Heat wave in Australia 2018/2019

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The 2018/2019 heat wave in Australia describes a weather anomaly that persisted in Australia at the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2019 with unusually high temperatures for the time of year ( summer in the southern hemisphere).

background

The year 2018 was one of the warmest in the world since weather records began. This was shown, for example, by persistent drought and heat in Europe , forest fires in California and other weather events in the northern hemisphere. The heat wave in Australia thus continued a series of global heat waves after unusual weather events for Australia had already been recorded in 2016. Because January temperatures in Australia are typically higher than December temperatures, there were already fears in December 2018 that the heat wave in Australia could continue or even intensify. Many Australians associate the heat wave with global warming .

January 2019 was the warmest January in Australia since weather records began; For the first time, a nationwide average temperature of 30 degrees Celsius was exceeded. The previous January record was partly exceeded by 2 to 3 degrees. At 36.6 degrees Celsius on January 26th in Wanaaring (North Western, New South Wales ), the southern hemisphere's night heat record was broken.

Geographic focus

At the end of December, temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius were measured in large parts of the states of New South Wales , Victoria and South Australia . For the south-east of the country they were ten to sixteen degrees Celsius above the usual average values ​​for the season. On December 27th , a midday temperature of 49.1 degrees Celsius was measured in Marble Bar in northern Western Australia, which is already considered the hottest place in Australia; it was thus only slightly below the Australian temperature record of 50.7 degrees Celsius from January 1960. There were fears of subsequent bush fires and droughts . High ozone levels were also reported. A fire ban has been issued across the country. The heat wave also hit large parts of Australia in January. At the end of January, the city of Adelaide broke its heat record of 46.2 degrees from 1939. On January 25, Port Augusta recorded the highest temperature ever recorded in a coastal town of 49.5 degrees .

The heat wave was followed by a monsoon with sometimes extreme rainfall. In places more than 1000 mm of rain fell on one square meter; Northern Queensland is particularly hard hit. The city of Townsville had to be flooded in a controlled manner to prevent a dam break ; 2000 houses were under water.

Effects

Among other things, the Australian Open 2019 were affected by the heat wave . Additional break times had to be introduced at the tennis tournament. The weather anomaly contributed to a debate about the climate crisis .

In particular in Australia itself, which has a comparatively high per capita emissions of greenhouse gases , the heat wave triggered extensive political discussions. Coal is Australia's second most important export product, so the Australian coal industry, which has a strong political lobby, has received backing from the governments of previous years, while climate change and renewable energies played no significant role in the political debate.

At the settlement of Santa Teresa, about 80 kilometers southwest of Alice Springs , about 40 dead Brumbies were found in dried-out waterholes. Rangers shot another 55 of the feral horses suffering from lack of water. More than 2,500 camels living in the wild have been shot dead in western Australia . They had broken the fences around private pasture land to get water.

The Uluru (Ayers Rock) has been suspended because of the heat, but died on New Year's Day, a German tourist lack of water. Supermarkets in Australia can no longer sell chilled goods because the refrigerators are not working because of the heat.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ WMO climate statement: past 4 years warmest on record. In: WMO . November 29, 2018, accessed January 18, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Weather Update: Heatwave in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. In: media.bom.gov.au. January 23, 2019, accessed January 24, 2019.
  3. ^ A b c d e Till Fähnders: Heat wave troubles Australia. In: FAZ . December 28, 2018, accessed January 18, 2019 .
  4. ↑ a b c d Up to 49 degrees in Australia. In: Tagesschau (ARD) . December 28, 2018, accessed January 18, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Australia in January 2019 . Australian Government, Bureau of Meteorology, February 1, 2019.
  6. ↑ Vague de chaleur en Australie et record absolu de chaleur nocturne. Geoclimat.org, January 19, 2019 (French).
  7. ↑ Weather Update: Heatwave in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. In: media.bom.gov.au . January 23, 2019, accessed January 24, 2019.
  8. ↑ World record and blackouts - heat wave in Australia. In: proplanta.de. World Meteorological Organization, accessed January 26, 2019 .
  9. ↑ WEATHER UPDATE: Flooding across northern Queensland (February 1, 2019) - Australian Government, Bureau of Meteorology
  10. ↑ Australian Open heat breaks: Players to get 10-minute break in extreme temperatures. In: BBC. December 29, 2018, accessed January 24, 2019 .
  11. ↑ Jonathan Watts: Katharine Hayhoe: 'A thermometer is not liberal or conservative'. In: The Guardian . January 6, 2019, accessed January 24, 2019 .
  12. ↑ Petra Stock: Victoria should set an example on climate exchange. In: sh.com.au . January 22, 2019 (Commentary, English).
  13. ↑ Andreas Stummer: Climate change: Australia's fight against the consequences of global warming. In: Deutschlandfunk online . 2nd March 2019.
  14. ↑ Bats fall from trees, buses are stuck in the pavement. In: Spiegel Online . January 24, 2019.
  15. ↑ Lena Bodewein: Heat in Australia: Somehow I can cope with 48 degrees. In: Tagesschau.de . January 24, 2019.