Australia Climate
Top 5 Cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide
This month in numbers
Australia experienced its 4th warmest February–April period on record, with an average temperature of 26.32°C, a significant 1.3°C above the 1961–1990 baseline. April 2026 itself was 0.3°C warmer than average, ranking as the 32nd warmest April in 86 years of records. Globally, April 2026 was the 2nd warmest April on record for land temperatures, with a global land temperature anomaly of +1.1°C. The February–April 2026 period also ranked as the 2nd warmest on record for global land temperatures.
What changed
The past three months have seen Australia experiencing significantly warmer conditions, placing it among the warmest on record for this period. This regional warming trend aligns with the broader global picture, which also saw the last three months rank as the 2nd warmest for global land temperatures. Australia's April 2026 temperature anomaly of +0.32°C placed it 227th out of 234 regions globally, indicating that while warmer than average, other regions experienced far more pronounced heat.
What’s driving change?
The current climate is influenced by a Neutral ENSO state, with a weekly Niño 3.4 sea surface temperature anomaly of +0.9°C as of April 29, 2026. However, forecasts indicate a strong likelihood of an El Niño developing in the coming months, with a 61% chance for May-July and a 79% chance for June-August. El Niño typically brings warmer and drier conditions to Eastern and Northern Australia, increasing the risk of drought, heatwaves, and severe bushfire seasons. Australia has also been experiencing significant wildfire activity, with 50 wildfire events recorded between April 20 and May 10, 2026, representing 100% of the annual total for the past 12 months, an unusual concentration. This follows a period of prolonged heat and dry conditions, particularly in southeastern Australia, which contributed to a serious bushfire crisis in early 2026. A drought event has also been active since late February 2026. These conditions are exacerbated by , where dry soils are unable to cool themselves through evaporation, leading to intensified heat. More information on active extreme weather events can be found at Extreme Weather tracker and ENSO updates at ENSO tracker.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for Australia
Every figure on this page is sourced from official, openly published climate datasets. Anomalies are calculated against the 1961–1990 baseline (temperature) and 1991–2020 (rainfall, sunshine, frost) — see the Methodology & Sources page for the complete dataset list and update calendar.
FAQs
FAQs
How is the climate in Australia changing?
Australia is warming in line with the rest of the world. The page above shows the latest monthly temperature anomaly versus the 1961-1990 baseline, the long-term annual trend, and the region's rank in the historical record. The trend rate is shown as °C per decade in the headline panel; you can also see the warmest and coolest years on file.
Where does the climate data for Australia come from?
Climate data for Australia comes from Our World in Data, sourcing Copernicus ERA5 and HadCRUT5 (national temperature anomaly) and the Global Carbon Project via Our World in Data (CO₂ emissions), refreshed every month, when the upstream temperature and rainfall data are refreshed.
What is the climate baseline used on this page?
Anomalies on this page are calculated against the 1961-1990 climatological baseline, which is the standard reference period used by the Met Office, NOAA, IPCC and most national climate services. Some panels also show the source-native 1901-2000 (NOAA) or 1991-2020 (WMO) baselines for verification. See Methodology & Sources for the full reference.
Which areas does the Australia climate data cover?
The Australia climate profile covers Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and surrounding areas. Bushfires, reef bleaching and record temperatures
How often is the Australia climate update refreshed?
The Australia climate update is refreshed monthly, typically a few days after the previous month closes and the upstream provider (Met Office HadUK-Grid, NOAA Climate at a Glance, Copernicus ERA5 or the Global Carbon Project) publishes its update. See the Climate Rankings for cross-region comparisons.