Friday, 1 June 2012 - Monthly Climate Summary for South Australia - Product code IDCKGC13R0

South Australia in May 2012: A dry finish to autumn, with cool nights

• Rainfall was below average across much of the State, though near normal for southern coastal districts.
• Warmer than average May days, with cold nights in most parts of the State.

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Rainfall

South Australia received less than half of the average May rainfall for the State as a whole. Apart from a few coastal locations, most of South Australia reported below average rainfall with large parts across the North of the State reporting very much below average rainfall. See a map of rainfall deciles.

The wettest periods for much of South Australia during May were between the 1st and 2nd and between the 23rd and 26th. A cold frontal system crossed coastal South Australia on the 1st followed by a moist airstream from the south, bringing scattered shower activity for most parts of the State through to the 2nd. In the latter period, a cold frontal system moved over western and central districts of South Australia on the 23rd. The front continued to move northeastwards across remaining parts of the State, producing scattered showers and strong to gale force winds across coastal districts. A weak low pressure trough followed the passage of the front bringing further scattered showers, resulting in average to above average rainfall totals reported across coastal districts. The wettest day in May 2012 for any location, was observed at Parawa (Sharon) when 60.6mm was observed in the 24 hours to 9 am on the 24th.

Pastoral Districts

While some locations across the Pastoral districts received rainfall totals ranging between 10 and 15mm, most areas were well below average rainfall for May 2012, with several locations reporting no rainfall for the month, though this is not unusual for this area at this time of the year. The Pastoral districts remained dry up until the last week of May; a weak low pressure trough produced light scattered rain from the 23rd through to 27th and a trough of low pressure brought tropical moisture into the northeast of the State resulting in isolated shower and thunderstorm activity on the 30th. Yardea, in South Australia's northwest, was the wettest location in the Pastorals, reporting 15.8mm for the month.

Agricultural Districts

Rainfall totals for May 2012 over Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas, Kangaroo Island, the Murray Valley and the Southeast districts were mostly average tending to slightly above average for some coastal locations though totals generally ranged between 20 to 60mm. Higher rainfall totals of between 80 to 110mm were recorded across several locations in the Mount Lofty Ranges. Parawa (Sharon), on the southern part of the Mount Lofty Ranges, was the wettest location overall, reporting 146.6 mm for the month.

Some sites had their highest total May rainfall for at least 25 years.
Some sites had their lowest total May rainfall on record.
Some sites had their lowest total May rainfall for at least 25 years.
Some sites had their highest May daily rainfall on record.

Temperature

The average temperature (the average of the daily maximum and daily minimum temperatures) for South Australia as a whole in May 2012 was 0.4 °C below the long-term May average.

Maximum Temperature

Despite most coastal districts, including the Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas, the Mount Lofty Ranges and the lower Southeast of the State experiencing cooler than average maximum temperatures this May, maximum temperatures were 0.7 °C above normal averaged across the State as a whole. See a map of maximum temperature anomalies.

Locations in the Far North and in parts of the far Northwest observed average daily maximum temperatures in excess if 1°C above normal. Maximum temperatures were slightly above average for most other locations across the State.

The warmest period of the month occurred through the second week of May as a warm northwesterly airstream was directed across the State ahead of the passage of a low pressure surface trough. This saw temperatures up to 6 to 8 °C warmer than average on the 8th for many locations across South Australia.

The warmest days on average were observed at Moomba Airport with an average daily maximum of 24.4 °C . The hottest day of the month for any location was recorded at Tarcoola Aerodrome on the 8th where the maximum temperature reached 34.0 °C. Mount Lofty recorded the coolest days on average with 12.3 °C and also observed the coldest day on the 24th with a maximum of just 6.3°C. Several other locations had a record lowest May daily maximum on this day; this includes Eudunda, which had its coldest May day in 44 years of only 8°C.

Some sites had their coldest May day (lowest maximum temperature) on record.
Some sites had their highest May temperature on record.

Minimum Temperature

Minimum temperatures for the month were well below normal for most of South Australia, averaging 1.5 °C cooler for the State as a whole. While a few locations across the Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas, the Mount Lofty Ranges and the lower Southeast of the State experienced slightly cooler night-time temperatures, the rest of the State experienced very cold nights with minimums up to 2 to 3 °C cooler than the May average. See a map of minimum temperature anomalies. Reduced cloud cover across the State through the latter half of month resulted in these cooler nights and May 2012 being the 4th coolest May for the State as a whole on record. Average minimum temperatures for May 2012 ranged from 2.9°C at Yongala in the Upper North to13.7 °C at Neptune Island.

Renmark Aerodrome reported 7 nights below 2 °C through the month, as opposed to a May average of 2 nights below 2°C. The coolest nights for many locations were between the 16th and 17th and again between the 21st and 25th of May. The coldest night for any location was recorded in the earlier period at Yongala where a minimum of -3.0 °C was recorded on the 16th; owing to the influence of a high pressure system centred to the Southeast of the State which resulted in clear conditions across much of South Australia.

The warmest nights of the month for many locations in South Australia occurred through the first week of the May as a warm airstream was directed from the northwest across the State ahead of an approaching trough of low pressure. Streaky Bay on the west coast of the Eyre Peninsula recorded the warmest night of the month with a minimum temperature of 17.7°C on May 1st.

Some sites had their lowest May mean daily minimum temperature on record.

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Extremes in May 2012
Hottest day	34.0 °C at Tarcoola Aero on the 8th
Warmest days on average	24.4 °C at Moomba Airport
Coolest days on average	12.3 °C at Mount Lofty
Coldest day	6.3 °C at Mount Lofty on the 24th
Coldest night	-3.0 °C at Yongala on the 16th
Coolest nights on average	2.9 °C at Yongala
Warmest nights on average	13.7 °C at Neptune Island
Warmest night	17.7 °C at Streaky Bay on the 1st
Warmest on average overall	16.2 °C at Moomba Airport
Coolest on average overall	9.6 °C at Mount Lofty
Wettest overall	146.6 mm at Parawa (Sharon)
Driest overall	0 mm at Coober Pedy Airport 0 mm at Ernabella (Pukatja) 0 mm at Marla Police Station 0 mm at Marree Comparison 0 mm at Oodnadatta Airport 0 mm at Rowland Flat (Jacobs Creek)
Wettest day	60.6 mm at Parawa (Sharon) on the 24th
Highest wind gust	100 km/h at Cape Willoughby on the 23rd

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Record highest May daily rainfall
	Highest daily rainfall in May 2012 (mm)		Previous wettest for May		Years of record
Keith	45.0	on the 25th	44.0	on the 20th in 1988	105
Port Kenny (Mount Cooper)	37.0	on the 24th	35.3	on the 24th in 1951	73

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Highest total May rainfall for at least 25 years
	Total rainfall for May 2012 (mm)	Most recent May at least this wet		Years since wetter	Average for May
Goolwa Council Depot	125.0	174.5	in 1883*	128	53.4
Callington	85.6	88.3	in 1955	57	38.5
Milang	87.6	95.3	in 1955	57	43.0
Murray Bridge Comparison	90.6	91.1	in 1955	57	35.3
Langhorne Creek	83.6	102.9	in 1960	52	40.0
Cowell	60.1	118.2	in 1974*	37	29.5
Finniss	108.2	115.2	in 1960*	37	53.5
Sandalwood	48.2	89.0	in 1987	25	32.8

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

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Record lowest total May rainfall
	Total rainfall for May 2012 (mm)	Previous driest for May		Years of record	Average for May
Marree Comparison	0.0	= 0.0	in 2008	127	13.3
Oodnadatta Airport	0.0	= 0.0	in 2008	65	12.8
Marla Police Station	0.0	= 0.0	in 2008	26	11.8

Lowest total May rainfall for at least 25 years
	Total rainfall for May 2012 (mm)	Most recent May at least this dry		Years since drier	Average for May
Tintinara	3.0	0.0	in 1934*	76	50.1

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

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Record highest May temperature
	Highest temperature in May 2012 (°C)		Previous warmest for May		Years of record	Average for May
Nonning	30.0	on the 8th	= 30.0	on the 2nd in 2002	42	20.0

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Record lowest May daily maximum temperature
	Lowest daily maximum temperature in May 2012 (°C)		Previous coolest for May		Years of record	Average for May
Cleve	9.9	on the 24th	11.4	on the 27th in 2000	55	18.9
Port Pirie Nyrstar Comparison	11.7	on the 24th	= 11.7	on the 18th in 1981	54	20.4
Keith	10.2	on the 24th	= 10.2	on the 27th in 2000	51	18.3
Eudunda	8.0	on the 24th	8.2	on the 18th in 1968	48	16.9
Kimba	10.5	on the 24th	10.6	on the 22nd in 1969	44	19.4
Hawker	9.0	on the 24th	= 9.0	on the 22nd in 1990	39	20.0
Whyalla Aero	11.8	on the 24th	12.1	on the 23rd in 2006	25	20.5

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Record lowest May mean daily minimum temperature
	Mean daily minimum temperature for May 2012 (°C)	Previous coolest for May		Years of record	Average for May
Leigh Creek Airport	6.8	6.9	in 2006	29	8.8
Marla Police Station	5.2	6.5	in 2000	25	9.1

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Summary statistics for May 2012
	Maximum temperatures for May (°C)				Minimum temperatures for May (°C)				Rainfall for May (millimetres)
	Mean for May 2012	Diff from average	Highest for May 2012		Mean for May 2012	Diff from average	Lowest for May 2012		Total for May 2012	Average for May	Rank of May 2012	Fraction of May average
Northwest (district 16)
Andamooka	22.2	-0.1	30.5	9th	9.0	-1.0	5.0	16th	1.8	15.5	low	12%
Coober Pedy Airport	22.3		33.0	8th	8.5		3.2	30th	0
Ernabella (Pukatja)	22.2		30.9	9th	6.4		0.8	23rd	0
Marla Police Station	23.5	+0.4	33.1	8th	5.2	-3.9	-1.5	30th	0	11.8	lowest	0%
Roxby Downs (Olympic Dam Aerodrome)	22.1		30.4	8th	5.9		-0.4	4th	4.0
Tarcoola Aero	22.0		34.0	8th	5.8		0.6	22nd	2.8
Woomera Aerodrome	21.0	+0.4	30.8	8th	8.4	-1.0	4.6	16th	3.2	18.6	low	17%
Far North (district 17)
Arkaroola	20.1	-0.1	29.5	8th	5.2	-2.0	0.0	4th	8.0	17.3	average	46%
Leigh Creek Airport	21.0	+0.1	29.3	9th	6.8	-2.0	2.3	4th	1.8	15.7	low	11%
Marree Aero	23.1		30.9	10th	6.8		1.3	29th	0.6
Marree Comparison	24.3	+1.2	32.5	10th			2.1	29th	0	13.3	lowest	0%
Moomba Airport	24.4		32.7	10th	8.0		3.7	26th	8.4
Oodnadatta Airport	23.9	+0.7	31.8	9th	7.6	-2.2	2.7	30th	0	12.8	lowest	0%
Western Agricultural (district 18)
Ceduna AMO	20.6	-0.2	28.9	8th	7.1	-1.4	1.4	4th	20.2	32.3	average	63%
Cleve	18.1	-0.8	30.0	8th	9.9	-0.1	5.9	25th	68.2	40.8	high	167%
Cleve Aerodrome	17.9		30.1	8th	9.7		6.2	24th	58.4	37.8	high	154%
Coulta (Coles Point)	18.2	-0.6	24.8	8th	9.5	-0.4	4.9	15th	66.4
Cummins Aero	18.8		28.2	8th	7.6		1.3	15th	35.4
Elliston	18.9	-0.5	25.9	8th	10.0	-0.3	5.9	15th	75.7	52.3	high	145%
Kimba	18.2	-1.2	29.0	8th	7.5	-0.8	3.8	16th	24.8	35.6	average	70%
Kyancutta	20.8	-0.3	30.6	8th	7.0	-0.3	1.4	4th	21.2	32.2	average	66%
Minnipa Pirsa	19.3		30.5	8th	8.9		5.5	28th	25.4
Neptune Island	17.8	+0.1	23.6	8th	13.7	0.0	10.0	24th	43.4	54.5	average	80%
North Shields (Port Lincoln AWS)	19.1	-0.3	29.6	8th	10.5	+0.1	4.8	16th	34.6
Nullarbor	21.0	-0.4	29.6	6th	7.3	-1.7	1.7	31st	17.4	29.7	average	59%
Port Augusta Aero	21.2		29.5	8th	7.1		1.7	22nd	14.0
Streaky Bay	20.1	0.0	26.2	8th	10.4	-0.4	5.5	28th	43.1	45.8	average	94%
Whyalla Aero	19.7	-0.8	29.9	8th	8.5	-0.3	2.3	16th	30.4	24.4	average	125%
Wudinna Aero	20.4		31.8	8th	7.4		1.6	4th	21.6
Upper North (district 19)
Hawker	20.1	+0.1	29.0	8th	5.4	-1.7	-0.3	13th	3.6	30.6	low	12%
Yongala	17.5	+0.4	27.4	8th	2.9	-1.7	-3.0	16th	13.6	34.9	low	39%
Northeast (district 20)
Gluepot Reserve (Gluepot)	20.3		30.2	8th	4.2		-2.1	16th	15.5
Yunta Airstrip	19.2		27.6	8th	4.3		-2.4	16th	1.2
Lower North (district 21)
Clare High School	16.5		26.9	8th	4.6		-0.9	16th	64.0
Port Pirie Aerodrome	19.8		27.3	8th	7.3		2.5	16th	52.3
Port Pirie Nyrstar Comparison	19.9	-0.5	27.0	8th	9.6	-1.1	5.5	21st	46.9	38.2	high	123%
Snowtown (Rayville Park)	18.9		28.2	8th	5.8		0.1	15th	32.6
Yorke Peninsula (district 22A)
Edithburgh	18.4		28.6	8th	10.6		5.0	21st	34.0	43.5	average	78%
Kadina AWS	19.0		27.5	8th	6.8		0.9	16th	42.4
Maitland	17.9	-0.2	27.0	8th	9.5	-0.4	5.5	21st	72.0	62.6	high	115%
Minlaton Aero	17.8		20.5	10th	8.9		5.3	4th	56.8
Stenhouse Bay	18.3		25.8	8th	12.1		7.5	16th	28.6
Warooka	18.3	-0.2	23.4	8th	10.6	+0.2	6.4	25th	26.0	53.7	low	48%
Kangaroo Island (district 22B)
Cape Borda	16.5		21.3	8th	10.7		7.2	24th	68.2
Cape Willoughby	16.8	-0.1	22.7	8th	12.6	+0.1	9.0	24th	52.0	61.5	average	85%
Kingscote Aero	18.1		24.5	8th	8.2		1.7	31st	37.4
Parndana Cfs AWS	16.3		22.3	8th	8.7		4.1	25th	58.6
Adelaide Plains (district 23A)
Adelaide (Kent Town)	18.2	-0.8	27.4	8th	9.3	-0.9	4.6	16th	62.8	60.0	average	105%
Adelaide Airport	18.0	-0.5	26.2	8th	8.7	-0.8	3.8	16th	49.8	53.8	average	93%
Edinburgh RAAF	18.6	-0.5	29.3	8th	8.0	-1.1	2.7	16th	58.2	44.1	high	132%
Parafield Airport	18.7	-0.2	28.7	8th	7.7	-1.7	2.6	16th	63.6	47.8	high	133%
Roseworthy AWS	18.9		29.7	8th	6.7		0.7	20th	47.0
County Light (district 23B)
Nuriootpa Viticultural	17.2		28.0	8th	4.7		-1.8	16th	25.6
Rosedale (Turretfield Research Centre)	18.8	+0.2	30.0	8th	6.4	-1.8	0.0	20th	44.0	53.2	average	83%
Mount Lofty Ranges (district 23C)
Hindmarsh Island AWS	17.8		26.9	8th	10.8		5.3	16th	99.0
Kuitpo Forest Reserve	14.8		23.8	8th	8.5		4.8	16th	94.8
Mount Barker	15.4	-1.1	24.8	8th	7.0	+0.3	0.0	16th	106.4	87.7	average	121%
Mount Crawford (Mt Crawford AWS)	14.4		24.6	8th	7.8		4.1	25th	78.0
Mount Lofty	12.3		22.2	8th	6.8		3.0	24th	116.8
Noarlunga	17.5		23.9	8th	10.5		7.1	3rd	51.4
Parawa (Second Valley Forest AWS)	14.4		20.9	8th	9.4		5.4	24th	125.0
Victor Harbor (Encounter Bay)	17.9		25.9	8th	9.1		1.9	16th	82.6
Upper Murray Valley (district 24A)
Loxton Research Centre	19.5	0.0	28.7	8th	5.0	-1.4	-1.4	16th	7.2	22.8	low	32%
Renmark Aero	19.9		29.9	8th	4.8		-1.9	16th	7.0
Lower Murray Valley (district 24B)
Eudunda	16.8	-0.1	27.8	8th	7.0	-0.6	1.7	16th	35.6	45.1	average	79%
Meningie	17.9	-0.3	26.6	8th	8.9	+0.1	2.1	16th	76.1	54.6	high	139%
Murray Bridge (Pallamana Aerodrome)	18.5		30.1	8th	7.0		-1.3	16th	70.0
Murray Bridge Comparison	19.2	-0.4	30.2	8th	7.9	-0.1	1.0	16th	90.6	35.3	v high	257%
Strathalbyn Racecourse	17.5		27.8	8th	9.0		3.3	16th	80.6
Murray Mallee (district 25A)
Karoonda	18.7		28.8	8th	6.4		-0.7	16th	45.8	35.4	high	129%
Upper Southeast (district 25B)
Keith	18.1	-0.2	27.5	8th	7.3	-0.4	0.0	20th	69.9	52.2	high	134%
Keith (Munkora)	18.4		27.9	8th	6.4		-1.8	20th	61.2
Lameroo (Austin Plains)	18.5		28.1	8th	6.0		1.2	20th	31.4
Lameroo Comparison	18.7	+0.1	28.0	8th	6.8	-0.2	2.9	21st	28.2	39.5	average	71%
Lower Southeast (district 26)
Cape Jaffa (The Limestone)	16.5	-0.4	22.4	8th	10.1	+0.9	4.3	17th	47.8
Coonawarra	16.9	-0.3	25.0	8th	7.0	+0.2	1.0	17th	31.8	51.3	low	62%
Mount Gambier Aero	16.0	-0.1	22.7	8th	7.9	+0.6	2.1	17th	77.4	70.1	average	110%
Naracoorte Aerodrome	17.3		25.4	8th	7.1		0.8	16th	34.8
Padthaway South	17.5		25.8	8th	6.7		-0.8	16th	45.0
Robe Airfield	17.1		24.9	8th	9.2		2.2	16th	77.4
Robe Comparison	16.2	-0.2	20.4	8th	11.2	+1.0	6.6	16th	83.2	73.0	average	114%

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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