IDCKGC17R0
Wednesday, 1 November 2006

Tasmania in October 2006

A month of extremes

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Summary

October was a month punctuated with extreme events - a record hot day on the 12th with severe bushfires in the south and record cold days on the 16th, 21st, 28th and 29th with severe frosts reported in the north and snow to low levels reported across the state. Gale force winds were experienced in many areas on the 11th, 12th, 18th and 19th but only minor damage was reported. Despite the late rain, it was still very dry over most of the state. In general, it was warmer than average during the day and cooler than average overnight.

Rainfall

Although it may have appeared wet - especially toward the end of the month - rainfall was again quite sparse across the state. The most significant falls were reported on the 5th, 6th and 27th of the month with lesser falls on the 14th, 17th and 24th. Overall, only the southern and western parts received close to average rainfall with a small area  in the Derwent Valley with above average rain. The rest of the state was very dry, especially the north coast where some stations had less than 10 mm for the whole month. Many stations in the north had their lowest total October rainfall on record, including  Burnie, Devonport, Scottsdale and Launceston; many other sites reported their lowest October rainfall for at least 20 years. Burnie, for example, had only 12.8 mm for the month, the driest October in its 62 years of record and just a fraction of its long-term average of 88.2 mm. Devonport had less than 5 mm for the month, a tiny fraction of its October normal 66.9 mm.
With most of the past 10 months being relatively dry, a number of sites in the north and the southeast have had their driest-ever January-to-October, or their driest for many years. At some, total rainfall is less than half that expected over the 10 months; Burnie for example has had only 367 mm so far this year compared to a January-to-October average of 831 mm and an annual average of 968 mm.

Maximum temperatures

The most significant event for October was the extremely hot day experienced on Thursday the 12th, with several major bushfires raging out of control in many parts of the state. After an already warm day on the 11th, temperatures soared into the thirties on the 12th, with Hobart Airport, Flinders Island and Bicheno (among others) recording their hottest October day ever. Hobart, Hobart Airport, Campania and Bull Bay had temperatures over 33°C and Campania topped the state with 34.3°C, the second-highest October temperature ever registered in Tasmania. Over twenty major fires burned across the state on that day, the most severe was on the eastern shore of Hobart where many hundreds of hectares were burned out and lives and property were put at risk.
Just two weeks later on the 27th and 28th, a deep polar airstream affected the state bringing widespread sleet, hail and snow to many areas. Although generally settling to 200 metres, snow was reported on the beach at several locations including Lauderdale and Clifton in the southeast. During this time, daytime temperatures were up to eight degrees below average in the south, but about two degrees below average in the north.
Maximum temperatures for the month were mostly above average, especially over the east coast and the southeast, but just a little below normal in the northeast. Eddystone Point had its highest mean daily maximum temperature for October, whilst Swansea and Hobart Airport had their highest October mean daily maximum for at least 20 years.

Minimum temperatures

Overnight minima followed the pattern of extremes seen in daytime temperatures. It was exceptionally warm on the night of the 11th and 12th with many sites in the south and east reporting their warmest October night on record on the 12th. These included Bruny island, Swansea, Hobart Airport and Bicheno - the warmest was at Strahan Aerodrome with 19.2°C.
In contrast, there were several very cold nights, notably the 16th, 21st, 22nd, 26th, 28th and 29th, mainly due to cold air associated with the passage of cold fronts or the position of high pressure systems over the state. Some places (including Launceston) reported record low October temperatures, and Scottsdale reported its record lowest October average minimum. Severe frosts were reported statewide on these cold mornings, especially on the 16th and 28th, and major frost damage was reported in apple, pear and stonefruit crops as well as some vineyards.
On average, minimum temperatures were cooler than average statewide (apart from a small pocket in the southeast) - particularly in the northeast where temperatures were about 1.5°C below average.

 

Further information

Thomas Delfatti or Ian Barnes-Keoghan
Tasmania and Antarctica Climate Services Centre
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (03) 6221 2043
Email climate.tas@bom.gov.au
 

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Extremes

 

Hottest day  Highest temperature	34.3°C at Campania (Kincora) on the 12th
Warmest days on average  Highest mean daily maximum temperature	19.5°C at Swansea Post Office
Coolest days on average  Lowest mean daily maximum temperature	7.0°C at Mount Read
Coldest day  Lowest daily maximum temperature	−0.4°C at Mount Wellington on the 28th
Coldest night  Lowest temperature	−7.9°C at Liawenee on the 16th
Coolest nights on average  Lowest mean daily minimum temperature	−0.4°C at Mount Wellington
Warmest nights on average  Highest mean daily minimum temperature	9.9°C at Hogan Island
Warmest night  Highest daily minimum temperature	19.2°C at Strahan Aerodrome on the 12th
Wettest overall  Highest total rainfall	275.8 mm at Mount Read
Driest overall  Lowest total rainfall	4.4 mm at Devonport Airport
Wettest day  Highest daily rainfall	36.6 mm at Warra on the 8th
Highest wind gust	156 km/h at Scotts Peak Dam on the 18th

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Records

 

Record Lowest Total Rainfall for October
	Total rainfall for October 2006 (mm)	Previous lowest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Burnie (Round Hill)	12.8	13.5	in 1983	88.2	62
Pyengana (Forest Lodge Road)	17.4	18.2	in 1972	103.7	45
Devonport Airport	4.4	18.8	in 2003	66.9	44
Memana (Babel Farm)	13.8	15.3	in 1961	54.8	43
Barrington Post Office	16.5	18.4	in 1991	91.4	40
Forthside Research Station	13.0	24.6	in 1983	84.5	40
Scottsdale (West Minstone Road)	31.2	32.0	in 1972	88.1	36
Wynyard Airport	18.6	30.8	in 1965	101.5	35
King Island Airport	26.2	27.2	in 1991	76.6	32
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	9.0	16.8	in 1982	54.6	26

Lowest Total Rainfall for at least 20 years for October
	Total rainfall for October 2006 (mm)	Most recent lower for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Frankford (Rossville)	11.4	9.3	in 1914	91.8	92
Latrobe (Coal Road)	11.2	7.4	in 1914	85.4	90
Ulverstone (Knights Road)	17.8	6.6	in 1914	88.9	90
Launceston Airport Comparison	16.4	13.7	in 1940	61.4	66
Mole Creek	15.6	5.8	in 1950	96.7	53
Pioneer (Main Road)	16.8	14.8	in 1972	91.4	34
Elliott Research Station	27.0	24.4	in 1972	106.2	33
Gladstone (Old Post Office)	14.2	11.2	in 1972	77.0	32
Lilydale Post Office	20.6	20.0	in 1972	82.8	32
Eddystone Point	9.6	5.0	in 1982	69.8	24
Fingal (Legge Street)	14.6	5.3	in 1982	55.5	24
St Marys (Clive Street)	16.2	2.8	in 1982	86.3	24
Deal Island	11.2	9.4	in 1982	61.1	23
Nugent (Twilight Valley)	36.0	14.7	in 1982	68.0	23
Ringarooma (Fry Street)	36.0	22.0	in 1982	111.0	23

 

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Record Highest Mean Daily Maximum Temperature for October
	Mean daily maximum temperature for October 2006 (°C)	Previous highest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Eddystone Point	18.0	17.8	in 1999	16.3	49

 
 

Highest Mean Daily Maximum Temperature for at least 20 years for October
	Mean daily maximum temperature for October 2006 (°C)	Most recent higher for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Swansea Post Office	19.5	19.8	in 1977	17.7	29
Hobart Airport	18.5	18.8	in 1981	17.2	25

 

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Record Highest Temperature for October
	Highest temperature in October 2006 (°C)		Previous highest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Grove (Comparison)	32.2	on the 12th	31.0	on the 24th in 1996	16.9	50
Eddystone Point	27.7	on the 12th	26.5	on the 27th in 1977	16.3	49
Hobart Airport	33.4	on the 12th	33.0	on the 31st in 1987	17.2	49
Flinders Island Airport	32.7	on the 12th	30.6	on the 28th in 1977	16.7	43
Bicheno (Council Depot)	31.4	on the 12th	29.9	on the 15th in 1991	17.4	32
Mount Wellington	22.0	on the 12th	20.5	on the 24th in 1996	6.8	25
Tarraleah Village	27.1	on the 12th	26.8	on the 29th in 1992	13.4	24
Geeveston (Cemetery Road)	31.0	on the 12th	= 31.0	on the 24th in 1996	16.3	20

 

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Record Lowest Mean Daily Minimum Temperature for October
	Mean daily minimum temperature for October 2006 (°C)	Previous lowest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Scottsdale (West Minstone Road)	4.4	4.5	in 1982	5.9	30

 

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Record Highest Daily Minimum Temperature for October
	Highest daily minimum temperature in October 2006 (°C)		Previous highest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	17.5	on the 12th	16.7	on the 14th in 1965	7.9	83
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse	16.7	on the 12th	15.6	on the 10th in 1963	7.4	69
Swansea Post Office	16.9	on the 12th	= 16.9	on the 25th in 1994	7.2	50
Grove (Comparison)	18.5	on the 12th	16.4	on the 2nd in 1978	5.7	49
Hobart Airport	17.0	on the 12th	16.0	on the 25th in 2005	7.5	49
Marrawah	16.3	on the 12th	15.0	on the 9th in 1999	8.1	34
Bicheno (Council Depot)	15.9	on the 12th	15.7	on the 25th in 1994	8.4	32
Fingal (Legge Street)	16.1	on the 12th	14.3	on the 25th in 2005	4.9	21
Geeveston (Cemetery Road)	15.1	on the 12th	13.7	on the 24th in 2001	6.0	20

 

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Record Lowest Temperature for October
	Lowest temperature in October 2006 (°C)		Previous lowest for October		Normal for October	Years of record
Eddystone Point	0.7	on the 28th	1.1	on the 18th in 1967	9.1	49
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	−1.4	on the 21st	−0.6	on the 6th in 1997	7.0	24
Tarraleah Village	−5.7	on the 16th	−5.0	on the 3rd in 1983	3.2	24
Fingal (Legge Street)	−4.6	on the 16th	−3.8	on the 9th in 2003	4.9	21
Wynyard Airport	−1.6	on the 29th	−1.4	on the 9th in 2003	6.1	20

 
 

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Summaries

 

Summary statistics for October 2006
	Maximum temperatures for October (°C)				Minimum temperatures for October (°C)				Rainfall for October (mm)
	Mean for October 2006	Diff from normal	Highest for October 2006		Mean for October 2006	Diff from normal	Lowest for October 2006		Total for October 2006	Normal for October	Rank for October 2006	Fraction of normal
Northern (district 91)
Bridport	16.5	0	24.4	12th	6.8	−1.2	0.6	28th	16.8	66.7	very low	25%
Burnie	16.1	+0.2	22.0	12th	8.2	+0.3	1.6	28th	12.8	88.2	lowest	15%
Cape Grim BAPS	14.1	−0.1	21.8	12th	8.8	−0.4	4.1	28th	30.4	64.1	low	47%
Cressy Research Station	17.5		25.7	12th	3.6		−4.9	16th	8.0
Devonport Airport	15.7	+0.1	21.7	12th	6.4	−0.9	−0.3	21st	4.4	66.9	lowest	7%
Launceston	17.7	−0.2	24.9	12th	5.3	−1.7	−1.4	21st	9.0	54.6	lowest	16%
Launceston Airport	17.0		24.6	12th	4.0		−2.7	21st	17.0
Launceston Airport Comparison	16.3	0	23.7	12th	4.2	−1.4	−2.8	28th	16.4	61.4	very low	27%
Low Head	15.1		20.6	12th	8.9		4.2	29th	5.2
Luncheon Hill	14.7	+0.1	25.0	12th	5.6	−0.4	0.0	28th	80.6	141.9	low	57%
Marrawah	15.0	+0.1	23.0	11th	7.8	−0.2	1.7	28th	60.6	91.7	low	66%
Powranna	17.0	−0.1	25.0	12th	3.8	−1.8	−3.2	29th	25.8	53.3	very low	48%
Scottsdale	16.1	−0.3	24.1	12th	4.4	−1.5	−1.6	21st	31.2	88.1	lowest	35%
Sheffield School Farm	15.0	0	24.3	12th	4.9	−0.9	−0.7	16th	8.2
Smithton Aerodrome	16.3	+0.1	25.5	12th	6.1	−0.9	−0.7	29th	32.6	90.6	lowest	36%
Wynyard Airport	16.4	+0.4	24.5	12th	5.3	−0.9	−1.6	29th	18.6	101.5	lowest	18%
East Coast (district 92)
Bicheno	18.5	+1.1	31.4	12th	7.2	−1.3	1.6	21st	30.4	56.5	low	54%
Eddystone Point	18.0	+1.7	27.7	12th	8.5	−0.7	0.7	28th	9.6	69.8	very low	14%
Fingal	18.2	+0.9	28.4	12th	3.7	−1.2	−4.6	16th	14.6	55.5	very low	26%
Friendly Beaches	19.0	+1.3	32.7	12th	8.1	−0.6	1.2	22nd	31.4
Lake Leake	13.7	0	23.1	12th	2.4	−1.3	−5.2	16th	53.0	76.8	normal	69%
Maria Island	17.4		25.6	12th	8.8		2.8	28th	18.0
Orford	18.0	+0.7	29.7	12th	6.9	−0.3	0.7	22nd	33.9	61.3	low	55%
Scamander	18.6	+1.2	29.5	12th	7.2	−0.8	2.0	16th	12.2	65.7	very low	19%
St Helens Aerodrome	18.1		28.1	12th	7.2		1.3	16th	14.8
Swan Island	16.0		21.8	12th	9.7		3.8	28th	9.4
Swansea Post Office	19.5	+1.8	31.2	12th	7.0	−0.1	0.2	22nd	30.0	54.0	low	56%
Midlands (district 93)
Ross	17.4	+0.6	26.4	12th	3.4	−1.6	−5.5	16th	32.2	47.1	low	68%
Southeast (district 94)
Bull Bay	17.9	+1.6	33.5	12th	7.4	−0.6	1.0	28th	38.6	57.7	very low	67%
Campania	18.6		34.3	12th	6.8		−1.5	16th	33.2
Cape Bruny	16.1	+1.1	30.9	12th	7.9	−0.2	1.5	28th	58.6	72.4	normal	81%
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	15.6	+1.2	30.5	12th	7.8	−0.1	1.7	28th	75.2	83.9	normal	90%
Dover	16.7	+0.5	31.9	12th	6.5	+0.1	−0.5	16th	67.8	87.6	normal	77%
Geeveston	16.9	+0.6	31.0	12th	6.1	+0.1	−1.2	16th	103.2	93.0	high	111%
Grove Comparison	17.4	+0.5	32.2	12th	5.5	−0.2	−2.1	16th	58.8	70.0	normal	84%
Grove	17.2		31.6	12th	4.8		−2.8	26th	64.0
Hobart	18.0	+1.1	33.1	12th	7.8	+0.1	2.1	26th	32.4	62.3	low	52%
Hobart Airport	18.5	+1.3	33.4	12th	7.7	+0.2	2.0	1st	37.8	48.0	normal	79%
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse	13.5	+0.3	25.5	4th	7.3	−0.1	1.6	28th	70.4	106.7	low	66%
Melton Mowbray	17.5	+1.1	31.5	12th	5.1	−0.4	−2.6	16th	33.0	46.1	normal	72%
Mount Wellington	7.7	+0.8	22.0	12th	−0.4	−0.5	−6.2	28th
Tasman Island	14.3		30.5	12th	7.2		1.5	28th	44.8
Tunnack Fire Station	15.1	+1.0	26.4	12th	3.5	−1.0	−5.4	16th	45.2	60.8	low	74%
Derwent Valley (district 95)
Bushy Park	18.6	+0.9	32.8	12th	4.2	−1.6	−1.9	16th	42.8	57.9	normal	74%
Maydena Post Office	15.6	0	30.0	12th	3.9	−0.9	−1.9	26th	132.2	128.9	normal	103%
Moogara	13.8	+0.6	28.0	12th	3.6	−0.5	−1.8	28th	75.6	84.1	normal	90%
Ouse Fire Station	17.9		30.8	12th	4.4		−2.3	16th	39.6
Tarraleah Village	14.0	+0.5	27.1	12th	2.6	−0.6	−5.7	16th	132.3	112.2	high	118%
Central Plateau (district 96)
Lake St Clair National Park	12.1	−0.5	25.0	12th	1.6	−0.4	−4.0	26th	166.9	182.3	normal	92%
Liawenee	11.2		22.3	12th	−0.1		−7.9	16th	28.4
West Coast (district 97)
Hartz Mountain	10.6	−0.2	26.4	12th	1.9	−0.7	−3.4	28th	81.8
Mount Read	7.0	−0.5	18.9	12th	0.2	−1.1	−5.0	28th	275.8
Scotts Peak Dam	14.3		26.3	12th	4.7		−0.4	28th	182.0
Strahan Aerodrome	16.3	+0.3	26.4	12th	7.0	−0.2	1.8	16th	103.4	126.5	normal	82%
Strathgordon Village			27.0	12th					254.0	251.9	normal	101%
Warra	13.4		27.4	12th	4.0		−1.1	16th	211.8
King Island (district 98)
King Island Airport	16.1	+0.6	26.2	12th	7.8	−1.0	0.1	16th	26.2	76.6	lowest	34%
Flinders Island (district 99)
Flinders Island Airport	17.6	+0.9	32.7	12th	7.7	−0.8	−0.7	29th
Hogan Island	16.6		30.1	12th	9.9		5.5	28th	7.6
Macquarie Island (district 300)
Macquarie Island	5.3	−0.5	6.9	1st	1.5	−0.5	−2.8	10th	103.6	75.4	high	137%

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Rainfall records for the 10 months January to October

Record Lowest Total Rainfall for January to October
	Total rainfall for January to October 2006 (mm)	Previous lowest for January to October		Normal for January to October	Years of record
Frankford (Rossville)	518.6	549.9	in 1914	930.3	112
St Marys (Cullenswood)	308.2	356.0	in 1940	709.8	102
Ulverstone (Knights Road)	446.0	532.4	in 1987	837.0	101
Pioneer (Main Road)	424.6	509.4	in 1982	824.3	99
Yolla (Sea View)	728.2	787.6	in 1914	1261.6	99
St Marys (Clive Street)	385.4	386.1	in 1982	853.8	98
Eaglehawk Neck (Jetty Road)	451.2	462.5	in 1930	739.2	80
Elliott Research Station	598.8	670.8	in 1940	1041.4	76
Bagdad Post Office	280.6	295.4	in 1982	469.6	71
Burnie (Round Hill)	366.6	518.0	in 1987	831.5	59
Grove (Comparison)	405.6	425.5	in 1963	617.9	53
Levendale	393.8	418.5	in 1936	615.7	52
Fort Direction	193.9	258.4	in 1982	429.9	49
Hobart Airport	232.2	277.0	in 1979	401.9	48
Lorinna	707.8	838.1	in 1933	1188.7	45
Devonport Airport	298.9	430.8	in 1994	667.8	42
Pyengana (Forest Lodge Road)	652.8	670.8	in 1982	1046.5	40
Barrington Post Office	508.5	625.6	in 1972	981.4	37
Taroona (Taroona Crescent)	272.8	342.1	in 1979	519.9	37
Forthside Research Station	420.6	555.0	in 1987	841.1	36
Memana (Babel Farm)	389.3	440.2	in 1994	660.4	36
Rotherwood	340.6	346.5	in 1982	481.9	34
Scottsdale (West Minstone Road)	516.2	590.8	in 1994	862.2	34
Wynyard Airport	468.2	599.2	in 1959	846.6	33
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	335.4	431.6	in 1987	574.9	25
Bull Bay (Lauriston)	286.2	390.4	in 1987	488.5	23
Nugent (Twilight Valley)	428.0	438.6	in 1987	668.3	22
Risdon Vale (Poplar Road)	267.2	287.4	in 1968	438.8	22
Scamander	298.8	307.2	in 1982	537.1	22
Tea Tree (The Point)	289.6	319.4	in 1994	435.1	20

Lowest Total Rainfall for at least 20 years for January to October
	Total rainfall for January to October 2006 (mm)	Most recent lower for January to October		Normal for January to October	Years of record
Hobart (Ellerslie Road)	293.6	283.6	in 1914	506.2	92
Deal Island	348.5	220.6	in 1914	612.4	88
Latrobe (Coal Road)	476.4	441.8	in 1914	826.6	85
Premaydena Hatchery	436.8	348.1	in 1942	652.0	63
Sorell (Whitlea)	266.4	261.1	in 1940	446.0	62
Irishtown	704.4	651.3	in 1940	1038.5	60
Mole Creek	459.8	430.9	in 1950	986.2	51
Bushy Park (Bushy Park Estates)	320.4	305.5	in 1963	472.4	43
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse	773.3	758.3	in 1963	1050.6	43
Yambacoona	545.6	527.4	in 1959	769.1	40
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	670.7	662.9	in 1967	793.6	39
Glenorchy (Glenorchy Reservoir)	415.5	410.0	in 1963	633.7	39
Bothwell (Cluny)	293.2	265.0	in 1967	451.4	38
Gladstone (Old Post Office)	483.2	447.1	in 1961	722.0	38
Copping	424.0	365.9	in 1968	633.4	35
Lunawanna	518.0	475.7	in 1972	717.1	32
Bicheno (Council Depot)	337.0	336.5	in 1972	553.8	25
City of Melbourne Bay	712.8	643.1	in 1982	911.2	24
Marrawah	763.0	723.6	in 1982	935.3	24
Ringarooma (Fry Street)	705.0	656.0	in 1982	1054.9	23
Naracoopa	675.3	625.1	in 1982	860.1	22
Victoria Valley (Glenrowan)	518.4	450.2	in 1982	690.6	22

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Notes

Further information

Thomas Delfatti or Ian Barnes-Keoghan
Meteorologist
Tasmania and Antarctica Climate Services Centre
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (03) 6221 2043
Email climate.tas@bom.gov.au