Tuesday, 1 June 2021 - Monthly Climate Summary for Tasmania - Product code IDCKGC17R0

Tasmania in May 2021: drier than average in parts of the north and south-east

Rainfall totals in May were less than average across most of Tasmania, with parts of the north and south-east quarter of the state recording less than 40% of their May average rainfall. Days were warmer than average in the south, tending to close to average across the north. Night-time temperatures were close to average in the south and cooler than average across the north.

Driest May in the past 10 years

• May rainfall was 30% below average for the state overall and the lowest since May 2011.
• A cold front brought widespread rainfall across the west on the 10th, followed by more rainfall for the west from a series of cold fronts around the middle of the month. Most of the state was dry from the 21st to the 25th.
• A couple of sites had their highest May daily rainfall on record on the 26th when a strong cold front brought heavy rainfall to parts of the Northern and Central Plateau districts.
• Year to date rainfall is running close to average across mainland Tasmania, with a wetter than average year-to-date for King Island and Flinders Island.

Cooler than average overall

• Averaged across the state, the mean maximum temperature was 0.25 °C warmer than average.
• Mean maximum temperatures were warmer than average across the south but close to average elsewhere, while mean minimum temperatures were cooler than average across most of the state but close to average in the south.
• Several sites had their highest May temperature on record at the beginning of the month when a high-pressure system in the Tasman Sea brought dry and warm weather to central and eastern Australia.
• Averaged across the state, the mean minimum temperature was 0.51 °C lower than average, the coolest since 2013.
• A high pressure system centred over south-east Australia at the end of the month gave some sites their lowest May temperature on record.
• A couple of sites had their lowest May mean daily minimum temperature for at least 20 years.

Hobart (Ellerslie Road)

• Total rainfall for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 12.6 mm, which is 27% of the long-term average of 46.8 mm.
• The mean daily maximum temperature for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 15.7 °C, which is 1.2 °C above the long-term average of 14.5 °C.
• The warmest day was 23.2 °C on the 1st, and the coolest day was on the 28th when the temperature reached 10.6 °C.
• The mean daily minimum temperature for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 7.6 °C, which is 0.6 °C above the long-term average of 7.0 °C.
• The coldest morning was 2.4 °C on the 31st, and the warmest morning was on the 20th when the minimum temperature was 13.4 °C.

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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

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Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top