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MONTHLY CLIMATE SUMMARY - NT REGIONAL OFFICE
The first days of March saw the North Australian Monsoon gradually reassert itself offshore from the Top End, bringing widespread and ongoing shower and storm activity to northern districts, though nothing of great magnitude. However, around the 4th, it spawned a low to the northeast of Gove, which was to be the curtain raiser to a remarkable synoptic saga. The low moved east-southeastwards into the Coral Sea, graduated into a tropical cyclone named Ingrid, about turned, blossomed into a category 5 system, weakened, crossed Cape York Peninsula, regathered strength in the Gulf of Carpentaria, skirted Gove, continued relentlessly west-northwestwards a little offshore from the north coast, regained category 5 status, was weakened again by its brush with the Coburg Peninsula and Tiwi Islands, re-intensified to category 5 in the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, veered left to track southwestwards and finally, on the 16th, crossed into the northern Kimberley near Kalumburu. The system, however, was small in extent and its associated heavy rainfall and very destructive winds (estimated at times to be in the vicinity of 320kph near its centre) were relatively confined, with the northern fringe of the coast and offshore islands being the main beneficiaries of the rain - and bearing the brunt of the destructive winds. In its aftermath the system re-inspired the monsoon and the third week of the month was productive, though far from extravagant, in the rainfall arena. The associated cloudy conditions also suppressed daytime temperatures, especially over the western Victoria River district. Thereafter, the largesse dried up with only the odd thunderstorm being reported here and there. Nevertheless Darwin Airport managed to register its sixth wet season month in a row (that is October to March) with above average temperatures and sunshine and below average rainfall.
A substantially different story is to be told regarding the Territory’s southern half. Dry easterlies driven by a procession of sub tropical highs moving through the Great Australian Bight dominated the region bringing a surplus of day time heat and a yet another failed rainfall month. There were a few sprinkles here and there during the first week courtesy of a weak low in the area but thereafter the heavens were rendered virtually incapable of producing the much needed rain. The only consolation was the occasional flush of cooler air as winds veered to the SSE in response to the arrival of a new Bight high providing welcomed relief from 40oC plus temperatures. Such an incursion late in the month brought minimum temperatures down into single figures in some areas.Maps displaying recent temperature and rainfall patterns can be seen on the Bureau’s web site.
The rainfall decile map presents a gloomy picture over the greater part of the Territory with large portions of its eastern and southern areas having received either less, or very much less, than average rainfall for the month. Even the far northwestern portion of the Top End, including the Darwin area, received less than average rainfall, irrespective of TC Ingrid. The only areas to be blessed with above average rainfall were those more directly affected by TC Ingrid’s passage (ie the Gove Peninsula, the north coast and associated offshore islands, and the Victoria River district) although a portion of the Roper McArthur coastal areas also received above average rainfall due to a flare up of activity in the Gulf in the aftermath of the tropical cyclone.
The best reported monthly effort for the Territory was Gove Airport’s 524.0mm, 192.0mm of which was received in the 24 hours to 9am on the 12th, courtesy of TC Ingrid. McCluer Island’s 24-hour tally of 280.8mm for the 13th (another of TC Ingrid’s beneficiaries) took out the daily rainfall honours for the month. Darwin Airport completed the month with a total of 202.2mm, well below its March mean of 318.8mm, ranking the month 49th out of 65. The station has now recorded six wet season months in a row with below average rainfall, an event that has only happened once previously – in 1989/90. (For interest - Darwin Airport has yet to obtain a “clean sweep” of below average rainfall months for an entire wet season).
As earlier indicated, southern areas were especially poorly served during March with respect to rainfall. Rabbit Flat’s unremarkable 22.8mm for the month was easily the highest reported for the Alice Springs district. A significant number of stations received no rainfall at all, thus further exacerbating the district’s ongoing rainfall deficiency. Alice Springs Airport received but 0.8mm for the month. This gave it a ten-month tally of only 37.0mm; it’s lowest ever for the period June to March inclusive (the previous lowest was 50.1mm for equivalent period in 1963/64) and well short of the equivalent mean of 248.1mm.
| Highest Daily Rainfall (mm) for March 2005 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Date | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Date | ||||
| Rosewood | 168.0 | 17 | 137.0 | 2/03/1943 | 110 |
| Gove Airport | 192.0 | 12 | 129.0 | 9/03/1988 | 30 |
| Mataranka Station | 102.8 | 19 | 101.2 | 2/03/1994 | 24 |
| Highest Monthly Rainfall(mm) for March 2005 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Year | |||
| Gove Airport | 524.0 | 514.6 | 1988 | 30 |
| Lowest Monthly Rainfall(mm) for March 2005 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Year | |||
| Thorak Cemetery * | 144.8 | 149.2 | 2002 | 13 |
Mean maximum temperatures ranged from 1oC - 2oC above average over much of the western Top End to being 3oC - 4oC above average central parts of the Alice Springs district and much of the Barkly district. Exceptions to these above average figures were the eastern portions of the Roper-McArthur district, most of the Arhem district and the northwestern parts of the Victoria River district where mean maximum temperatures were close to normal. A number of widely spaced stations reported record high daily maximum temperatures providing an interesting contrast to the two stations which reported their lowest daily maximum temperature for March. Darwin Airport’s average of 32.7oC was 0.9oC above its mean, rendering the month the seventh in a row reporting above average figures. Indeed its six-month average maximum since the commencement of the wet season in October 2004 sits at 33.3oC, the highest on record for that period . The previous highest mean maximum for that six-month span was 33.2oC occurring in the season of 1969/70.
Wulungurru AWS (Alice Springs district) reported the Territory's highest maximum temperature, 43oC on the 1st and 2nd, and Lajamanu (Victoria River district) the lowest maximum temperature, 22oC on the 17th. The highest mean maximum temperature was 38.8oC at Rabbit Flat (Alice Springs district) and the lowest was 31.2oC at Gove Airport (Arnhem district).Mean minimum temperatures (somewhat in contrast to mean maximas) were close to average. The exception was a broad ribbon of territory arching northwards from the western portions of the Alice springs district through to the central parts of the Barkly district and thence southward towards the NT/QLD border area where mean minimum temperatures were 1oC - 2oC above average. Enclosed within the latter area was a small portion of mean minimum temperatures 2oC - 3oC above average just south of Tennant Creek. Such temperatures in the far northwestern part of the Top End and the Tiwi Islands were also 1oC - 2oC above average. Three widely dispersed stations reported their highest March daily minimum temperature on record, one of which (Channel Point), also its highest recorded March mean minimum temperature. Darwin Airport’s mean minimum temperature of 25.4oC equalled its March record set 20 years ago. While some southern stations reported sub 10oC tempertures during a cool surge late in the month no records were broken.
Arltunga (Alice Springs district) reported the Territory's lowest minimum temperature, 6.9oC on the 28th. Wulungurru (Alice Springs district) and Dum In Mirrie (Darwin-Daly district) the highest minimum temperature, 30.0oC respectively on the 2nd and 11th. The lowest mean minimum temperature was 17.6oC at Alice Springs Airport and the highest was 26.4oC at Centre Island (Arnhem district).| Highest Daily Maximum Temperature (oC) for March 2005 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Date | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Date | ||||
| Daly Waters AWS | 41.5 | 10 | 41.0 | 4/03/1952 | 34 |
| Mango Farm | 38.5 | 11 | 37.1 | 5/03/1988 | 24 |
| Katherine Aviation Museum | 39.8 | 10 | 38.2 | 19/03/1993 | 18 |
| Tindal RAAF AWS | 38.9 | 10 | 38.4 | 6/03/1988 | 15 |
| Watarka AWS | 41.8 | 1 | 41.3 | 6/03/1999 | 14 |
| Ngukurr | 41.5 | 9 | 40.3 | 4/03/1968 | 11 |
| Ngukurr | 42.0 | 10 | 41.5 | 9/03/2005 | 12 |
| Channel Point | 35.0 | 12 | 34.5 | 27/03/2003 | 10 |
| Borroloola AWS | 38.0 | 9 | 37.2 | 31/03/1998 | 10 |
| Lowest Daily Maximum Temperature (oC) for March 2005 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Date | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Date | ||||
| Wave Hill | 23.9 | 17 | 24.0 | 10/03/1974 | 30 |
| Gove Airport | 25.6 | 20 | 26.0 | 9/03/1994 | 26 |
| Highest Daily Minimum Temperature (oC) for March 2005 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Date | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Date | ||||
| Yuendumu | 28.0 | 4 | 27.9 | 9/03/1992 | 39 |
| Jabiru Airport AWS | 27.6 | 11 | 27.5 | 3/03/1988 | 26 |
| Channel Point | 29.4 | 12 | 28.2 | 9/03/1997 | 10 |
| Highest Monthly Mean Minimum Temperature (oC) for March 2005 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Record | Previous | Years of record |
|
| Record | Year | |||
| Channel Point | 25.2 | 24.6 | 2004 | 11 |
This statement has been prepared based on information available at 10 am on Friday 1 April 2005. Although every effort has been made to verify the data, it is possible that results will change as new information becomes available.
* indicates unconfirmed reports.
The Daily Weather Observations lists daily temperatures and rainfall, plus many other meteorological variables, at more than 50 locations across the Territory (and over 700 across Australia). Data from the last 13 months are available from this web site.
Monthly rainfall and temperature maps are also available.
Further climate data and information can be obtained from:
Climate and Consultative Services
Northern Territory Regional Office
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (08) 8920 3813
Email climate.nt@bom.gov.au
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