MEDIA RELEASE - NATIONAL CLIMATE CENTRE

Queensland site sets Australian rainfall record

The wettest month of 2000 at Bellenden Ker was February when 3376mm was recorded. Of that, 1050mm fell in three days during the passage of Tropical Cyclone Steve on February 25-28. This total fell short of Bellenden Ker's (and Australia's) monthly record of 5387mm set in January 1979.

Three other months topped 1000mm. April recorded 2665mm, March 1804mm and December 1370mm. The wettest day of the year was December 6 when 468mm fell.

Bellenden Ker - 1555 metres above sea level - is the wettest meteorological station in Australia. It averages 8312mm a year, about double that of towns in the region with high rainfall such as Babinda and Tully, which are near sea level.

Along with Bellenden Ker, many other stations in the Australian tropics - particularly in Western Australia - had their wettest year on record in 2000, Australia's second-wettest year of the past century.

Much of this tropical rainfall occurs when moist air over the ocean moves onshore and rises over coastal mountains, losing moisture (in the form of rain) as it cools. The north Queensland coast, with mountains up to 1600 metres high just a short distance inland and moisture-laden air above warm tropical oceans, is prone to this type of very heavy rain.

In the past two years, moist easterly winds have been more common in the region, contributing to the record-breaking rainfall of 1999 and 2000.

Ends

Further information:
Livio Regano, Queensland Regional Office, Brisbane (Queensland climate),
tel: (07) 3239 8666, e-mail: L.Regano@bom.gov.au

Dean Collins, National Climate Centre, Melbourne (climate change, Australian climate of 2000)
tel: (03) 9669 4780, e-mail: D.Collins@bom.gov.au

Blair Trewin, National Climate Centre, Melbourne (climate extremes in Australia)
tel: (03) 9669 4098, e-mail: B.Trewin@bom.gov.au

Australian climate of 2000: www.bom.gov.au/climate/change/archive/media01.shtml