Monday, 1 June 2020 - Monthly Climate Summary for Western Australia - Product code IDCKGC11R0

Western Australia in May 2020: very dry in the central and southeast

Rainfall in May was very much below average in the central and southeast Western Australia, while the Kimberley and Northern Interior were unseasonably wet. Much of the State saw near average mean maximum temperatures and below average mean minimum temperatures.

Dry in the central and southeast of the State

• May rainfall for Western Australia was slight at 6% below average, as the central and southeast of the State were very dry but unseasonably wet in the north
• The inland central areas and southeastern WA were particularly dry, with little rain or monthly rainfall totals less than 10 mm, and Eucla (town) recorded 6 mm , its driest May since 1972
• It was unseasonably wet in the Kimberley and Northern Interior, as the result of moderate to locally heavy rainfall in late May from a slow moving trough
• Daily rainfall in excess of 90mm was recorded in the west Kimberley on the 26th; 116.2 mm at Mandora was the State's highest daily rainfall of the month, while 109.6 mm at Port Smith was its highest May daily rainfall on record, and wettest May since 1997
• Several sites in the Kimberley recorded their wettest May day on record with daily rainfall between 60-70 mm on the 27th
• Monthly rainfall in the southwest WA was close to average, largely due to wet periods early in the month and again towards the end of May; A number of sites in the South Coastal district had their wettest May since 1994
• Light to moderate rainfall was recorded in the southwest WA between the 4th and the 9th, with locally heavy falls of 50–60 mm recorded on the 6th
• A once in a decade weather system produced widespread moderate daily rainfall recorded on the 25th and 26th
• Steep Point in the Gascoyne coast recorded 79.6 mm on the 26th which was its wettest May day on record
• A number of cold fronts continued to produce rainfall to the southwest WA till the end of May, with widespread moderate falls on the 29th or 30th

Below average mean minimum temperatures for much of WA

• Mean maximum temperatures were mostly near average; the state-wide mean maximum temperature was 0.43 °C above average
• A broad cloudband across the far north of WA and temperatures merely reached high-10s to low-20s on the 21st and 22nd, and a number of sites in the north Kimberley had their coldest May day on record
• Mean minimum temperatures were below average for much of WA; the state-wide mean minimum temperature was -0.72 °C below average
• Eyre and Forrest in the Eucla district had their lowest May mean minimum temperature on record; the mean minimum of 6.1 °C at Forrest was also the lowest since 1960 for the town when Forrest Aero recorded a mean minimum 6.1 °C
• Several sites in inland Gascoyne and northern Goldfields had their lowest May mean minimum temperature since 2000
• Nights were very cold in the south on the 10th, and between the 19th and 21st, and several sites recorded sub-zero temperatures.

First cool season frontal system with severe wind gusts

• On the 5th and 6th, a strong cold front passed over the South West Land Division (SWLD)
• Many coastal locations recorded maximum wind gusts in excess of 91 km/h (49 knots), and Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin recorded the highest at 128 km/h (69 knots). Busselton recorded a storm surge of 0.9m and swell peaked at 9m off Cape Naturaliste

A once in a decade strong and complex weather system

• On the 24th–26th, ex-TC Mangga, combined with an upper level trough and strong cold front, followed by a deep low through the State's southwest, to produce widespread severe weather over western parts of WA
• Widespread moderate rainfall and damaging winds, locally destructive gusts, abnormally high tides were recorded
• Many coastal and adjacent inland locations recorded maximum wind gusts in excess of 91 km/h (49 knots); Cape Leeuwin recorded a gust of 131 km/h (71 knots) on the 25th, its highest since 135 km/h (73 knots) on 16 May 2005
• Severe beach erosion occurred along stretches of the west coast as up to 6–8m swells combined with a 0.5-1m storm surge. In Rockingham coastal erosion washed away a cycle path on the foreshore. The tide gauge at Barrack St peaked at 1.88m and Main Roads reported flooding on Mounts Bay Road, Riverside Drive and Barrack Street. Other riverside cycleways and footpaths were inundated during the event. Other notable storm surges were recorded at Shark Bay and Useless Loop where a surge of between 1.5 and 2m occurred though no damage reports have been received.

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Extremes in May 2020
Hottest day	38.0 °C at Mandora on the 7th
Warmest days on average	33.5 °C at Kalumburu
Coolest days on average	17.2 °C at Shannon
Coldest day	10.9 °C at Manjimup on the 25th
Coldest night	-1.5 °C at Eyre on the 22nd
Coolest nights on average	5.6 °C at Collie East
Warmest nights on average	25.7 °C at Troughton Island
Warmest night	28.8 °C at Troughton Island on the 1st
Warmest on average overall	28.4 °C at Troughton Island
Coolest on average overall	12.3 °C at Bridgetown
Wettest overall	210.4 mm at Mount William
Wettest day	116.2 mm at Mandora on the 26th
Strongest wind gust	131 km/h at Cape Leeuwin on the 25th

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 May daily rainfall
	New record (mm)		Old record		Years of record
Gogo Station	64.0	on the 27th	57.7	on the 20th in 1968	105
Camballin	64.0	on the 27th	62.0	on the 1st in 2014	46
Port Smith	109.6	on the 26th	96.0	on the 23rd in 1988	45
Curtin Aero	58.6	on the 27th	43.6	on the 16th in 2010	26
Fitzroy Crossing Aero	48.2	on the 27th	29.6	on the 16th in 2010	23
Steep Point	79.6	on the 25th	60.0	on the 2nd in 2005	23
Liveringa Station	72.0	on the 27th	63.0	on the 16th in 2010	20

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Highest May total rainfall for at least 20 years
	Observed (mm)	Most recent higher		Average for May
Barrett Meadows	148.0	171.4	in 1994	121.2
Denmark	159.3	227.0	in 1994	128.1
Wereroa	187.6	236.2	in 1994	131.7
Port Smith	109.6	125.3	in 1997*	26.6

* note: there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a higher value has gone unreported

Lowest May total rainfall for at least 20 years
	Observed (mm)	Most recent lower		Average for May
Eucla	6.0	1.2	in 1972*	30.8
Mundrabilla Station	1.0	0.0	in 1984	25.4

* note: there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a lower value has gone unreported

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Record highest May temperature
	New record (°C)		Old record		Years of record	Average for May
Rocky Gully	29.1	on the 3rd	29.0	on the 2nd in 2003	25	18.6

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Record lowest May daily maximum temperature
	New record (°C)		Old record		Years of record	Average for May
Kununurra Aero	20.2	on the 21st	21.4	on the 29th in 2004	35	33.0
Argyle Aerodrome	19.2	on the 21st	19.6	on the 29th in 2004	26	32.1
Wyndham Aero	21.0	on the 21st	= 21.0	on the 29th in 2004	20	34.2

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Record lowest May mean daily maximum temperature
	New record (°C)	Old record		Years of record	Average for May
Busselton Aero	19.2	= 19.2	in 2016	22	20.5

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Record highest May daily minimum temperature
	New record (°C)		Old record		Years of record	Average for May
Mardie	26.0	on the 10th	25.2	on the 5th in 2016	63	16.9
Busselton Aero	18.2	on the 4th	18.0	on the 15th in 2005	23	9.0

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Record lowest May mean daily minimum temperature
	New record (°C)	Old record		Years of record	Average for May
Eyre	6.2	= 6.2	in 2009	60	9.0
Forrest	6.1	6.2	in 2019	26	8.7

Lowest May mean daily minimum temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent lower		Average for May
Carnegie	8.3	7.1	in 2000	10.8
Laverton Aero	8.2	6.8	in 2000	10.4
Leinster Aero	8.2	6.4	in 2000	10.4
Mount Magnet Aero	9.7	7.4	in 2000	11.6
Murchison	8.5	6.4	in 2000	11.2

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Lowest May mean temperature for at least 20 years
	Observed (°C)	Most recent lower		Average for May
Forrest	13.8	13.5	in 1995	15.5
Carnegie	16.0	14.7	in 2000	18.1

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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Summary statistics for May 2020
	Maximum temperatures (°C)				Minimum temperatures (°C)				Rainfall (millimetres)
	Mean for May 2020	Diff from average	Highest for May 2020		Mean for May 2020	Diff from average	Lowest for May 2020		Total for May 2020	Average for May	Rank of May 2020	Fraction of May average
North Kimberley (district 01)
Doongan	30.6	-0.7	33.8	1st	15.2	+0.4	9.5	4th	5.7	13.3	average	43%
Kalumburu	33.5	-0.1	36.6	9th	17.4	+0.4	10.9	25th	5.6	17.2	average	33%
Mount Elizabeth	30.1	0.0	34.0	10th	12.7	+0.3	7.0	4th	20.0	16.1	high	124%
Troughton Island	31.2	0.0	34.5	1st	25.7	+0.3	19.1	23rd	7.8	38.4	average	20%
Truscott	31.6	-0.6	34.5	1st	21.6	0.0	15.9	25th	2.8	22.3	average	13%
Wyndham Aero	32.9	-1.3	37.2	10th	19.0	-0.2	12.2	25th	11.0	12.4	high	89%
East Kimberley (district 02)
Argyle Aerodrome	31.0	-1.1	35.7	9th	19.3	+0.1	11.5	24th	0.2	8.1	average	2%
Halls Creek Airport	28.4		33.7	9th	14.7		7.6	23rd	16.4
Kununurra Aero	31.7	-1.3	35.9	10th	17.5	-1.2	10.4	25th	9.8	7.0	high	140%
Warmun	30.5	-1.7	35.0	31st	17.6	+0.4	9.5	24th	9.8	10.2	high	96%
West Kimberley (district 03)
Bidyadanga			32.0	31st	19.0	+0.5	13.0	24th	56.6	25.1	high	225%
Broome Airport	31.9	+0.3	36.7	9th	18.4	+0.1	13.9	24th	95.8	27.4	v high	350%
Curtin Aero	31.7	-1.6	37.1	7th	19.1	0.0	14.4	23rd	75.6	15.5	high	488%
Cygnet Bay	30.2	-0.8	33.8	7th	20.5	+1.4	15.4	5th	65.3	41.0	high	159%
Derby Aero	31.8	-1.2	36.7	10th	18.4	-0.4	14.2	25th	80.6	19.8	high	407%
Fitzroy Crossing Aero	31.1	-2.3	36.7	7th	16.1	0.0	8.1	24th	71.2	16.5	v high	432%
Yampi Sound (Defence)	32.5		37.1	10th	16.2		9.8	24th	89.4
De Grey (district 04)
Bedout Island	28.0	-0.9	31.2	7th	23.2	-0.5	18.6	26th
Karratha Aero	30.1	0.0	33.4	11th	18.1	-0.2	14.4	16th	22.2	27.0	average	82%
Legendre Island	27.8		30.5	6th	22.4		18.9	28th
Mandora	32.4	+0.2	38.0	7th	17.3	+0.4	10.7	24th	116.2	25.4	v high	457%
Marble Bar	30.5	-0.7	36.3	8th	16.4	-0.6	10.4	24th	12.2	11.8	average	103%
Pardoo Station	31.8	-0.1	37.5	7th			9.5	28th	42.0	23.8	high	176%
Port Hedland Airport	31.6	+0.9	35.6	7th	17.0	-0.3	12.5	16th	23.8	26.6	high	89%
Fortescue (district 05)
Barrow Island Airport	27.3	-0.2	30.3	12th	21.3	0.0	16.7	29th	40.6	48.9	high	83%
Karijini North	28.0		33.5	8th	15.7		8.2	28th	34.6
Learmonth Airport	28.6	0.0	33.4	12th	15.5	-0.5	9.6	23rd	60.0	41.8	high	144%
Mardie	32.7	+1.2	35.9	11th	18.2	+1.3	12.1	29th	34.2	36.5	average	94%
Onslow Airport	30.6	+1.2	35.6	12th	18.3	+0.9	12.5	28th	16.8	47.2	average	36%
Thevenard Island	28.9	+0.1	33.2	12th	21.5	+0.4	17.5	28th	18.6	35.8	high	52%
West Gascoyne (district 06)
Carnarvon Airport	27.9	+1.6	33.8	13th			9.2	23rd	16.6	32.6	average	51%
Denham	26.0	+0.3	32.9	13th					7.8	36.0	low	22%
Murchison	25.9	-0.2	32.2	4th	8.5	-2.7	4.0	21st	1.6	16.3	low	10%
Shark Bay Airport	27.6	+0.2	33.6	14th	13.5	-1.0	7.6	23rd	3.6	21.8	low	17%
East Gascoyne (district 07)
Newman Aero	26.2	-1.0	31.8	6th	10.0	-1.9	3.9	27th	7.4	18.4	average	40%
Paraburdoo Aero	28.3	-0.8	32.9	5th	14.1	-0.6	7.3	17th	35.8	18.1	high	198%
Murchison (district 07A)
Meekatharra Airport	24.1	+0.2	31.5	5th	10.8	-1.3	4.9	27th	3.4	21.5	low	16%
Mount Magnet Aero	23.8	-0.1	31.1	4th	9.7	-1.9	4.2	29th	0.4	15.5	v low	3%
Paynes Find	23.6	+0.4	30.0	4th	8.0	-1.4	1.7	20th	10.2	35.1	low	29%
North Coast (district 08)
Dalwallinu	21.9	-0.2	30.1	3rd	8.4	-1.3	2.7	19th	28.4	33.9	average	84%
Geraldton Airport	25.1		33.0	13th	13.0		9.3	17th	38.6
Kalbarri	26.6	+0.5	32.6	13th	13.7	+0.5	9.9	31st	34.6	52.8	average	66%
Morawa Airport	23.8	-0.2	31.6	3rd	9.4	-0.9	5.4	22nd	29.8	34.9	average	85%
Mullewa	24.4	+0.6	31.5	3rd	10.9	-0.3	5.6	20th	25.8	45.7	average	56%
North Island	24.2	-0.2	28.3	13th	17.9	-0.5	10.3	14th	42.8	40.7	average	105%
Wongan Hills	21.2	-0.4	30.1	3rd	8.7	-1.2	3.4	19th	39.0	51.2	average	76%
Central Coast (district 09)
Badgingarra Research Stn	22.1	-0.4	29.6	3rd	11.0	+0.4	6.6	19th	0	66.8	lowest	0%
Bickley	18.6	-0.7	26.8	3rd	9.7	-0.4	6.1	9th	180.2	130.8	high	138%
Garden Island HSF	20.9	-0.5	26.7	2nd	13.1	-0.8	7.6	15th
Gingin Aero	22.4	-0.4	31.1	3rd	8.1	-0.8	0.7	21st	46.2	71.5	low	65%
Gosnells City	22.7	0.0	29.5	3rd	11.4	-0.3	6.7	11th
Jandakot Aero	21.8	-0.2	28.5	3rd	9.0	-0.3	1.7	19th	123.4	105.2	high	117%
Karnet	19.0	-0.2	26.7	3rd	8.8	-0.2	3.3	19th	149.6	140.4	average	107%
Lancelin	22.6	-0.1	28.3	23rd	11.7	-0.7	4.1	21st	65.1	78.6	average	83%
Millendon (Swan Valley)	22.3		30.8	3rd	9.3		2.8	21st	84.0
Pearce RAAF	22.8	+0.8	32.0	3rd	10.1	-0.6	1.7	21st	82.6	82.9	average	100%
Perth Airport	22.1	+0.3	30.4	3rd	9.2	-1.2	2.3	19th	108.4	97.5	average	111%
Perth Metro	22.0	-0.3	28.9	3rd	9.6	-0.9	4.6	19th	111.6	87.7	high	127%
Rottnest Island	20.8	-0.3	26.2	2nd	14.6	-0.6	11.1	6th	54.8	71.0	average	77%
Swanbourne	21.3	-0.9	27.2	23rd	12.0	-0.5	6.7	19th	85.0	87.6	average	97%
South Coast (district 09A)
Albany Airport	19.5		31.4	3rd	8.5		2.3	10th	121.4
Bridgetown	18.4	-1.2	25.2	2nd	6.2	-0.5	0.8	10th	133.0	97.5	high	136%
Bunbury	20.1	-0.9	25.0	3rd	8.3	-0.9	2.5	9th	114.4	97.0	high	118%
Busselton Aero	19.2	-1.3	23.5	3rd	8.4	-0.6	3.3	10th	124.8	101.5	high	123%
Cape Leeuwin	19.5	+0.3	25.2	2nd	13.5	-0.2	10.2	6th	107.0	136.6	average	78%
Cape Naturaliste	19.6	+0.3	25.3	3rd	11.9	-0.7	8.4	19th	97.0	113.5	average	85%
Collie East	19.8	-0.3	27.0	3rd	5.6	-0.3	-0.6	10th	140.8	93.0	high	151%
Donnybrook	20.2	+0.2	26.8	2nd					141.2	133.8	average	106%
Dwellingup	18.8	+0.3	26.3	3rd	7.4	-0.3	1.6	19th	199.2	156.9	high	127%
Esperance	21.2	+0.7	32.1	4th	11.0	0.0	5.8	1st	31.2	70.3	low	44%
Esperance Aero	20.3	+0.1	31.2	4th	10.2	-0.3	6.8	10th	39.8	64.5	low	62%
Hopetoun North	21.1	+0.1	30.4	4th	10.6	+0.3	5.5	10th	40.8	44.5	average	92%
Jarrahwood	19.6	-0.4	25.0	3rd	5.9	-0.8	-0.5	10th	153.4	125.0	average	123%
Mandurah	20.3	-0.8	24.2	23rd	12.7	-0.7	8.6	10th	69.4	85.6	average	81%
Manjimup	17.7	0.0	26.1	3rd	8.3	-0.6	4.4	9th	139.8	128.1	average	109%
North Walpole	18.5	-0.6	27.5	3rd	10.6	-0.6	5.9	10th	173.8	123.2	high	141%
Rocky Gully	18.1	-0.5	29.1	3rd	8.0	-1.2	3.0	10th	121.0	75.4	high	160%
Shannon	17.2	-0.9	26.3	3rd	7.8	-1.0	2.3	10th	171.8	120.3	high	143%
Windy Harbour	19.1	-0.8	27.0	3rd	10.5	-0.2	5.5	10th	152.7	143.8	average	106%
Witchcliffe	18.8	-1.0	25.8	3rd	9.2	-0.5	4.3	21st	48.4	128.6	lowest	38%
North Central (district 10)
Bencubbin	20.7	-0.2	28.1	3rd	9.1	0.0	3.5	9th	27.7	36.1	average	77%
Cunderdin Airfield	22.0	+0.1	30.7	3rd	7.0	-1.2	0.9	9th	27.6	30.0	average	92%
Merredin	21.0	+0.3	28.1	3rd	9.2	+0.3	2.8	20th	64.8	40.3	high	161%
Northam	22.0	+0.7	31.4	3rd	7.3	-1.1	2.2	10th	37.6	54.4	average	69%
York	21.7	-0.2	30.8	3rd	6.3	-0.5	0.9	19th	57.0	43.4	high	131%
South Central (district 10A)
Beverley	21.4	-0.1	30.2	3rd	7.0	-0.8	1.6	19th	44.4	52.8	average	84%
Brookton	21.0	+0.5	30.2	3rd	7.1	-0.6	2.6	10th	36.3	56.0	average	65%
Jacup	19.8	+0.1	28.5	3rd	7.6	-0.7	4.0	10th	47.2	32.1	high	147%
Katanning	18.7	-0.5	28.9	3rd	8.2	-0.4	3.8	22nd	73.8	47.8	high	154%
Lake Grace	19.7	-0.3	28.5	3rd	7.8	-0.8	2.1	9th	25.6	29.0	average	88%
Narembeen	21.5	+0.5	28.9	3rd	7.8	-0.4	2.4	9th	27.4	38.3	average	72%
Narrogin	19.4	+0.8	28.5	3rd	7.4	-0.4	2.8	10th	51.8	62.0	average	84%
Newdegate Research Station	19.4	-0.5	28.3	3rd	6.2	-0.8	0.5	10th	43.4	41.7	average	104%
Pingelly	19.8	+0.1	29.2	3rd	8.1	-0.6	2.6	7th	48.6	57.0	average	85%
Ravensthorpe	20.4	+0.3	28.4	15th	11.2	+1.6	6.8	2nd	25.6	43.5	average	59%
Wagin	19.3	-0.2	28.5	3rd	8.4	+0.5	2.5	10th	36.0	53.6	average	67%
Wandering	19.8	-0.3	29.7	3rd	5.8	-0.3	0.0	19th	81.0	55.6	high	146%
Eucla (district 11)
Balladonia	21.1	+0.1	32.2	5th	6.3	-1.7	1.4	23rd	19.2	26.0	average	74%
Eucla	21.2	+0.1	30.8	6th	9.3	-1.3	4.3	31st	6.0	30.8	v low	19%
Eyre	21.8	+0.4	33.2	5th	6.2	-2.8	-1.5	22nd	18.3	38.3	low	48%
Forrest	21.5	-0.8	30.5	6th	6.1	-2.6	1.9	24th	0.8	16.5	v low	5%
Red Rocks Point	21.1	-0.2	31.9	5th	9.7	-1.6	4.5	28th	0	26.6	v low	0%
South East (district 12)
Bulga Downs	23.5	-0.4	31.3	5th	6.3	-2.8	0.6	28th	2.0	24.4	low	8%
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport	21.1	+0.4	30.8	5th	8.0	-0.7	2.5	27th	5.2	24.6	low	21%
Laverton Aero	22.0	-0.3	30.9	5th	8.2	-2.2	0.9	28th	1.0	13.5	low	7%
Leinster Aero	22.9	-0.3	31.5	5th	8.2	-2.2	1.9	27th	0.4	14.3	low	3%
Leonora Aero	22.7	-0.5	32.0	5th	7.7	-2.0	2.0	28th	0.6	8.9	low	7%
Munglinup West	20.4	-0.2	30.8	4th	9.3	-0.3	4.8	19th	35.0	38.3	average	91%
Norseman Aero	21.0	0.0	30.8	5th	6.5	-0.4	1.4	20th	8.6	18.4	average	47%
Salmon Gums Res.Stn.	20.5	+0.6	31.1	4th	6.9	-0.2	-1.0	1st	24.6	33.7	average	73%
Southern Cross Airfield	21.2	-0.1	30.3	4th	6.0	-1.3	0.4	9th	15.2	26.3	average	58%
North East (district 13)
Carnegie	23.6	-1.7	30.4	5th	8.3	-2.5	3.0	28th	6.0	15.9	average	38%
Giles Meteorological Office	23.2	-0.6	28.6	7th	9.4	-1.9	3.9	23rd	8.8	20.3	average	43%
Telfer Aero	28.3	-0.8	33.7	8th	15.1	-0.3	10.1	24th	36.4	19.0	high	192%
Warburton Airfield	23.4	-1.0	31.4	6th	9.9	-0.6	5.4	21st	9.8	15.3	average	64%
Wiluna Aero	23.7		31.9	5th	7.4		0.7	28th	0
Offshore Islands (district 200)
Adele Island	29.7		34.3	14th	25.2		20.5	28th
Browse Island	30.0		32.4	1st	26.7		21.6	23rd
Varanus Island			30.6	11th	24.4	+0.8	20.4	29th	0	28.2	lowest	0%

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

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