Monday, 2 December 2013 - Monthly Climate Summary for Northern Territory - Product code IDCKGC12R0

Northern Territory in November 2013: Early monsoon onset

• Records:
• 24 new November daily rainfall records
  • Darwin Airport sees wettest November Day on record (104.8 mm on 5 Nov)
• 31 new November total rainfall records (of sites with over 10 years of record)
• Middle Point sees hottest November day on record with 40.5 °C in the 1st
• 5 sites see coolest November day on record
• Temperatures (NT Average):
• Mean is 0.41 °C above average and lowest since 2011
• Maximum (daytime) is 0.34 above average and the lowest since 2011
• Minimum (overnight) is 0.47 above average and the lowest since 2011
• Rainfall:
• Record setting rainfall event over Top End on the 5th and 24-28 November
• Extremes:
• Hottest day was 43.2 °C at Rabbit Flat on the 8th
• Coldest night was 8.1 °C at Arltunga on the 2nd
• Wettest day was 183.8 mm at Gunn Point on the 24th
  

 

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Tropical cyclone Alessia

On 20 November a tropical low pressure system formed within a tropical trough over the eastern Indian Ocean south of Java. The low moved east and intensified reaching tropical cyclone strength on the 22nd off the northwest shelf and was named tropical cyclone Alessia. The storm skirted the Kimberley coastline and then made landfall on the western Top End near the mouth of the Daly River at around 18:30 local time on the 24th. After making Alessia weakened to a tropical low and moved across the Top End producing large rainfall across the region. Ex-tropical cyclone Alessia moved into the Gulf of Carpentaria on the 26th. The warm waters of the Gulf provided fuel for Alessia to intensify again to a tropical cyclone near Centre Island on the 27th. Tropical Cyclone Alessia made landfall again about 70 km west of the NT/QLD border, and remained in the region as a tropical low until the end of the month.

Early Monsoon onset

A monsoon trough moved over the continent from around the 19th through the end of the month. Many locations experienced monsoonal conditions including thick cloud cover and heavy rainfall during this period. Darwin Airport experienced heavy rainfall and sustained westerlies on the 23rd and 24th, coinciding with the monsoon onset there. Rainfall continued through the end of the month over the Roper McArthur and Barkly Districts associated with ex-tropical cyclone Alessia.

Rainfall

Top End thunderstorms set new Daily rainfall records

On the 4th and 5th of November an outbreak of thunderstorms over the western Top End set a number of new November daily rainfall records. Darwin Airport received 104.8 mm in the 24 hours to 9am on the 5th. Palmerston set a new November record with 78.2 mm. The highest falls on the day was 156.8 mm at Darwin Botanic Gardens, also a new record for this site. Stokes Hill Wharf saw 116.6 and Knucky Lagoon had 122.0 mm, although not new records for these sites.

More daily rainfall records were set later in the month when monsoon activity picked up over the Top End including the passage of ex-tropical cyclone Alessia. The wettest single day was at Gunn Point with 183.8 mm on the 24th, followed by Centre Island with 162.8 mm on the 27th, and Stokes Hill with 160.2 mm on the 24th.

Monthly rainfall totals

With thunderstorms across the western Top End early in the month, and early season monsoon activity toward the end of the month, November rainfall totals were very much above average to highest on record for most of the northern NT. By contrast, the southern NT saw a very dry November with no rainfall until the last few days of the month. When averaged across the Territory the mean rainfall equaled 62.3 mm. This is 20.5 mm above the November average and the wettest November since 2011.

At least 31 sites had their highest total November rainfall on record. Darwin Airport, with 317.2 mm, had their second wettest November on record and wettest November in 49 years. In Darwin's northern suburbs Nightcliff (268.6 mm) and Karama (214.6 mm) both had their second wettest November on record. With a November total of 142 mm, Victoria River Downs had their wettest November in at least 31 years, although there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a higher value has gone unreported.

The wettest overall in the NT this month was Stokes Hill with 556.8 mm, followed by Darwin Botanic Gardens with 515.6 mm, and then by Darwin Bowls Club with 504.5 mm.

The southeast Alice Springs District was a stark contrast to the rainfall in the north. The driest overall were Alice Plaza, Colyer Creek, Elliott, and Mount Lloyd that ended the month without any measurable rainfall.

Mean Temperature

When averaged across the Territory, this month, the mean temperature was 29.8 °C, which was 0.4 °C above the long term average for November. With a monthly mean temperature of 28.9  °C, Milingimbi was the only location to set a new mean November temperature record this month, 0.2 °C below the previous low record set in 2003.

The warmest on average was Bradshaw with 31.9 °C, followed by Victoria River Downs with 31.7 °C, and then Katherine Country Club, Ngukurr and Timber Creek all with a monthly mean temperature of 31.5 °C.

The coolest on average was Kulgera with 26.2 °C, followed by Arltunga with 26.5 °C, and then Alice Springs Airport and Curtin Springs both with 26.7 °C.

Maximum temperature

Due to thick cloud cover in the north for the last part of November, many Top End locations experienced a few very cool days. But when averaged over the whole month the warm conditions early in the month, along with the warm and dry conditions in the south counteracted the affect of the cool period and the NT mean daily maximum temperature for November was 36.5 °C, 0.3 °C above the long term mean for the month. Middle Point was the only site to have their highest November temperature on record this month. However several sites had their coldest November day (lowest maximum temperature) on record in association with monsoonal weather near the end of the month. The cooler days at the end of the month were cool enough that Dum-In-Mirrie, Ngayawili and Milingimbi all had their record lowest November mean daily maximum temperature.

The hottest day was at Rabbit Flat with 43.2 °C on the 8th, followed by Walungurru with 43.1 °C on the 7th, followed by Rabbit Flat again with 43.0 °C also on the 7th and Wave Hill also with 43.0 °C on the 17th.

The warmest days on average were at Victoria River Downs with 38.8 °C, followed by Timber Creek with 38.7 °C, and then Lajamanu with 38.5 °C.

The coolest days on average were at McCluer Island with 31.9 °C, followed by Darwin Harbour with 32.2 °C, and then Ngayawili with 32.4 °C.

The coldest day was at Kulgera with 25.1 °C on the 21st, followed by Wollogorang with 25.4 °C on the 27th, followed by Kulgera again with 26.7 °C and on the 11th.

Minimum temperature

Minimum temperatures followed a similar pattern to maximum temperatures across the Territory this month, with end of the month means being close to long-term averages. The Territory average mean daily minimum temperature for November is 23.1 °C which is only 0.5 °C above normal. Darwin Airport had a mean daily minimum temperature of 24.4  °C, this is the second lowest November mean daily minimum temperature on record and the lowest in 49 years. With a mean daily minimum temperature of 25.8 °C, Centre Island had their lowest November mean daily minimum temperature on record

The coldest night was at Arltunga with 8.1 °C on the 2nd, followed by Alice Springs Airport with 9.7 °C on the 12th, and then Arltunga again with 10.1 °C on the 14th.

The coolest nights on average were at Alice Springs Airport with 18.2 °C, followed by Curtin Springs with 18.3 °C, followed by Arltunga and Yulara Aero which both had a mean daily minimum temperature of 18.7 °C.

The warmest nights on average were at McCluer Island with 27.2 °C, followed by Cape Don with 27.0 °C, and then Warruwi with 26.6 °C.

The warmest night was at Tennant Creek Airport with 30.0 °C on the 17th, followed by Ngukurr with 29.6 °C on the 18th, and then Victoria River Downs with 29.5 °C on the 17th.

Wind

The strongest wind gust was at Centre Island with 109 km/h on the 27th as ex-tropical cyclone Alessia strengthened briefly over the Gulf of Carpentaria The next strongest gusts were at Walungurru with 91 km/h on the 23rd, followed by Darwin Airport with 89 km/h on the 12th.

---

Extremes in November 2013
Hottest day	43.2 °C at Rabbit Flat on the 8th
Warmest days on average	38.8 °C at Victoria River Downs
Coolest days on average	31.9 °C at McCluer Island
Coldest day	25.1 °C at Kulgera on the 21st
Coldest night	8.1 °C at Arltunga on the 2nd
Coolest nights on average	18.2 °C at Alice Springs Airport
Warmest nights on average	27.2 °C at McCluer Island
Warmest night	30.0 °C at Tennant Creek Airport on the 17th
Warmest on average overall	31.9 °C at Bradshaw
Coolest on average overall	26.2 °C at Kulgera
Wettest overall	556.8 mm at Stokes Hill
Wettest day	183.8 mm at Gunn Point on the 24th
Highest wind gust	109 km/h at Centre Island on the 27th

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

---

Record highest November daily rainfall
	Highest daily rainfall in November 2013 (mm)		Previous wettest for November		Years of record
Darwin Airport	104.8	on the 5th	96.8	on the 26th in 1992	73
Darwin Botanic Gardens	156.8	on the 5th	112.0	on the 26th in 1992	61
Adelaide River Post Office	102.0	on the 28th	88.0	on the 16th in 2007	52
Centre Island	162.8	on the 27th	68.6	on the 20th in 1973	45
McArthur River Mine	138.0	on the 27th	72.4	on the 11th in 1970	43
Lambell's Lagoon	105.6	on the 5th	99.6	on the 5th in 2006	32
Nightcliff Pool	82.6	on the 5th	72.9	on the 8th in 1971	32
Palmerston	78.2	on the 5th	73.0	on the 10th in 1998	29
Mount Sanford	128.0	on the 24th	57.0	on the 30th in 1997	28
Stokes Hill	160.2	on the 24th	140.0	on the 17th in 1976	26
Mary River Rangers	79.8	on the 29th	73.0	on the 10th in 1998	25
Shoal Bay	83.0	on the 24th	71.0	on the 3rd in 2012	22
Bing Bong Port	90.0	on the 23rd	68.0	on the 12th in 1998	18
Kalkarindji	66.0	on the 24th	63.8	on the 4th in 2007	15
Ngayawili	74.6	on the 23rd	54.8	on the 23rd in 2007	15
Adelaide River Town	90.5	on the 28th	69.5	on the 16th in 2007	14
Dorisvale Crossing	66.5	on the 22nd	54.5	on the 18th in 2012	14
Wongalara	67.8	on the 27th	54.0	on the 20th in 2011	13
Upper Katherine River	71.5	on the 25th	66.5	on the 30th in 2008	12
West Waterhouse	56.4	on the 27th	49.8	on the 30th in 2009	12
Adelaide River West	72.5	on the 15th	57.5	on the 19th in 2008	11
Snowdrop Creek	98.8	on the 20th	78.8	on the 23rd in 2004	11
Pinelands	110.2	on the 5th	82.0	on the 18th in 2010	10
Upper Wickham River	125.6	on the 24th	57.8	on the 28th in 2008	10

---

Record highest total November rainfall
	Total rainfall for November 2013 (mm)	Previous wettest for November		Years of record	Average for November
Darwin Botanic Gardens	515.6	353.7	in 1891	61	132.6
Centre Island	349.0	249.5	in 1973	45	44.3
McArthur River Mine	346.8	266.0	in 2011	42	60.9
Channel Island	299.0	279.2	in 1938	40	135.9
Nhulunbuy DTW	173.7	157.4	in 1999	37	29.8
Mount Sanford	167.8	158.0	in 2000	27	63.9
Palmerston	302.0	250.8	in 2007	26	150.9
Stokes Hill	556.8	264.1	in 1982	26	126.9
Mary River Rangers	223.8	219.7	in 1995	25	138.0
Wagait Beach	357.9	290.0	in 1988	24	138.8
Bing Bong Port	177.0	135.9	in 1999	18	53.2
CSIRO Berrimah	263.6	255.2	in 2010	18	145.0
Shoal Bay	265.0	248.4	in 2012	18	116.0
Beeboom Crossing	162.0	136.0	in 2008	16	53.3
Ngayawili	274.8	148.2	in 2005	15	75.0
Adelaide River Town	188.0	171.0	in 2008	14	85.3
Birdie Creek	191.5	143.0	in 2003	14	83.1
Dorisvale Crossing	143.0	138.5	in 2012	14	50.9
Sleisbeck	304.0	212.5	in 2010	12	82.4
West Waterhouse	223.2	102.6	in 2002	12	70.9
Adelaide River West	292.5	180.0	in 2008	11	123.8
Beswick Bridge	147.5	86.0	in 2004	11	56.3
Darwin River Ridge	258.0	213.0	in 2007	11	158.5
Foelsche Headland	173.8	149.4	in 2005	11	67.1
Maranboy Hill	223.6	163.0	in 2003	11	93.1
Snowdrop Creek	345.2	157.2	in 2003	11	103.3
Upper Adelaide River	258.8	188.8	in 2012	11	106.8
Adelaide River East	228.0	215.5	in 2011	10	145.4
Pinelands	293.0	270.2	in 2007	10	169.7
The Chase	328.6	194.4	in 2011	10	149.0
Upper Wickham River	155.0	79.8	in 2008	10	43.9

Highest total November rainfall for at least 10 years
	Total rainfall for November 2013 (mm)	Most recent November at least this wet		Years since wetter	Average for November
Darwin Airport	317.2	370.8	in 1964	49	141.8
Victoria River Downs	144.6	187.8	in 1981*	31	60.7
Bullita	211.6	234.9	in 1973*	28	69.1
Humpty Doo Collard Road	259.5	300.8	in 1988*	24	175.2
Elizabeth Valley	253.6	266.6	in 1995*	17	161.2
McMinns Lagoon	292.0	299.4	in 1998	15	190.3
Adelaide River Post Office	269.0	301.2	in 1999	14	139.0
Jabiru Airport	178.4	217.2	in 2000	13	143.8
Rabbit Flat	102.2	104.4	in 2000	13	43.3
Delamere Weapons Range	141.6	151.2	in 2001	12	75.1
Darwin Hospital	212.8	228.2	in 2002	11	125.7
Milingimbi	178.2	378.5	in 1999*	11	72.6
Karama	214.6	229.0	in 2002*	10	123.0
Port Keats Aero	102.8	161.0	in 2003	10	78.5
Upper Waterhouse River	168.6	180.2	in 2003	10	76.8

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

---

Record highest November temperature
	Highest temperature in November 2013 (°C)		Previous warmest for November		Years of record	Average for November
Middle Point	40.5	on the 1st	40.0	on the 4th in 2003	13	36.2

---

Record lowest November daily maximum temperature
	Lowest daily maximum temperature in November 2013 (°C)		Previous coolest for November		Years of record	Average for November
Wollogorang	25.4	on the 27th	26.0	on the 11th in 1998	31	37.4
Groote Eylandt Airport	28.1	on the 26th	29.0	on the 3rd in 2010	15	34.4
Ngayawili	29.4	on the 24th	30.5	on the 23rd in 2005	15	33.2
Maningrida Aero	29.6	on the 25th	30.3	on the 23rd in 2004	11	33.8
Milingimbi	29.1	on the 25th	30.4	on the 3rd in 2010	11	33.7

---

Record lowest November mean daily maximum temperature
	Mean daily maximum temperature for November 2013 (°C)	Previous coolest for November		Years of record	Average for November
Dum In Mirrie	32.5	= 32.5	in 2003	15	32.9
Ngayawili	32.4	32.7	in 2006	14	33.2
Milingimbi	32.9	33.3	in 2006	10	33.7

---

Record lowest November mean daily minimum temperature
	Mean daily minimum temperature for November 2013 (°C)	Previous coolest for November		Years of record	Average for November
Centre Island	25.7	25.8	in 1982	39	26.8

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

---

Summary statistics for November 2013
	Maximum temperatures for November (°C)				Minimum temperatures for November (°C)				Rainfall for November (millimetres)
	Mean for November 2013	Diff from average	Highest for November 2013		Mean for November 2013	Diff from average	Lowest for November 2013		Total for November 2013	Average for November	Rank of November 2013	Fraction of November average
Darwin-Daly (district 14GA)
Batchelor Aero	34.5	-1.0	39.1	1st	23.6	-0.3	21.2	5th	207.0	137.6	high	150%
Black Point	33.1	-0.1	34.3	9th	26.1	+0.5	23.2	2nd	102.2	64.8	high	158%
Bradshaw	38.3	+0.1	41.8	2nd	25.6	+0.1	21.7	12th	131.8	106.7	average	124%
Cape Don	34.4		36.8	13th	27.0		22.9	6th	91.6	95.1	average	96%
Central Arnhem Plateau	35.1		38.8	1st	23.3		21.4	15th	188.8	113.8	high	166%
Croker Island Airport	33.6		35.3	14th	26.4		24.3	25th	49.0
Darwin Airport	32.9	-0.4	35.0	4th	24.5	-0.8	21.3	5th	317.2	141.8	v high	224%
Darwin Harbour	32.2		34.0	10th	25.0		19.9	2nd
Delamere Weapons Range	37.7	+0.2	40.7	3rd	24.8	+0.1	21.0	3rd	141.6	75.1	high	189%
Douglas River	36.7	-0.1	40.8	1st	23.9	+0.4	21.3	5th	217.2	118.5	v high	183%
Dum In Mirrie	32.5	-0.4	33.5	18th	25.7	-0.3	22.8	5th	174.8	131.0	high	133%
Gunn Point	32.9		35.2	12th	24.2		21.5	5th	307.4
Jabiru Airport	36.8	-0.1	41.2	1st	24.9	0.0	21.8	2nd	178.4	143.8	high	124%
Katherine Country Club	37.9		41.0	5th	25.3		23.1	18th	143.0
McCluer Island	31.9	-0.3	33.3	22nd	27.2	0.0	24.7	25th	76.6	31.3	high	245%
Middle Point	35.8	-0.4	40.5	1st	23.4	-0.1	21.6	5th	194.8	124.8	high	156%
Murganella Airstrip	34.1		36.9	11th	23.9		21.6	2nd	83.2
Noonamah (Mkt)	34.6		38.9	1st	24.2		21.7	5th	269.8
Oenpelli Airport	36.4		40.4	1st	24.2		22.0	7th	131.0
Pirlangimpi	34.1	+0.7	35.8	3rd	24.5	+0.3	22.6	6th	169.6	189.1	average	90%
Point Fawcett	32.9	-0.1	34.0	19th	25.3	+0.3	22.0	5th	0	112.5	lowest	0%
Point Stuart	34.5		35.8	17th	24.7		22.1	5th	71.0	84.9	average	84%
Port Keats Aero	34.0	-0.3	36.6	19th	25.2	-0.2	22.1	5th	102.8	78.5	high	131%
Tindal RAAF	37.9	+0.7	40.8	9th	24.8	-0.2	22.1	6th	109.0	94.9	average	115%
Arnhem (district 14BC)
Cape Wessel	33.1		34.0	17th	25.9		23.4	10th	127.4	35.9	high	355%
Gove Airport	32.5	-0.6	35.1	10th	23.6	+0.2	21.4	5th	144.4	47.0	high	307%
Groote Eylandt Airport	33.6	-0.8	36.4	8th	23.7	+0.2	19.5	5th	238.4	130.2	high	183%
Maningrida Aero	33.4	-0.4	35.0	22nd	24.5	-0.3	23.2	5th	69.6	50.9	high	137%
Milingimbi	32.9	-0.8	34.7	11th	24.9	-0.4	22.9	19th	178.2	72.6	high	245%
Ngayawili	32.4	-0.8	35.3	13th	24.2	-0.2	21.8	6th	274.8	75.0	highest	366%
North East Island	32.5		34.1	12th	26.1		23.9	5th	78.2	46.4	high	169%
Warruwi	33.4	-0.2	35.7	22nd	26.6	+0.2	23.4	25th	75.8	57.2	high	133%
Roper-Mcarthur (district 14DE)
Borroloola	36.2	-1.0	40.2	16th	23.3	-0.5	18.6	1st	140.8	80.4	high	175%
Bulman	37.5		40.7	17th	24.1		21.5	5th	96.6	56.5	high	171%
Centre Island	34.3	-0.3	38.1	10th	25.7	-1.1	23.0	27th	349.0	44.3	highest	788%
Daly Waters	38.4	+0.4	41.6	17th	23.2	-0.5	16.5	2nd	58.6	48.4	high	121%
McArthur River Mine	38.0	-0.6	42.2	16th	24.3	+0.2	18.6	2nd	346.8	60.9	highest	569%
Ngukurr	38.3		42.9	11th	24.7		21.5	2nd	103.0
Wollogorang	36.6	-0.8	41.5	16th	21.8	-0.7	17.2	2nd	101.7	67.5	high	151%
Victoria (district 14F)
Lajamanu	38.5	+0.3	42.9	7th	23.5	+0.5	15.9	3rd	15.8	31.0	average	51%
Timber Creek	38.7	+0.3	41.6	7th	24.5	-0.6	18.9	3rd	182.8	86.8	high	211%
Victoria River Downs	38.8	+0.4	42.0	17th	24.5	0.0	17.3	3rd	144.6	60.7	v high	238%
Wave Hill	38.4	-0.2	43.0	17th	24.3	+0.5	16.2	3rd	106.4	59.1	high	180%
Barkly (district 15A)
Brunette Downs	38.4	+0.5	41.7	16th	23.7	+0.7	17.6	2nd	17.5	29.9	average	59%
Tennant Creek Airport	37.2	+0.8	41.0	16th	24.7	+1.0	21.7	22nd	39.8	41.1	average	97%
Alice Springs (district 15B)
Ali Curung	38.3	+1.7	41.1	16th	22.5	+1.3	15.5	7th	8.8	30.0	low	29%
Alice Springs Airport	35.3	+1.7	41.3	7th	18.2	+0.3	9.7	12th	1.0	28.7	low	3%
Arltunga	34.3	+0.9	39.0	7th	18.7	+0.7	8.1	2nd	6.8	31.0	low	22%
Curtin Springs	35.1	+0.7	42.0	7th	18.3	+0.4	13.0	12th	17.0	23.8	average	71%
Jervois	37.3	+1.4	41.5	16th	20.8	+1.9	13.2	9th	1.4	24.3	low	6%
Kulgera	33.3	+0.1	41.3	7th	19.0	+0.7	10.6	12th	6.1	24.6	low	25%
Rabbit Flat	38.2	-0.5	43.2	8th	22.4	+0.4	13.4	3rd	102.2	43.3	high	236%
Territory Grape Farm	36.7	+1.3	41.0	7th	20.2	+1.6	14.2	2nd	31.6	31.9	average	99%
Walungurru	37.9	+0.5	43.1	7th	23.3	+0.1	18.0	24th	18.4	18.6	average	99%
Yuendumu	36.1	+1.0	40.1	7th	20.9	+1.2	14.2	3rd	54.1	32.3	high	167%
Yulara Aero	35.5	+0.7	42.4	7th	18.7	+0.5	13.3	12th	46.6	36.5	average	128%

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

---

---