while eastern regions recorded near-record dryness across the month
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On 29 September, beachgoers crowded Glenelg as Adelaide reached 34.4°C at 1:36pm.
Bureau senior meteorologist Dean Narramore likened the heat to January.
Hot, dry and gusty northerly winds lifted temperatures 10 to 15 degrees Celsius above average at some sites.[5]
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) keeps national temperature observations dating to 1910.
Against that record, September 2026 ranked second-warmest, while the Murray-Darling Basin endured its second-driest September.
The result arrives as a record-strength El Niño builds in the Pacific.[1][2]
Area-averaged mean temperature combines maximums and minimums from hundreds of weather stations across the country. An anomaly measures how far a reading sits above or below a long-term baseline.
September 2026 finished 2.71°C above the 1961–1990 average.[1][2]
Mean maximum temperature, the average daytime high, ranked third-warmest for September. Mean minimum temperature, the average overnight low, set a national September record for warmth. Almost all of Australia ran warmer than average, with only a portion of Far North Queensland running cooler.[2]
Every state and territory ranked among its six warmest Septembers on record. South Australia registered an anomaly of 3.55°C above the long-term average. That figure sits 0.84°C above the national result.[1]
Climate change has lifted Australia's average temperature by roughly 1.5°C since 1910. A strong El Niño now adds heat to an already elevated baseline. Globally, El Niño also lifts the odds of a record-warm 2026, with 2027 probably warmer again.[2]
Parafield Airport, an observation site in Adelaide's north, reached 35.6°C on 29 September. That reading broke the old September record of 35.0°C from 69 years of data.[3]
Adelaide's West Terrace station reached 34.4°C, the city's second-hottest September day on record. Only the 35.1°C recorded in 1961 stands higher. More than a dozen South Australian sites set September records that day, including Port Pirie at 35.9°C.[5]
Murray Bridge Airport reached 35.8°C, beating its old September record of 35.2°C. Minlaton Airport on the Yorke Peninsula reached 35.2°C, shattering a 33.0°C record. Three South Australian towns recorded their warmest September night on record, led by Tarcoola at 24.7°C.[3]
Far North Queensland formed the only sizeable exception to the national warmth. Cloudy skies and above-average September rainfall held temperatures below average across a portion of the region. Each El Niño differs, and the Indian Ocean can counter the rainfall signal from the Pacific.[1][2]
National rainfall finished 17 per cent below the long-term average, despite the heavy western falls. Western Australia ran against that trend, recording its second-wettest September at 147 per cent above average. A surface trough meeting an upper-level low delivered heavy showers and thunderstorms from 22 September.[1][2]
Southeastern Australia, eastern Australia and the Murray-Darling Basin each recorded their second-driest September. New South Wales ranked fourth-driest since national rainfall observations began in 1900. Eastern Australia averaged 8.32 millimetres, roughly two-thirds below the long-term norm.[1][2]
The Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) says drought cuts every allocation, whether for farms or the environment. Water critical for human needs, including drinking and livestock, takes priority in severe drought. Its Basin Plan, the framework for sharing water, aims to treat farmers, communities, the environment and First Nations fairly.[6]
AFAC, the Australian and New Zealand Council for Fire and Emergency Services, flagged increased spring fire risk. That risk covers areas across every jurisdiction except the ACT. Dry eastern conditions and increased fuel loads contributed to that assessment.[4]
El Niño, a warming of the central Pacific Ocean, typically dries Australian springs, especially in the east. Clear skies then lift daytime temperatures. The current strong phase exerts a major influence on both patterns, according to Weatherzone.[1]
Sea-surface temperatures in the Niño 3.4 region of the equatorial Pacific now exceed the 2015 record. They passed that mark about two months earlier than the 2015 peak, in data back to 2008. All models, including the Bureau's, forecast further warming into late spring or summer.[2]
Sea-surface temperatures in Australian waters have run above average for much of 2026. Warmer seas transfer heat to the atmosphere. A shortage of cold fronts from the Southern Ocean also removed the usual cooling.[1]
A high-pressure system centred off the New South Wales coast drove northerly winds on 29 September. Those winds funnelled warm air from the interior towards central, southern and eastern South Australia. Forecasters expected weakening cold fronts to cut at least five degrees from maximums the next day.[3]
September 2013 retains the title of Australia's warmest September on record. The Bureau lists its mean temperature anomaly at 2.86°C above the 1961–1990 average. Queensland also set its September anomaly record that year, at 3.34°C.[7]
September 2026 finished 0.15°C below that benchmark, with an anomaly of 2.71°C. Every other September since 1910 sits lower. The Bureau's outlook favours warmer-than-usual maximums and minimums across almost all of Australia through January.[1][2][7]
Overnight lows narrowly surpassed 2020, the previous holder, to claim the September record. Daytime highs ranked third, so record warm nights underpinned the second-place national result. August sea-surface temperatures between 60°S and 60°N also hit a global record for any month, 1.04°C above average.[2]
Burraboi farmers Brian and Alex Martin set aside 60 hectares for rice, though they describe water as scarce and expensive. Meanwhile a draft Basin Authority determination cut expected efficiency-project returns from 605 gigalitres to 340. Governments must now decide whether to develop alternative projects or pursue further water recovery from agriculture.[8][9]
September 2026 combined near-record warmth with near-record dryness across eastern Australia. A strengthening El Niño, warm seas and absent cold fronts acted on a climate already roughly 1.5°C warmer since 1910. Western Australia's wet month and a cloudy Far North Queensland showed how uneven the pattern remained across the continent.
Governance questions sharpen as the Basin Plan confronts a 265-gigalitre shortfall in promised environmental flows. Fire agencies have flagged increased spring risk in every jurisdiction except the ACT. Bureau modelling indicates Pacific warming will persist into autumn 2027.
The records document only part of the story. Governments control water recovery, climate policy and fire preparedness, and public reporting should show who holds responsibility. Each decision now carries measurable consequences for farmers, First Nations communities and ecosystems.
1. Australia's 2nd-warmest September on record, 2nd-driest in Murray-Darling Basin (Weatherzone, 1 October 2026). Summarises the Bureau of Meteorology's national temperature and rainfall rankings and the drivers behind them.
2. September was Australia's second hottest on record, and second driest in the east, BoM data shows (RenewEconomy, 2 October 2026). Reports the Bureau's maximum and minimum rankings, state rainfall results and the El Niño outlook.
3. At least 15 September SA heat records broken, several in Adelaide area (Weatherzone, 29 September 2026). Lists the South Australian station records and explains the synoptic setup behind the heat.
4. Spring outlook shows bushfire risk increases as El Niño loads the dice (ABC News, 19 August 2026). Describes the AFAC seasonal outlook and its link to a strengthening El Niño.
5. Records fall as September temperatures soar in South Australia (ABC News, 29 September 2026). Quotes Bureau meteorologist Dean Narramore on the record heat and details Adelaide's second-hottest September day.
6. Drought (Murray-Darling Basin Authority). Explains how the Basin Plan manages allocations, critical human needs and fairness for all water users during drought.
7. Monthly Summary for Australia, September 2024 (Bureau of Meteorology). Records the national September mean temperature anomaly record of 2.86°C set in 2013.
8. One Nation wants environmental water to be used for cropping in drought-hit Murray-Darling Basin (ABC News, 22 September 2026). Captures irrigator and political pressure over environmental water, including the Burraboi farmers' account of scarce supply.
9. Murray-Darling Basin faces 265GL water recovery shortfall (North Queensland Register). Reports the draft Basin Authority determination that efficiency projects will deliver 340 gigalitres against a 605 gigalitre target.
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