Tuesday, 3 April 2018 - Monthly Climate Summary for Victoria - Product code IDCKGC16R0

Victoria in March 2018: drier and warmer than average

March was drier than average in many areas across the State, particularly in parts of the Mallee and East Gippsland. Daytime temperatures were warmer than average in most of Victoria, while overnight temperatures tended to be closer to average

A dry March in the east and west of the State

• Large areas in the east and west of Victoria observed drier than average conditions, with some parts recording rainfall in the driest 10 per cent of years on record for March
• Averaged across the State rainfall was 50.8% below the long-term March mean of 41.1 mm
• Cold fronts and associated troughs brought widespread rainfall to Victoria between the 24th and the 26th, with daily falls generally between 15 and 30 mm
• In many areas of Victoria this wet spell ended the long run of mostly dry weather, which started at the beginning of February
• Combined with the persistent warm to hot weather, the little rain that has fallen during this period quickly evaporated
• The highest daily rainfall total in the State, 44.8 mm, was recorded at Mt Hotham on the 26th; the wettest place during the month was also Mt Hotham, with 97.4 mm

Above average daytime temperatures

• Days were warmer than average in most of the State; large parts of Victoria had maximum temperatures between 1 °C and 2 °C above the average
• The highest temperature in Victoria during March was 37.7 °C, recorded at Mortlake Racecourse on the 10th
• Nights were also warmer than average in most of the south but close to average in the northern parts of the State
• Mallacoota had its highest March temperature on record, while East Sale, Bairnsdale Airport and Coldstream had their warmest March night (highest daily minimum temperature) on record
• Later in the month temperatures dropped sharply after the passage of the cold front; on the 26th, Dartmouth Reservoir had its coldest March day (lowest maximum temperature) on record, while Mounth Hotham and Cape Nelson had their record lowest March temperature
• The night-time temperature observed at Mt Hotham on the 26th, -3.8 °C, was the fourth-lowest March daily minimum temperature recorded in Victoria since records began

Strong winds in the second half of the month

• The strongest winds for the month, ahead of the passage of a cold front, were recorded on the 18th, with gusts of 122 km/h reported at Wilsons Promontory Lighthouse
• Several sites also recorded strong gusts of over 100 km on the 25th
• The outbreak of cold air on the 26th brought the year's first snowfalls to Victorian Alpine areas

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