Northern Territory in June 2023

Rainfall

  • Rainfall was above average for most of the southern half of the Northern Territory. The Territory averaged June rainfall was 15.8 mm and 151% above the 1961-1990 average, and the wettest June since 2016.
  • A cloudband brought daily rainfall totals of 20-50 mm in the southwest on the 27th. Walungurru Airport and Pine Hill recorded their highest June daily rainfall on record.
  • June rainfall totals were 50 -100 mm in the Lasseter district, three to four times of the 1961-1990 June average. Walungurru Airport had its wettest June on record., whilst Yulara Airport, Curtin Springs and Watarrka had their wettest June for 22 years

Temperature

  • Mean maximum temperatures were above average for most of the Territory apart from the southwest. For the NT as a whole, the mean maximum temperature was 2.25 °C above the 1961-1990 average, the third-highest on record in June, and the highest since 1996.
  • Mean minimum temperatures were above average for most of the Territory, apart from the northeast and southwest. For the NT as a whole, the mean minimum temperature was 1.82 °C above the 1961-1990 average, the highest since 2016.
  • For the NT as a whole, the mean temperature was 2.04 °C above the 1961-1990 average, the sixth-highest on record, and the highest since 2016.
  • Hot days with daily maximum temperatures in the mid-30s were recorded in the northern and eastern regions between the 6th and 8th, McArthur River Mine Airport and Borroloola Airport in the Carpentaria district had their highest June temperature on record.
  • A very cold day with daily maximum temperatures down to below 10 °C was observed in the south on the 30th. Territory Grape Farm in the Simpson district had its lowest June maximum temperature on record.
  • Alice Spring recorded 8.7 °C on the 30th, which was its fourth-lowest maximum temperature in June on record, the lowest since 17 June 2007 (8.3 °C).
  • Despite a very cold day at the end of June, Alice Spring Airport, Jervos and Tennant Creek Airport observed 2-3 °C above June average for mean maximum temperatures, having their warmest June since 1996.
  • Very warm nights with minimum temperatures in the mid-20s were recorded in the Top End on the 8th and 26th, including a number of records for highest June minimum temperature on record.

Darwin Airport

  • Total rainfall for Darwin Airport was 0.2 mm, which is 11% of the long-term average of 1.8 mm.
  • The mean daily maximum temperature for Darwin Airport was 32.6 °C, which is 1.9 °C above the long-term average of 30.7 °C.
  • The warmest day was 34.1 °C on the 8th, and the coolest day was on the 3rd when the temperature reached 31.1 °C.
  • The mean daily minimum temperature for Darwin Airport was 21.6 °C, which is 1.6 °C above the long-term average of 20.0 °C.
  • The coldest morning was 17.4 °C on the 1st, and the warmest morning was on the 26th when the minimum temperature was 25.1 °C.

Extremes in June 2023
Hottest day 36.3 °C at Bradshaw - Koolendong Valley (Defence) on the 7th
36.3 °C at Mount Bundey North (Defence) on the 8th
Warmest days on average 34.0 °C at Noonamah Airstrip
Coolest days on average 20.6 °C at Yulara Airport
Coldest day 8.7 °C at Alice Springs Airport on the 30th
Coldest night -2.1 °C at Arltunga on the 23rd
Coolest nights on average 5.8 °C at Yulara Airport
Warmest nights on average 24.8 °C at Cape Wessel
Warmest night 26.3 °C at Jabiru Airport on the 8th
Warmest on average overall 27.7 °C at Cape Wessel
Coolest on average overall 13.2 °C at Yulara Airport
Wettest overall 96.0 mm at Yulara Airport
Wettest day 50.8 mm at Walungurru Airport on the 27th
Strongest wind gust 63 km/h at Yulara Airport on the 6th

Maps
ObservedAnomalyDecile rank
Total
rainfall
Map of Rainfall totals Map of Percentage of normal rainfall Map of Rainfall deciles
Mean
daily
maximum
temperatures
Map of Mean maximum temperature Map of Anomaly in mean maximum temperature Map of Decile rank of mean maximum temperature
Mean
daily
minimum
temperatures
Map of Mean minimum temperature Map of Anomaly in mean minimum temperature Map of Decile rank of mean minimum temperature

Click on a map to show it full size in a pop-up window


Record highest June daily rainfall
New record
(mm)
Old
record
Years of
record
Pine Hill 23.2 on the 27th 22.0 on the 19th in 2005 35
Walungurru Airport 50.8 on the 27th 37.8 on the 18th in 2005 21



Record highest June total rainfall
New record
(mm)
Old
record
Years of
record
Average for
June
Walungurru Airport 84.4 40.2 in 2005 21 13.5

Highest June total rainfall for at least 20 years
Observed
(mm)
Most recent
higher
Average for
June
Newhaven 60.0 73.5 in 1986* 11.9
Hermannsburg 60.8 65.9 in 1973* 12.6
Yulara Airport 96.0 147.0 in 2001 19.3
Curtin Springs 61.2 141.3 in 2001* 14.2
Watarrka 80.3 133.5 in 2001* 16.8

* note: there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a higher value has gone unreported




Record highest June temperature
New record
(°C)
Old
record
Years of
record
Average for
June
McArthur River Mine Airport 35.7 on the 7th 35.6 on the 28th in 1975 46 30.0
Borroloola Airport 35.6 on the 6th 35.3 on the 4th in 2003 30 30.4



Record lowest June daily maximum temperature
New record
(°C)
Old
record
Years of
record
Average for
June
Territory Grape Farm 9.3 on the 30th = 9.3 on the 20th in 2007 31 22.4



Highest June mean daily maximum temperature for at least 20 years
Observed
(°C)
Most recent
higher
Average for
June
Alice Springs Airport 22.0 23.6 in 1996 19.9
Jervois 24.8 25.9 in 1996 22.0
Tennant Creek Airport 27.3 28.6 in 1996 24.6
Territory Grape Farm 24.4 25.5 in 2001 22.4



Record highest June daily minimum temperature
New record
(°C)
Old
record
Years of
record
Average for
June
Jervois 18.0 on the 7th 17.9 on the 2nd in 2021 56 6.6
Jabiru Airport 26.3 on the 8th 25.9 on the 6th in 2014 47 19.5
Pirlangimpi Airport 25.5 on the 26th 25.2 on the 7th in 2014 41 19.1
Point Fawcett 25.5 on the 26th = 25.5 on the 18th in 2005 25 18.8



Highest June mean temperature for at least 20 years
Observed
(°C)
Most recent
higher
Average for
June
Jervois 16.8 17.8 in 1996 14.3
Tennant Creek Airport 21.1 22.8 in 1996 18.8



Summary statistics for June 2023
Maximum temperatures
(°C)
Minimum temperatures
(°C)
Rainfall
(millimetres)
Mean for
June
2023
Diff
from
average
Highest for
June
2023
Mean for
June
2023
Diff
from
average
Lowest for
June
2023
Total for
June
2023
Average
for
June
Rank of
June
2023
Fraction of
June
average
Darwin-Daly (district 14GA)
Batchelor Airport 33.1 +1.4 35.0 7th 18.1 +1.0 12.3 1st 0.2 0.6 average 33%
Central Arnhem Plateau 30.3 +1.6 33.0 8th 17.4 +0.9 11.5 17th 0 0.1 v low 0%
Channel Point 30.9 +1.6 33.5 23rd 19.2 +1.4 13.0 1st 0 1.8 lowest 0%
Charles Point 29.8   31.5 20th 22.1   18.7 18th 0.2
Croker Island Airport 30.7 +0.4 31.8 6th 22.1 -0.3 17.6 16th 1.8
Darwin Airport 32.6 +1.9 34.1 8th 21.6 +1.6 17.4 1st 0.2 1.8 average 11%
Delamere Weapons Range 31.3 +1.9 33.8 8th 17.5 +2.0 11.7 18th 0 2.2 lowest 0%
Douglas River Research Farm 33.4 +1.8 36.1 7th 16.0 +2.2 8.6 1st 0 1.9 lowest 0%
Jabiru Airport 33.3 +1.4 35.8 8th 20.9 +1.4 17.0 18th 0 0.9 lowest 0%
Kangaroo Flats (Defence) 33.7   35.4 9th 20.2   15.1 18th 0
Knuckey Lagoon 33.1   35.0 8th 18.9   12.2 18th 0
Middle Point 33.5 +1.1 35.1 9th 17.7 +2.2 10.8 18th 0 0.6 lowest 0%
Mount Bundey North (Defence) 33.8   36.3 8th 20.1   16.3 17th 0
Mount Bundey South (Defence) 33.8   35.9 7th 18.3   12.5 17th 0
Noonamah Airstrip 34.0 +1.0 35.6 9th 18.2 +0.2 11.3 18th 0 0.4 v low 0%
Oenpelli Airport 33.5   35.3 6th 20.1   14.7 17th 0 0.1 v low 0%
Pirlangimpi Airport 32.8 +1.4 34.3 9th 20.4 +1.3 14.7 18th 0 4.4 lowest 0%
Point Fawcett 31.5 +1.4 32.5 9th 19.0 +0.2 12.9 18th 5.2 6.7 high 78%
Point Stuart 31.9 +0.7 34.0 6th 20.0 +1.1 15.2 18th 0 1.5 lowest 0%
Port Keats Airport 32.3 +1.2 34.9 7th 18.3 +0.9 13.1 18th 0 3.5 lowest 0%
Tindal RAAF 32.4 +2.2 35.1 7th 16.1 +1.9 9.0 18th 0 0.7 lowest 0%
Arnhem (district 14BC)
Cape Wessel 30.6 +0.6 31.7 14th 24.8 +0.1 22.9 18th 21.2 40.4 average 52%
Gove Airport 29.4   30.6 5th 22.0   19.0 2nd 7.2
Groote Eylandt Airport 30.4 +1.4 32.2 6th 18.1 +1.0 13.8 17th 0.6 4.3 low 14%
Maningrida Airport 31.6 +0.8 33.8 6th 20.4 +0.9 16.0 17th 10.4 3.3 high 315%
Milingimbi Airport 31.3 +0.5 33.2 6th 21.3 +1.1 18.2 16th 6.4 5.8 high 110%
Ngayawili 30.9 +1.1 32.0 6th 21.9 +1.2 19.1 17th 0.4 3.8 average 11%
Warruwi Airport 30.1 +0.7 31.3 7th     21.3 3rd 0 2.3 lowest 0%
Roper-Mcarthur (district 14DE)
Borroloola Airport 32.6 +2.2 35.6 6th 14.1 +1.2 8.1 17th 0.6 1.7 high 35%
Bulman 31.9 +1.3 34.4 8th 16.6 +1.1 9.4 17th 0 1.2 lowest 0%
Centre Island 28.1 +1.3 29.7 13th 20.8 +1.3 18.8 2nd 2.2 6.1 high 36%
Daly Waters Airstrip 31.6 +2.7 34.9 7th 13.2 +0.1 6.5 17th 0 2.9 lowest 0%
McArthur River Mine Airport 32.6 +2.6 35.7 7th 14.7 +1.8 8.0 17th 0 1.6 lowest 0%
Ngukurr Airport 32.3 +1.0 34.1 8th 17.0 +1.2 10.3 17th 0 0.5 v low 0%
Victoria (district 14F)
Bradshaw 33.4 +1.8 35.8 7th 18.2 +2.3 10.4 1st 0 2.4 lowest 0%
Bradshaw - Angallari Valley (Defence) 33.1   36.1 7th 18.2   10.9 1st 0
Bradshaw - Koolendong Valley (Defence) 33.3   36.3 7th 14.9   7.0 1st 0
Lajamanu Airport 28.5 +1.6 33.4 7th 12.8 +2.6 5.5 1st 15.4 4.2 v high 367%
Victoria River Downs 32.4 +2.9 36.0 7th 14.6 +2.5 7.4 1st 1.2 2.5 high 48%
Barkly (district 15A)
Elliott 30.1 +1.7 34.1 7th 14.8 +2.1 10.0 1st 0 5.6 lowest 0%
Tennant Creek Airport 27.3 +2.7 33.3 7th 14.8 +1.8 10.3 30th 8.8 5.7 high 154%
Alice Springs (district 15B)
Alice Springs Airport 22.0 +2.1 29.7 6th 6.6 +1.7 -0.5 23rd 19.6 13.0 high 151%
Jervois 24.8 +2.8 33.4 7th 8.8 +2.2 0.7 10th 7.0 9.8 average 71%
Rabbit Flat 27.5 +1.6 32.2 26th 10.7 +2.8 3.0 1st 28.4 6.4 v high 444%
Territory Grape Farm 24.4 +2.0 29.1 7th 8.6 +2.4 0.8 23rd 29.0 8.9 v high 326%
Walungurru Airport 22.5 -0.8 28.2 3rd 11.2 0.0 3.5 23rd 84.4 13.5 highest 625%
Watarrka 20.7 -0.6 28.4 3rd 6.9 +0.5 0.3 23rd 80.3 16.8 v high 478%
Yulara Airport 20.6 +0.2 28.0 2nd 5.8 +0.3 0.3 17th 96.0 19.3 v high 497%

Notes

The Monthly climate summary, usually published in the first week of the following month, lists the main features of the weather in Northern Territory using the most timely and accurate information available on the date of publication; it will generally not be updated.

This statement has been prepared based on information available at 4 pm on Saturday 1 July 2023. Some checks have been made on the data, but it is possible that results will change as new information becomes available.

In some situations, some or all of the rainfall is in the form of hail or snow. In these cases the totals given are for the water equivalent: the depth of liquid water that results from melting any frozen precipitation. There can be significant 'undercatch' of snow in strong winds, meaning the true precipitation can be higher than that reported.

Averages for individual sites are long-term means based on observations from all available years of record, which vary widely from site to site. They are not shown for sites with less than 10 years of record, as they cannot then be calculated reliably.
The median is sometimes more representative than the mean of long-term average rain.

The Rank indicates how rainfall this time compares with the climate record for the site, based on the decile ranking (very low rainfall is in decile 1, low in decile 2 or 3, average in decile 4 to 7, high in decile 8 or 9 and very high is in decile 10).
The Fraction of average shows how much rain has fallen this time as a percentage of the long-term mean.

Where temperature area averages are mentioned, they are derived from the ACORN-SAT dataset.

Information about Australian Indigenous seasonal calendars is available at the Indigenous Weather Knowledge website.


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