Climate of the 20th Century

"Drought, dust and deluge - A century of climate extremes in Australia"

The start of the new millenium is an appropriate time to review some of the significant events that have affected our country, and shaped the lives and perceptions of many people during the past Century. The aim of these web pages is to present a selection of events that illustrate some of the extremes of the Australian climate and their impacts. Australia's climate can often be harsh, and many of the events presented here describe disasters. Alternatively, however, significant climate events may sometimes convey unexpected benefits, or relieve a potentially serious situation. Both the harsh and the benevolent sides of Australian climate are represented in this collection.

The events described are organized into the categories severe storms, fire, flood, drought, extreme temperatures, cyclones and dust-storms, and also the 'flip-side' events, which bring out the quirky or benevolent side of Australian climate.