 mm 124 km/h Wales at Tibooburra at Perisher Valley at Kangaroo Valley at South West at Thredbo AWS at Beaumont (The at Thredbo AWS Airport on the 22nd AWS on the 4th (Main Rd) on the Rocks (Smoky Cape Cedars) on the 1st 26th Lighthouse) Victoria 24.5 °C −8.6 °C 67.2 mm 11.5 °C −2.1 °C 268.0 mm 146 km/h at Mallacoota on at Falls Creek on the at Mallacoota on at Gabo Island at Mount Hotham at Haines Junction at Wilsons the 22nd 4th the 28th Lighthouse (Mount Sabine) Promontory Lighthouse on the 3rd Tasmania 20.0 °C −11.1 °C 50.4 mm 10.3 °C −1.1 °C 270.2 mm 148 km/h at Swansea (Francis at Liawenee on the at Judbury (Huon at Hogan Island at Mount at Zeehan (West at Hogan Island on Street) on the 21st 8th Road) on the 29th Wellington Coast Pioneers the 3rd Museum) In this table Hottest day is the highest daily maximum temperature, Coldest night is the lowest daily minimum temperature, Wettest day is the highest daily rainfall total, Warmest overall is the highest mean monthly temperature, Coolest overall is the lowest mean monthly temperature and Wettest overall is the highest total monthly precipitation.