Thursday, 1 June 2017 - Monthly Climate Summary for Western Australia - Product code IDCKGC11R0

Western Australia in May 2017: Warm and dry

Rainfall in May was below average to very much below average for much of Western Australia extending from the west to central and to the southeast. Mean maximum temperatures were above average across most WA, while below average mean minimum temperatures were evident in the north and east.

Below average rainfall for western and central WA

• May rainfall for WA was the 13th-driest since comparable records commenced in 1900
• The northern dry season began with only isolated falls from shower and thunderstorm activity in the west Kimberley at the start of the month
• Very much below average rainfall was recorded in western and central WA; some sites had their driest May or driest May for over 20 years with rainfall totals less than 10 mm
• Rainfall averaged across the South West Land Division (SWLD) was below average, though a number of sites near the SWLD coast had their wettest May for at least 20 years
• A daily rainfall of 43.0 mm at Esperance on the 12th was its third wettest May day on record and wettest day for over two years, since 20 October 2014 when 44.4 mm was recorded
  

Warmer days across most WA; cooler nights mostly in the north and east

• The WA mean maximum temperature was 1.6 °C above average, the seventh-highest on record and highest for nine years since 2008
• The SWLD mean maximum was 1.4 °C above average, the warmest May for five years since 2012
• A very cold day with daily maxima in the low teens was recorded in the southwest forested areas on the 21st after the passage of a cold front
• The WA mean minimum temperature was 0.6 °C below average; The SWLD mean minimum was 0.1 °C below average
• Sub-zero temperatures were recorded in the South West and Southeast Coastal districts in early May, and in the southern Goldfields and Southeast Coastal at the end of May

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

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