Australia

Last summer was Australia's hottest on record - here's what this means

A surfer enjoys a cool surf at sunrise at Sydney's Manly Beach February 19, 2004 as Australia experiences heatwaves from coast to coast. Soaring summer temperatures over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Faharenheit) and tropical-like humidity have left Australians sweltering for the past week, forced zookeepers to cool down animals with blocks of ice and caused power shortages due to a big increase in the use of air-conditioners. NO RIGHTS CLEARANCES OR PERMISSIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR THIS IMAGE REUTERS/Tim Wimborne PP04030068 TBW/FA - RP4DRIGYHYAA

Australia has seen dry summers before and many of these have been notably hot. Image: REUTERS/Tim Wimborne

David Jones
Climate Scientist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology
Lynette Bettio
Senior Climatologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology
Skie Tobin
Climatologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology
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Australian summer mean temperature anomalies against the 1961–1990 average
Image: Bureau of Meteorology
Preliminary summer 2018–19 mean temperature deciles.
Image: Bureau of Meteorology
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Preliminary summer 2018–19 rainfall deciles.
Image: Bureau of Meteorology
Rainfall outlook for autumn 2019.
Image: Bureau of Meteorology
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AustraliaFuture of the EnvironmentClimate Change
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