Wednesday 1 August 2012 - Monthly Climate Summary for Tasmania - Product code IDCKGC27R0

Tasmania in July 2012: a relatively dry and mild month, despite some cold and wet weather

Despite a cold and wet end to the month, Tasmania in July 2012 was drier than usual and the days were milder than usual.

• Mostly dry weather, but the western highlands still wet
• Not many cold days, and a few mild ones
• Some cold nights
• Generally warmer than July 2011 but cooler than July 2010

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Dry weather dominates

Dry days were more common than wet during July 2012. High pressure systems deflected many of the rain-bearing systems away from Tasmania. Almost the entire state had below-average total rain for the month, with some areas well below average and pockets in the southern Midlands and on Flinders Island nudging records. Below Craigbourne Dam (on the Coal River) reported just 7.0 mm, whilst Memana's 10.6 mm and Rotherwood's 9.4 mm were their lowest total July rainfalls on record.

A complex area of low pressure moving in from Victoria brought rain to many areas from the 11th to the 13th. It was followed by a string of cold fronts and troughs up to the 20th. This period saw a few wet days in the north, with some daily totals over 20 mm at a few sites. It also ensured that even in a relatively dry month Mount Read in the western highlands received a total of 363.4 mm. A marked cold outbreak from the 28th brought snow to the highlands but not especially high precipitation totals (more fell after 9 am on the 31st, and will be counted in August's totals).

Not many cold days, and a few mild ones

July is winter, so cold weather is expected in Tasmania. But this July there were less cold days than usual, and a few relatively mild days. Temperatures over 17 °C were reported on several occasions: the mildest day was at Friendly Beaches with 17.4 °C on the 17th, but Campania reached 17.1 °C on the 12th, as did Eddystone Point with on the 20th, and Hobart reached 17.0 °C on the 6th.

There were some cold days, especially early and late in the month: Ouse stayed below 8 °C from the 7th to the 10th, and Mount Wellington only reached -1.7 °C on the 29th.

Overall, daytime temperatures were above average at most stations, typically by between half and one degree. It was generally warmer than July 2011, but cooler than July 2010

Some cold nights

With high pressure systems close to the state ensuring clear skies and light winds, some low overnight temperatures were inevitable. This was especially true from the 1st to the 9th, and from the 19th to the 24th. The coldest nights were at Butlers Gorge with -6.7 °C on the 8th, followed by Liawenee with -6.6 °C on the 24th. Flinders Island Airport dipped below 3.5 °C every night from the 2nd to the 9th, their longest recorded run of July nights that cold.

There were some relatively mild nights, especially from the 10th to the 18th; Flinders Island Airport's minimum on the 17th was 12.5 °C.

Overall, overnight temperatures were within half a degree of average at most sites. It was a little cooler than average in some areas, but slightly above average at several sites (especially on the West Coast). As with daytime temperatures, it was generally warmer than July 2011, but cooler than July 2010

Hobart: mild and dry weather predominates

The month ended cold and wet for Hobart, but relatively mild and dry weather predominated through July.

There were three days over 16 °C (17.0 °C on the 6th, 16.5 °C on the 12th and 16.4 °C on the 17th), but the 9.2 °C on the 29th was the only day less than 10 °C. In a typical July, Hobart has only one day over 16 °C and seven days less than 10 °C. The maximum temperature averaged across the month was 12.9 °C, which is 1.2 °C above the long-term average and more typical of the mean for August.

There were several below-average nights (dipping down to 1.1 °C on the morning of the 8th and 1.7 °C on the 9th), but these were balanced out by some mild ones (notably 8.9 °C on the 13th and 9.1 °C on the 17th). Hobart's average daily minimum temperature for the month was 4.7 °C , just 0.1 °C above the long-term average.

Hobart's rainfall for the month added up to 18.2 mm, which is just 35% of the long-term average of 51.8 mm. By comparison, last July the city received 50.2 mm, but in 2010 it had only 7.4 mm. Much of the rain came around the 16th (when wind gusts to 74 km/h were also reported), or in the last few days of the month (and continued into August).

The year to date

With a very wet May in many parts of the state, rainfall totals over the last three months were above average. Totals for the first 7 months of 2012 are close to average: wetter than usual in some areas (notably the far southeast), but drier than usual in a few pockets. Daytime temperatures have been slightly above normal, with overnight temperatures much warmer than usual, especially around the southeast and the Derwent Valley.

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Maps
	Observed	Anomaly	Decile rank
Total rainfall
Mean daily maximum temperatures
Mean daily minimum temperatures

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

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

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top