What is it with the BoM – so Brisbane has a humid and hot day last Tuesday – for heavens sake it is February – the ABC screams – Brisbane weather: Heat and humidity land six high school students in hospital – But then against the thrust of quotes from the BoM Wednesday dropped to 34.1 so the “searing heat” lasted one day –
and BoM has not yet worked out what it was Thursday – how is that possible? – Too busy yakking on phone to media? Working out their redundancies?
Bureau of Meteorology to axe staff from all regional stations except Cairns
Friday was said to be 29 and it turned out 27 – the record for a February day is over 41. Last month a similar exaggeration. BoM crying wolf again about heatwave in Queensland – turns out total flop – again
The warministas could get their way with some high February temperatures this year according to recent UAH satellite Global temperature anomaly data. This January past was apparently the hottest of the satellite data era. I suppose that’s not all that surprising bearing in mind the spike we saw in the anomaly during the 97/98 ElNino.
From underground cable design work (in another life) I recall that the highest Victorian ground temperatures normally occur in early February. A look at some of the highest recorded ambient air temperatures in Melbourne confirms they show a similar time lag after the summer solstice, also commonly occurring in early February. A couple noted examples being 46.4°C on 7 Feb, 2009 (Black Saturday) and 47.2°C (117°F) on 6 Feb, 1851 (Black Thursday) before BoM records began, reported by The Argus newspaper of the time. And of course it’s folklore in Melbourne that the kids go back to school at a time commonly considered to be the hottest time of year.
Bob – You’re right, UAH version 6.0 has the January anomaly at +0.54, edging out January 1998, +0.49.
February to April should be warmer still, if the usual El Nino pattern is followed.
Even so, the margin will be interesting to see. The Nino we are in now is very nearly of the same magnitude as 1998, and the average IPCC model predicts temperatures should have warmed about 0.4 degrees since then. But the readings so far are falling way short of that level.