ANNUAL CLIMATE SUMMARY - ACT METEOROLOGICAL OFFICE

Temperatures above average in 2000 in the ACT

At Canberra Airport, 626.4 millimetres of rain was recorded, just below the average of 630.2mm. Rainfall was significantly above average in April and May and between August and November, while it was considerably below average in January, February, June, July and December. The wettest month was November with 121.2mm, while the driest month was February with only 14.6mm. The wettest 24-hour total to 9am occurred to 9am on 27 January with 33.4mm. There were only two other occasions when more than 30mm was recorded in the 24-hour period to 9am: 32.8mm to 9am on 27 September and 32.4mm to 9am on 19 October.

While rainfall was near average, the number of rain days for the year was 116, well above the average of 106 days. November, with 18 rain days, set a new November record. Although rainfall in June and July was below average, the number of rain days for these months were above average.

There were only 11 thunderstorm days recorded at the airport, less than half the average of 23 days. However on several occasions thunderstorms occurred in some parts of the ACT but were not recorded at the airport. Five thunderstorm days were recorded in September (average one day), while there was considerably less activity for the rest of spring and summer when thunderstorms are more likely.

While there was only one day when the airport recorded hail (29 September), there were reports of hail in the ACT on several other occasions. There were also three reports of snow at the airport (average one day). The most significant occurrence was the afternoon of 28 May when snow fell for several hours over the whole of the ACT. It was the first time in 23 years snow was recorded at the airport in May.

The mean daily temperature for 2000 was 13.3 degrees Celsius, well above the long-term average of 12.9°C. The mean annual day-time maximum temperature of 19.8°C (average 19.5°C) and the mean annual night-time temperature of 6.8°C (average 6.4°C) were both above normal. The warmest month was February (average daily temp. 21.4°C) and the coldest month was June (average daily temperature 5.8°C).

Mean daily maximum temperatures were below average for January, May and October, average for November, and above average for the other months. The highest average daily maximum of 28.9°C occurred in February, while the lowest at 11.8°C occurred in July. The temperature reached 30°C or more on 34 days during the year compared with the annual average of 30 days. While January only recorded three of these days (average 11), February recorded 16 days (average seven), March six days (average three), November two days (average two) and December seven days (average seven). There were only two days when a temperature of 35°C or more was recorded (average five days), one day in January and one in December. The hottest day of the year was 21 December with 35.1°C, while the coldest day was 28 May with 4.3°C, which was a new lowest daily maximum temperature for May (previous record 6.0°C on 5 May 1949).

Mean daily minimum temperatures were above average for February, March and July to December, and below average for January, April and June. The mean minimum temperature of 11.6°C for November was a new record high for that month (previous record 11.5°C in November 1959). The minimum temperature of 15.1°C recorded on 5 May was a new record high minimum for May (the previous record was 14.7°C recorded on 2 May 1988).

There were 97 frosts for the year (average 99), with winter recording 58 frosts (average 58) but only 18 frosts in spring (average 21). The first frost of the year was recorded on 24 January (the median date for the first frost is 9 April), while the last frost was recorded on 28 December (the median date for the last frost is 16 November). There were also 46 fogs for the year, which is average. April and July recorded more fogs than normal, while September and October recorded less than normal.

The mean daily wind run for the year was 186.8 kilometres a day, just above the long-term average of 185km/day. The windiest month was September (272.7km/day), while April was the calmest (117.2km/day). Although the average daily wind run was near normal, there were only 15 days on which strong winds were recorded (winds of 41km/hr or more), well below the average of 25 days. The strongest wind gust recorded for the year was 83km/hr associated with a thunderstorm on the evening of 22 June. The strongest wind gust ever recorded in Canberra is 128km/h on 24 November 1957.

There was an average of 7.6 hours of sunshine a day for the year, which is the norm. The average daily sunshine of 6.7 hours/day for November was a new record low for that month (records since 1978 only). The average for November is 9.0 hours/day.

The average daily pressure of 1017.6 hectoPascals was just above the average of 1016.7hPa. April recorded the highest mean daily pressure of 1022.5hPa, while December with 1011.8hPa recorded the lowest. Pressures were generally above average for the first half of the year and below average for the second half.

Summary for Canberra Airport, 2000
Mean maximum temperature	19.8°C (av 19.5°C)
Highest maximum temperature	35.1°C (on 21st December)
Lowest maximum temperature	4.3°C (on 28th May)
Mean minimum temperature	6.8°C (av 11.2°C)
Highest minimum temperature	20.1°C (on 18th March)
Lowest minimum temperature	-7.1°C (on 15th June)
Lowest grass temperature	-11.8°C (on 15th June)
Total Annual rainfall.	626.4 mm (av 630.2 mm)
Total Annual evaporation	1557.2 mm (av 1699.0 mm)
Mean daily sunshine	7.6 hours/day (av 7.6 hours/day)
Mean daily pressure	1017.6 hPa (av 1016.7 hPa)
Mean daily windrun (at 2 metres)	186.8 km (av 185.0 km)