Monday, 1 February 2016 - Monthly Climate Summary for Tasmania - Product code IDCKGC17R0

Tasmania in January 2016: Record wet finish to a warm, otherwise dry month

Record-breaking rain in the east and northeast of Tasmania at the end of January came after what had been a very dry month. Temperatures were persistently warm, with records set at some places, and very significant bushfires occurred in the west.

• Heavy rain and flooding in the northeast and east to end the month
• Rain below average in the west
• Persistently mild nights, record warm in the east
• Warm days, especially in the north
• Large bushfires in the west

Much of January was dry over most of Tasmania, with the western half of the State having much less rain than is usual. That picture changed on the 27th, when a complex area of low pressure brought heavy rain to the northeast. Humid easterly flow around the low meant there was further rain, heavy showers and thunderstorms in the north and east for the next few days, with many sites reporting their wettest January day on record, some their wettest January total, and some their wettest day for any month. Gray (Dalmayne Road) registered 221 mm in the 24 hours to 9 am on the 29th, and went on to have a monthly total of 533.4 mm. There was widespread flooding in the east, northeast and central north. Some rain did reach into the west, but most of the West Coast had totals below the January average.

Warm days were far more common than cool ones right through the month, and sites across the State reported mean maximum temperatures above average, by over one degree in most areas. The north coast was particularly mild: Burnie, Devonport and Wynyard had their highest January mean daily maximum temperature on record. Devonport had a record four days over 28 °C and a record eight days over 25 °C. The warmest weather was in the south in the middle of the month, with several sites topping 35 °C on the 13th ahead of a cold front, quickly followed by many locations across the State having their coldest day on the 14th. Nights were also generally mild, apart from a short cool spell on the 15th and 16th. Mean minimum temperatures were above average across the State, typically by a degree or more, and several sites in the east (including Hobart) had their highest January mean daily minimum temperature on record.

A trough and cold front crossed Tasmania late on the 13th and into the 14th. Hot and strong northerly winds ahead of the front were followed by thunderstorms, then much cooler conditions. After several months of below average rain and above average temperatures (extending back to at least spring), lightning strikes ignited a number of fires, mostly in the west of the State. Many of the fires continued to burn for the rest of the month, with reports of over 80 burning at one time, at least 95 000 hectares burnt, and smoke affecting most of the State and parts of Victoria. Despite some rain in the north and east at the end of the month, many fires continued to burn into February.

Hobart's mean minimum temperature of 14.4 °C was 2.5 °C above the long term average and the warmest for January in 134 years of record. Even on the coolest morning of the 15th the temperature in the city only dipped to 9.8 °C. Daytime temperatures were also above average for most of the month, with the mean for the month 22.5 °C, which is 0.8 °C above the long term average. The warmest day was 34.0 °C on the 13th, which was the only day over 30 °C. Total rain for the month was 40.2 mm, somewhat below the long term average of 48 mm and with all but 9 mm of it falling in the final four days of the month.

 

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Extremes in January 2016
Hottest day	36.8 °C at Grove (Research Station) on the 13th
Warmest days on average	26.1 °C at Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)
Coolest days on average	13.8 °C at Kunanyi (Mount Wellington Pinnacle)
Coldest day	5.1 °C at Mount Read on the 14th
Coldest night	-0.4 °C at Kunanyi (Mount Wellington Pinnacle) on the 15th
Coolest nights on average	5.7 °C at Kunanyi (Mount Wellington Pinnacle)
Warmest nights on average	16.3 °C at Swan Island
Warmest night	19.3 °C at St Helens Aerodrome on the 14th
Warmest on average overall	20.2 °C at Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)
Coolest on average overall	9.7 °C at Kunanyi (Mount Wellington Pinnacle)
Wettest overall	533.4 mm at Gray (Dalmayne Rd)
Wettest day	221.0 mm at Gray (Dalmayne Rd) on the 29th
Strongest wind gust	128 km/h at Cape Sorell on the 28th

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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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

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Record highest January daily rainfall
	New record (mm)		Old record		Years of record
Fingal (Legge Street)	113.8	on the 30th	111.0	on the 29th in 1995	119
Ormley	81.8	on the 30th	69.4	on the 29th in 2004	119
Frankford (Rossville)	122.2	on the 30th	104.8	on the 28th in 2004	116
Northdown (Hamley)	98.8	on the 30th	84.4	on the 28th in 2004	107
Latrobe (Coal Hill Road)	104.4	on the 30th	88.8	on the 28th in 2004	106
Naracoopa	48.4	on the 31st	46.7	on the 25th in 1952	100
Launceston (Kings Meadows)	71.6	on the 29th	55.2	on the 25th in 1996	88
Lewis Hill (St Pauls River)	130.0	on the 30th	77.6	on the 5th in 2000	86
Orford (Aubin Court)	140.5	on the 30th	98.8	on the 29th in 1995	64
Lorinna	105.2	on the 30th	105.0	on the 28th in 2004	62
Barrington Post Office	99.4	on the 30th	94.0	on the 28th in 2004	50
Tooms Lake (Tooms River)	64.8	on the 30th	53.8	on the 5th in 2000	41
Westbury (Birralee Road)	96.0	on the 30th	48.8	on the 28th in 2004	39
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	85.8	on the 29th	54.0	on the 29th in 2004	36
Ross (The Boulevards)	60.0	on the 29th	51.8	on the 25th in 1996	23
Meander (Meander River)	91.8	on the 29th	81.4	on the 28th in 2004	22
Mount Seymour	39.0	on the 29th	37.0	on the 14th in 2015	22
Strathbridge (Meander River)	114.2	on the 29th	47.6	on the 28th in 2004	22
Golden Valley (Brodies Road)	125.8	on the 29th	88.8	on the 28th in 2004	21
Hermitage (Shannon River)	37.6	on the 29th	34.8	on the 28th in 2004	21
Quamby Bluff	148.6	on the 29th	105.0	on the 28th in 2004	21
Corra Linn (North Esk River)	69.0	on the 30th	46.4	on the 29th in 2004	20
Deloraine Railway Bridge (Meander River)	88.2	on the 29th	86.0	on the 28th in 2004	20
Mount Barrow (South Barrow)	75.0	on the 30th	74.2	on the 29th in 2004	20
Weymouth (Tam O'Shanter)	73.0	on the 30th	59.0	on the 29th in 1995	20

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Record highest daily rainfall for any month
	New record (mm)		Previous annual wettest		Years of record
Frankford (Rossville)	122.2	on 30 Jan	109.0	on 2 Apr 1989	117
Orford (Aubin Court)	140.5	on 30 Jan	118.6	on 7 Jun 1954	65
Westbury (Birralee Road)	96.0	on 30 Jan	79.2	on 23 Sep 1998	39
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	85.8	on 29 Jan	67.6	on 21 Jul 2000	37
Meander (Meander River)	91.8	on 29 Jan	89.6	on 31 Aug 2005	24
Strathbridge (Meander River)	114.2	on 29 Jan	69.8	on 31 Aug 2005	24
Friendly Beaches	138.2	on 29 Jan	105.8	on 16 May 2003	20
Sheffield School Farm	117.0	on 30 Jan	95.4	on 12 Jul 2009	20

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Record highest January total rainfall
	New record (mm)	Old record		Years of record	Average for January
Deal Island	162.1	151.0	in 1920	145	41.2
Fingal (Legge Street)	195.8	192.0	in 1995	134	44.7
Frankford (Rossville)	224.8	195.8	in 2004	123	53.7
Latrobe (Coal Hill Road)	212.0	173.8	in 2011	116	44.9
Northdown (Hamley)	174.4	157.0	in 2004	105	40.2
Lewis Hill (St Pauls River)	189.8	139.4	in 1986	86	44.1
Orford (Aubin Court)	235.9	174.2	in 1996	64	51.8
Westbury (Birralee Road)	193.5	163.8	in 1996	39	51.2
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	150.4	139.4	in 1996	35	47.7
Weymouth (Tam O'Shanter)	133.0	118.2	in 2004	21	57.3

Highest January total rainfall for at least 20 years
	Observed (mm)	Most recent higher		Average for January
Ormley	130.6	195.1	in 1894	40.8
Ross (The Boulevards)	93.8	149.2	in 1996	46.4
York Plains (Handroyd)	85.2	138.2	in 1996	42.1

* 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 highest January mean daily maximum temperature
	New record (°C)	Old record		Years of record	Average for January
Burnie (Round Hill)	23.5	23.2	in 1981	65	21.1
Wynyard Airport	24.2	23.2	in 2009	28	21.4
Dover	22.7	22.6	in 2003	26	20.7
Devonport Airport	23.7	23.1	in 2010	24	21.3
Bridport (Sea View Villas)	23.4	22.7	in 2003	21	21.8

Highest January mean daily maximum temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent higher		Average for January
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	26.1	26.9	in 1981*	24.3
Marrawah	22.0	22.4	in 1988	20.1

* 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 highest January mean daily minimum temperature
	New record (°C)	Old record		Years of record	Average for January
Hobart (Ellerslie Road)	14.4	14.0	in 1981	133	11.9
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	13.5	13.3	in 1951	92	11.4
Larapuna (Eddystone Point)	15.8	15.4	in 1999	58	13.6
Hobart Airport	14.2	13.8	in 1981	57	12.0
Scottsdale (West Minstone Road)	13.1	12.6	in 1995	43	10.8
Bicheno (Council Depot)	15.0	14.4	in 2012	40	12.9
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	14.3	14.0	in 1995	32	12.3
Fingal (Legge Street)	12.5	11.7	in 1998	29	10.3
Dover	11.9	11.2	in 2001	26	10.2
Lake Leake (Elizabeth River)	10.0	9.5	in 2011	26	8.3
Devonport Airport	13.9	13.6	in 1995	24	12.2
Strahan Aerodrome	12.4	12.1	in 2007	24	10.7
Maydena Post Office	10.3	10.1	in 2007	23	8.9
Ross (The Boulevards)	12.4	12.3	in 1999	22	10.5
Bridport (Sea View Villas)	14.5	14.0	in 2006	20	13.0

Highest January mean daily minimum temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent higher		Average for January
Bushy Park (Bushy Park Estates)	11.9	12.5	in 1971	10.1
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse	12.6	12.7	in 1974	10.7

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Lowest January mean daily minimum temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent lower		Average for January
Macquarie Island	4.4	4.2	in 1966	5.3

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Record highest January mean temperature
	New record (°C)	Old record		Years of record	Average for January
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	16.9	16.8	in 1974	92	14.9
Larapuna (Eddystone Point)	19.8	19.3	in 2010	58	17.3
Wynyard Airport	18.6	17.7	in 1999	28	16.2
Dover	17.3	16.9	in 2003	26	15.4
Lake Leake (Elizabeth River)	15.1	= 15.1	in 2008	26	13.9
Devonport Airport	18.8	17.7	in 2012	24	16.8
Strahan Aerodrome	17.5	17.2	in 2001	24	15.7
Ross (The Boulevards)	19.0	= 19.0	in 2008	22	17.5

Highest January mean temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent higher		Average for January
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	20.2	20.4	in 1981*	18.3

* 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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Lowest January mean temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent lower		Average for January
Macquarie Island	6.2	=6.2	in 1970	7.0

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Summary statistics for January 2016
	Maximum temperatures (°C)				Minimum temperatures (°C)				Rainfall (millimetres)
	Mean for January 2016	Diff from average	Highest for January 2016		Mean for January 2016	Diff from average	Lowest for January 2016		Total for January 2016	Average for January	Rank of January 2016	Fraction of January average
Northern (district 91)
Bridport (Sea View Villas)	23.4	+1.6	27.4	1st	14.5	+1.5	7.1	15th	107.6	55.4	high	194%
Burnie (Round Hill)	23.5	+2.4	31.2	9th	13.5	+0.9	6.9	15th	93.1	44.7	v high	208%
Cape Grim	19.8		24.0	18th	14.3		11.0	15th	46.2
Cape Grim BAPS (Comparison)	20.1	+1.2	25.2	18th	14.2	+1.1	11.0	15th	45.4	36.7	high	124%
Cressy Research Station	26.0	+0.9	34.6	9th	12.5	+2.3	6.2	15th	117.4	36.7	v high	320%
Devonport Airport	23.7	+2.4	30.2	8th	13.9	+1.7	5.0	15th	151.2	43.8	v high	345%
Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)	26.1	+1.8	33.5	1st	14.3	+2.0	6.9	15th	150.4	47.7	highest	315%
Launceston Airport	25.8	+0.7	32.5	9th	12.7	+2.0	5.0	15th	109.4	33.7	v high	325%
Low Head	22.2	+1.9	24.9	2nd	15.7	+1.5	9.7	15th	150.8	52.4	v high	288%
Marrawah	22.0	+1.9	27.2	18th	13.2	+1.3	10.0	15th	20.6	48.3	v low	43%
Scottsdale (West Minstone Road)	24.3	+1.4	30.3	1st	13.1	+2.3	7.4	15th	80.4	57.1	high	141%
Sheffield School Farm	24.0	+2.0	31.5	9th	12.3	+1.7	4.7	15th	198.6	55.3	v high	359%
Smithton Aerodrome	23.5	+2.0	28.8	11th	12.1	+1.1	4.5	15th	33.8	40.7	average	83%
Wynyard Airport	24.2	+2.8	31.5	9th	13.1	+2.1	2.6	15th	39.8	43.8	average	91%
East Coast (district 92)
Bicheno (Council Depot)	21.7	+0.3	26.6	8th	15.0	+2.1	9.5	15th	181.2	54.4	v high	333%
Fingal (Legge Street)	23.9	+0.4	33.6	9th	12.5	+2.2	4.6	16th	195.8	44.7	highest	438%
Friendly Beaches	23.3	+0.2	28.6	8th	14.6	+1.5	9.3	15th	221.2	67.9	v high	326%
Lake Leake (Elizabeth River)	20.2	+0.8	28.9	9th	10.0	+1.7	2.4	15th	110.4	54.8	v high	201%
Larapuna (Eddystone Point)	23.8	+2.8	31.7	11th	15.8	+2.2	10.1	15th	62.6	45.5	high	138%
Maria Island (Point Lesueur)	21.4	0.0	27.6	8th	15.0	+1.5	10.5	15th	221.2	50.2	v high	441%
St Helens Aerodrome	22.7	0.0	29.4	9th	15.0	+1.8	8.6	16th	125.6	55.3	high	227%
Swan Island	21.8	+1.0	25.4	28th	16.3	+1.5	10.8	15th	65.6	46.1	high	142%
Swansea (Francis Street)	22.3		32.2	9th	14.1		9.0	16th	242.4
Midlands (district 93)
Ross (The Boulevards)	25.3	+0.8	32.0	9th	12.4	+1.9	3.0	15th	93.8	46.4	high	202%
Southeast (district 94)
Campania (Kincora)	24.5	+0.2	33.7	13th	13.6	+2.2	8.2	16th	46.4	38.4	average	121%
Cape Bruny (Cape Bruny)	21.1	+1.4	32.9	13th	13.3	+1.2	9.6	15th	23.6	44.6	average	53%
Cape Bruny Lighthouse	20.3	+2.0	31.7	13th	13.5	+2.1	10.3	15th	22.7	61.7	v low	37%
Dennes Point	21.7		28.1	13th	14.3		10.1	15th	41.8
Dover	22.7	+2.0	31.8	13th	11.9	+1.7	7.0	15th	35.2	53.9	average	65%
Dunalley (Stroud Point)	22.4		26.4	9th	14.9		11.1	15th	112.0
Grove (Research Station)	23.6	+0.4	36.8	13th	10.8	+1.2	4.8	4th	38.4	47.2	average	81%
Hobart (Ellerslie Road)	22.5	+0.8	34.4	13th	14.4	+2.5	9.8	15th	40.2	47.6	average	84%
Hobart Airport	23.3	+0.7	35.1	13th	14.2	+2.2	8.6	4th	35.4	40.8	average	87%
Kunanyi (Mount Wellington Pinnacle)	13.8	+0.4	24.8	13th	5.7	+1.0	-0.4	15th	137.0	92.6	high	148%
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse	17.9	+0.9	30.0	13th	12.6	+1.9	8.7	15th	35.0	79.0	low	44%
Melton Mowbray (North Stockman)	24.0	+0.1	33.1	13th	11.6	+1.3	5.5	15th	40.6	32.7	average	124%
Tasman Island	18.8	+0.9	21.4	22nd	12.8	+1.5	7.8	15th	37.0	72.7	low	51%
Tunnack Fire Station	22.3	+0.6	29.0	13th	10.2	+1.4	3.9	16th	65.6	45.7	average	144%
Derwent Valley (district 95)
Bushy Park (Bushy Park Estates)	25.3	+1.4	36.1	13th	11.9	+1.8	4.6	15th	27.6	40.9	average	67%
Maydena Post Office	23.2	+1.1	35.0	13th	10.3	+1.4	5.3	4th	44.2	62.3	average	71%
Ouse Fire Station	25.9	+0.5	35.8	13th	11.8	+1.7	4.7	4th	37.4	26.9	high	139%
Central Plateau (district 96)
Butlers Gorge	20.4	+1.5	28.4	13th	7.3	+0.9	1.1	21st	47.2	96.4	low	49%
Lake St Clair National Park	20.8	+1.4	27.8	14th	6.1	-0.2	0.3	10th	67.0	103.6	low	65%
Liawenee	19.4	+0.7	27.2	1st	6.1	+0.8	1.2	10th	131.4	55.4	v high	237%
West Coast (district 97)
Cape Sorell	20.6	+2.4	27.1	31st	13.7	+1.9	10.5	10th	29.6	68.9	v low	43%
Hartz Mountain (Keoghs Pimple)	18.1	+0.4	32.3	13th	7.4	+0.3	2.4	15th	52.4	67.8	average	77%
Low Rocky Point	20.8		29.2	13th	13.1		9.4	21st	53.2	80.4	low	66%
Mount Read	15.8	+1.5	22.7	13th	6.7	+0.9	1.1	15th	68.2	201.0	v low	34%
Scotts Peak Dam	23.0	+2.3	36.3	13th	10.2	+0.9	5.7	15th	25.8	104.8	v low	25%
Strahan Aerodrome	22.5	+1.7	34.9	13th	12.4	+1.7	7.7	10th	32.0	84.5	v low	38%
Warra	19.6	+0.2	32.9	13th	8.8	+0.5	4.0	4th	57.0	108.5	low	53%
King Island (district 98)
King Island Airport	21.6	+0.7	28.7	13th	13.4	+1.0	6.2	16th	76.8	39.4	v high	195%
Flinders Island (district 99)
Flinders Island Airport	23.4	+1.3	30.8	18th	14.5	+1.2	4.4	16th	100.4	45.5	v high	221%
Hogan Island	21.8	+0.2	27.6	13th	15.3	+0.6	11.3	16th	116.6	38.3	v high	304%
Antarctica and Macquarie Island (district 300)
Macquarie Island	8.1	-0.7	10.1	29th	4.4	-0.9	2.1	9th	78.0	86.6	average	90%

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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