Weather & Seasons

Seasons

If you ever go to Australia, remember, the seasons are reversed:

• Summer is from December to February (our Winter).
• Autumn takes place from March to May (our Spring).
• Winter is from June to August (our Summer).
• Spring takes place from September to November (our Autumn).

This means that the Australian Christmas takes place in summer. And it also means that the long end of year break for students is in Winter; that's why it is commonly known the 'Christmas holidays'.

Temperature & Climate 

Australia is a continent that experiences a big variety of climates due to its size. The temperature can range from below zero in the Snowy Mountains to extreme heat in the Kimberley region.

In the southern capital cities the average temperatures are : in Summer - between 16 (minimum) and 26 (maximum) Celsius degrees; and in Winter - between 6 (minimum) and 14 (maximum) degrees. In the sub-tropic and tropical cities, the average minimum temperatures are between 16 and 23 Celsius degrees; and the average maximums are between 25 and 32 degrees.

Extreme weather

The tropics are affected a lot by the extremes of cyclones in the wet season; and the inland deserts can remain fully dry for years while rain can produce floods. The wettest months in the southern capitals are from May to July.

There are also regular winter snowfalls in the mountain ranges. The snow season in the heights of south-eastern Australia is from June to September.

    1. Cyclones

Cyclones are a tropical weather phenomenon. They are usually encountered in Australia between November and April, and they mostly take place in the north of the country. 

About 6 cyclones happen in Australia every year. By far the most famous cyclone in Australia is Cyclone Tracy, which hit Darwin in the Northern Territory on 1974's Christmas Eve. 49 people died and over 80% of the city of was destroyed. But in 1899, Cyclone Mahina killed over 400 people when it destroyed an entire pearl-fishing fleet at Bathurst Bay, in Queensland.

    2. Drought

Desert conditions are different from drought. A drought is an unusually long period of time when there is not enough water for people to use in the way they normally would.

There have been many serious droughts in Australia in the last 200 years. The 1895–1903 drought lasted eight years

The 1963–68 drought caused a forty per cent reduction in wheat crops across Australia.