Friday, 2 March 2007 - Monthly Climate Summary for Western Australia - Product code IDCKGC11R0

Western Australia in February 2007

Hottest February on record

Summary

An exceptionally hot February 2007 was experienced across much of Western Australia. Averaged spatially across the state, WA recorded its hottest February in terms of mean maximum temperature and mean minimum temperature since comparable records commenced in 1950.

The state as a whole also experienced the 4th driest February on record since at the least 1900.

Temperature

With the exception of the coastal strip, almost all of WA saw well above average temperatures in February. In large areas of central and southeast WA, mean maximum temperatures were over 5°C above the standard long term mean (1961−1990). The spatially averaged mean maximum temperature for February 2007 for WA was 3.1°C above the mean which exceeded the previous hottest February set in 1998 with an anomaly of 2.6°C. This anomaly is also the largest recorded for any month, and the mean maximum averaged across WA (37.8°C) was just below the record for any month, 37.9°C in December 1972.

Many locations in WA saw record high mean monthly maximum temperatures, including Marble Bar, which recorded a mean maximum temperature of 44.9°C. This exceeded the previous highest mean maximum since records commenced at the site in 1901, of 44.6°C in January 2005. More significantly, however, the mean exceeded the highest mean monthly maximum temperature recorded previously for Australia of 44.8°C at Emu Creek Station (in the Pilbara) in January 2005 and February 1998. Marble Bar had a record 43 consecutive days over 42°C from 16 January to 27 February, and a number of other locations, such as Newman (29 days) and Wiluna (21 days), set records for consecutive days over 40°C.

The first week of February saw particularly exceptional heat, particularly in the southern inland. Hyden reached 48.6°C on 3 February, the highest temperature ever recorded so far south in WA, and all-time site records were set at many other locations, including Northam (48.1), Cunderdin (48.0), Narrogin (44.7) and Lake Grace (46.1). Meekatharra, which had only previously had five days over 45°C in 57 years of observations, had five in the first week of February 2007, including a record 45.5°C on 2 and 4 February.

Minimum temperatures were also particularly high in WA with the exception of the west costal strip during February. Many northern and eastern regions experienced record high mean minimum temperatures with anomalies exceeded 4°C in central eastern parts of WA, and overall February 2007 was the hottest month on record in WA.

Rainfall

A contributing factor to the high temperatures across much of Australia was the lack of rainfall across much of Western Australia . It was WA's 4th driest February (76% below the mean) since accurate records commenced in 1900. A notable feature was the poor monsoon over the WA as the region had seen no tropical cyclones to the end of February (Tropical Cyclone Isobel in late December and early January was reanalysed after the event and was found not to have reached tropical cyclone strength), the first time this has occurred since the 1978−9 season.

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Extremes

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Records

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Notes

Further information

Yanhui Blockley or Glenn Cook
Western Australia Climate Services Centre
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (08) 9263 2222
Email climate.wa@bom.gov.au