Last year marked the second-hottest year in Australia since records began, with a weekend heatwave poised to keep the hot times rolling into early 2025.
Recent data released by the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) indicates that Australia’s average temperature was 1.46 degrees Celsius higher than the average recorded from 1961-1990.
This occurrence represents only the second time in 115 years that Australia’s annual temperature has exceeded 1.4 degrees above this baseline, according to meteorologists from Weatherzone.
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The hottest year on record was 2019, which was 1.51 degrees above the average.
A heatwave has already welcomed the new year in Western Australia.
Over the coming days, this heat system is expected to gradually move eastward, affecting New South Wales and Victoria by the weekend.
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Parts of southeastern NSW are expected to experience severe to extreme heatwave conditions from Saturday to Monday.
Severe or low-intensity heat conditions are likely to impact most of Victoria and northern Tasmania.
The heatwave is forecasted to peak on Monday.
According to BoM, large areas of the country recorded temperatures above their averages last year.
Significant regions of the Western Australian coast, northern South Australia, and the NSW-Victoria border experienced their highest-ever temperatures last year.
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