Year of Extremes Sparks Climate Woes

December 27, 2008
The Advertiser, Australia

SOUTH Australia is expected to record its coolest year in seven years but scientists say 2008 has been "more climatically damaging" than any other year since the 1950s.

Preliminary Bureau of Meteorology figures show the state's mean temperature this year is expected to be about 19.95c – the coolest since 2001 when it was 19.55C.

This year's mean temperature is still 0.5C above the long-term average and SA's 15th warmest year on record.

Adelaide's annual mean temperature is expected to be the 14th warmest on record at 17.5C – 0.3C above the long-term average.

The last time SA recorded a below-average annual mean temperature was in 1992. A national record heatwave in March and a cool winter caused South Australians to experience both ends of the temperature scale this year.

University of Adelaide climate change professor Barry Brook labelled 2008 as "more climatically damaging" in SA, causing incredible stress to plant and animal life.

Professor Brook said 2008 was a year of extremes. "We had that heatwave, of course, in March and yet we had a cool winter," he said.

"The fact that we had that heatwave makes 2008 more climatically damaging than the past 50 years or more."

Professor Brook said temperature extremes were going to become more common but annual average temperature records would not clearly portray these extremes and the severe effects of climate change.

Professor Brook said 2008 was the "best example" of this.

"The conditions were hotter than they were last century, but not hotter than they had been in the last few years because of La Nina.

"One of the key impacts (of climate change) is that impact of more frequent extreme events."

The World Meteorological Organisation last week revealed a La Nina event in the Pacific Ocean this year had caused temperatures to be slightly cooler than in previous years.

Globally, 2008 was expected to be the 10th warmest year on record, at 0.31C above the average of 14C.

Australia also was expected to have its 15th warmest year on record.

National Climate Centre senior climatologist Dr Andrew Watkins said 2008 was still warmer than previous La Nina years, in a sign climate change had caused warmer-than-normal temperatures.

A La Nina event relates to cooler-than-normal sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean.

"Even though this year should have been a relatively cool year, it was warmer than all but two years since the beginning of this century," Dr Watkins said.

The bureau's climate services senior meteorologist, Darren Ray, said the March heatwave, in which there were 15 consecutive days of temperatures above 35C, was a record in Adelaide and was the statistical highlight of the year.

But no other temperature or rainfall records were broken.

Other 2008 weather statistics were not especially significant, he said. "The year as a whole did end up warmer than average, more so on the West Coast of SA," he said.

"For the West Coast, Ceduna has ended up with its fifth warmest year on record, at 17.5C mean temperature, with last year being the warmest at 17.9C mean temperature. Rainfall was generally a bit below average across the SA agricultural area and southern pastoral and near average in the north of the state."

Adelaide is expected to record its 21st driest year on record, with 398mm of rain recorded so far this year, 150mm below the average of 549.2mm. SA's warmest year on record occurred last year when the temperature was 1.1C above the average.

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,27574,24845774-2682,00.html