Australian Annual Mean Temperature Anomalies
Australia's annual mean temperature anomaly is calculated using maximum and
minimum temperature data from approximately 130 non-urban observing stations
throughout the country. These stations are part of a high-quality
temperature dataset developed to monitor long-term temperature trends in
Australia. The temperature records at these
stations have been corrected for discontinuities caused by changes such as
instrumentation and site location.
Climate Data Quality
is particularly important at these stations.
Each calendar year the mean maximum and minimum temperature anomalies are
calculated for every available high-quality temperature station, relative to
the 1961 to 1990 reference period. All-Australian maximum and minimum
temperature averages are then computed from these station anomalies using an
area-weighted averaging scheme. The Australian annual
mean temperature anomaly is the average of the Australian mean maximum and
minimum temperature anomalies.
Generally Australian annual mean temperatures have increased since 1910. The
last two decades have been particularly warm with many of the warmest years
on record having occurred during the 1980s and 1990s.
Click here for listing of Australian mean temperature anomalies
since 1910.
Further details:
Lavery, B., Joung, G. and Nicholls, N. (1997).
An extended high quality historical rainfall data set for Australia.
Australian Meteorological Magazine,
46, 27-38.
Plummer, N., Lin, Z. and Torok, S. (1995).
Trends in the diurnal temperature range over Australia since 1951.
Atmospheric Research,
37, 79-86.
Torok, S.J. and Nicholls, N. (1996).
An historical annual temperature data set for Australia.
Australian Meteorological Magazine,
45, 251-260.
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