.png)
FISH out the sunscreen Australia, and keep it handy. We’ve been warned to brace for a summer of scorching heat and pummelling wind.
In its severe weather outlook up to next April, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has cautioned the country’s dry spell is set to continue and as many 11 cyclones could form in the coming months.
But it’s the heat that could really punish. So much so, the Bureau has started its heatwave notification service early and Queenslanders have been warned not to set their air conditioners too cold for fear of crashing the electricity network.
Sydney’s CBD has not seen a drop of rain for almost a month.
“We’ve had a much warmer- and drier-than average winter this year,” BoM meteorologist Adam Morgan said.
“Maximum temperatures were the warmest since national records began in 1910. And it’s likely to stay warmer than average in the months ahead.
“With lower soil moisture and clear skies expected over many areas this summer, the chance of heatwaves is increased.”
The official definition of a heatwave is three days or more of unusually high temperatures above the seasonal maximum or minimum in any given area.
And the number of heatwaves Australia experiences is a worry.
A graph released by the Bureau has shown heatwaves have shot up in occurrence.
Before 1990, it was rare to get more than 10 days of extreme heat per year, now it’s rare not to.
During 2012-13, dubbed Australia’s “Angry Summer” because of the record hot temperatures, there were more than 20 extreme heat days.
The last three summers have not been as hot, but each has seen more than 10 heatwaves.
More heatwaves means a higher potential for devastating bushfires.
“Periods of extreme heat are a risk in any Australian summer. As our climate has warmed, the number of heatwaves observed each year has also increased,” Mr Morgan said.
Queensland is likely to be ground zero for much of the extreme weather.
Households and businesses in the state were warned on Tuesday they might be told to restrict power usage to prevent blackouts during heatwaves.
A Summer Preparedness Plan is being drawn up which could see a directive issued to set air conditioners to 26C or higher
That’s one degree hotter than Ergon Energy, one of Queensland’s publicly owned electricity utilities, recommends air conditioners are set at during the summer months.
Businesses may also be told to switch advertising lights off and prevent any other non-essential electricity use.
Energy Minister Mark Bailey told The Courier-Mail Queensland had secure power supplies but it was important to be vigilant.
“We can’t change the fact that Queensland will continue to have heatwaves and extreme weather events and, while we cannot predict every risk scenario, the taskforce has presented a way forward for the short and medium-term,” he said.
As the dry and hot conditions linger so the risk of flooding is likely to wane over the coming months. This doesn’t include flooding caused by tropical cyclones.
This year there is a slightly increased chance of more cyclones than usual, Mr Morgan warned.
“On average, around 11 tropical cyclones develop in the Australian region each year, and around four cross our coast,” he said.
“The outlook suggests no strong shift from normal cyclone numbers this season.”
Many of the weather systems that traditionally drive Australia’s climate, such as El Nino and La Nina, are dormant. However, any move towards La Nina — which drives moisture towards Australia’s east coast — could increase cyclone numbers.
“It is rare that cyclones are evenly spread across the season. Last season saw only one tropical cyclone form before mid-February, which was a very late start,” Mr Morgan said.
“But then eight subsequent cyclones in the region brought the season’s total to nine, with the last storm forming at the end of April.”
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét