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Australia's average winter temperature this year was our fourth
hottest winter on record. (Supplied: Bureau of Meteorology) |
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Key Points
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"It has been generally warm just about everywhere," said Simon Grainger, a senior climatologist with the BOM.
"In terms of mean temperatures, it's been in the top 10 warmest winters on record for every state and territory except Western Australia."
This comes despite neither of Australia's two main climate drivers, El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) strongly favouring above-average temperatures this winter.
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A lot of Australia saw above-average average daily temperatures
this winter. (Supplied: BOM)
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The most pronounced warmth was in the northern tropics, where maximum temperatures were about 2C above average.
Nights were warm too
The mean minimum temperature was 1.08C above average, the ninth-highest on record, with the most pronounced warmth in the northern tropics, Tasmania and Victoria.
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Much of Australia experienced warmer-than-average minimum overnight
temperatures this winter. (ABC Open: Chris Ferguson)
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"More clouds and more rain keeps more heat in at night," he said.'The slow creep'
According to Joelle Gergis from the Australian National University, who was also a lead author of the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) climate change report, Australia's near-record warm winter was an example of what she described as "the slow creep of climate change".
"We pay attention to these really dramatic weather extremes," she said.
"But meanwhile in the background, like a frog in a pot, we are starting to warm Australia in ways that are really fundamentally changing our seasonal variability."
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ENSO has been inactive this winter, favouring neither warmer nor
cooler conditions. (Supplied: BOM) |
"So this is background warming that is playing out," she said.
"The IPCC is saying it's virtually certain that we're going to see a decrease in the intensity and frequency of cold extremes throughout the 21st century, all over the world."And that certainly includes Australia where we've already seen the warming up of our winters.
The BOM said Australia's climate has warmed on average by 1.44C since national records began in 1910.
Wettest winter in 25 years, still below average
Rainfall for winter was the highest since 1996, yet was still 5 per cent below the 1961 to 1990 average.
How to plan for flooding
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If you could be cut off by floodwaters, make preparations. ABC
Emergency has put together a list of things you should do if you
are affected.
Read more |
"We did get slightly above-average rainfall over parts of eastern Australia," he said.
"Negative IODs tend to bring increased winter and spring rainfall over eastern southern Australia."Mr Grainger said the wet weather was greatest in June and July, but less so in August.
"There was a little bit of a weakening in the IOD conditions in August, and certainly compared to 2016, which was one of the strongest negative IODs on record and one of the wettest winters," he said.
"We just haven't seen anything anywhere near as strong nor as wet."
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Rainfall for winter was 5 per cent below the 1961–1990 average, but
was still the highest since 1996. (Supplied: BOM)
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Mr Grainger said the south-west of Western Australia had a "good old-fashioned wet winter" this year, after a string of dry years.
"July rainfall in the south-west was 50 per cent above the 1961 to 1990 year average," he said.
"And for that part of the country, it was the wettest July since 1996."
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A young girl stands in a flooded backyard in Mundaring, WA after
big rains in July. (Supplied: Ash Lee) |
The BOM said there has been a decline of about 16 per cent in April to October rainfall in the south-west of Australia since 1970.
Across the same region, May to July rainfall has seen the largest decrease, by about 20 per cent since 1970.
Links
- Hot and gusty spring arrives, but don't pack away the winter woollies yet
- WA town forced to cart water last year records wettest winter on record
- Experts warn wetter seasons risk grassfires alongside growth
- Climate crisis likely creating extreme winter weather events, says report
- ‘Record-shattering’ heat becoming much more likely, says climate study
- Australia records fourth-warmest winter
- Some properties ‘uninsurable’: Price hikes ahead as Queensland takes the heat
- Climate change blamed for havoc in northeast US floods
- Indigenous Women Vital to Climate Action
