An extraordinary month - Tasmania in October 2006
Tasmania had some quite extraordinary weather during October, Bureau
of Meteorology figures released today confirm. All sorts of records
were broken at different sites: hottest day, coldest night, warmest night and lowest rainfall.
October will be remembered for some of the extreme weather that occurred:
- Two very warm days on the 11th and 12th separated by an
exceptionally warm night created ideal conditions for bushfires to
spread rapidly.
- Cold mornings in various parts of the state, especially on the 16th and 28th, saw late-season
frost devastating parts of the fruit crop.
- A sharp cold change on the 27th brought snow to sea level in the south and west.
- Fierce winds, particularly in the south and especially on the 11th, 12th, 18th and 19th.
- Low rainfall in the north added to the long-term rainfall
deficit there.
October's Tasmanian Monthly Climate Summary contains much more detail on the weather across Tasmania during the month.
These climate summaries will replace media releases
as the Bureau of Meteorology's main collation of such information. The
summaries will be issued on the first working day of each month, once
all the relevant observations are received (for example, maximum temperatures
for the last day of the month are not available before the thermometers
are checked at 9 am on the 1st). The summaries will cover what has
happened across the whole state. An archive of earlier months will be kept at www.bom.gov.au/climate/current/month/tas/archive/.
Further information
Ian Barnes-KeoghanMeteorologist
Tasmania and Antarctica Climate Services Centre
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (03) 6221 2043
Email climate.tas@bom.gov.au