Annual Climate Statement 2013

2013 was officially Australia's hottest year on record. It was about 1 point 2 degrees above average. The year started with a nation-wide heatwave... we sweltered as days more than ten degrees above average were recorded across Australia. In 2013 the unusually warm weather was wide spread... On our map, the yellow patches had above average temperatures, these huge areas of orange had temperatures very much above average and where it's dark orange, temperatures were in fact the highest on record. Notice we don't see blue areas on this map, meaning nowhere had below average temperatures. Heatwaves and warm spells were frequent. You can see above average days here in red, and there were very few colder than average days here in blue. The hot weather in 2013 was associated with bushfires. This was seen early in year in Tasmania and Victoria and then in spring around Sydney and in the Blue Mountains Temperature records were set including: Our hottest summer and spring, our hottest January and September. We also had our hottest summer day on record and warmest winter day. In 2013 sea surface temperatures around Australia were also unusually warm, averaging about half a degree above normal. Rainfall was mixed. Some areas received good falls but in other parts there was a return to drought conditions. But the biggest climate story in 2013 is definitely the heat. Australian temperatures have warmed by about 1 °C since 1950, and the record warmth of 2013 adds to this warming trend. To get more of the facts on Australia's climate, visit bom.gov.au/ climate. For the Bureau of Meteorology, I'm Agata Imielska