Real Climate Records

What would have been called in the United States a ” heat wave ” has passed over the southern portion of Australia during the past few days, states Saturday’s “Argus.” In other words, the cool sea breezes which made the weather so pleasant at the beginning of the month, have given place to an elevating north wind, which has blown without intermission since the morning of the 8th. It has not been a true wind the wind which scorches and burns but it has nevertheless raised the temperature to summer heat, so that we have in the spring time weather of a kind which we

do not usually get until the middle of December.

Since the early morning of the 8th, the temperature has been unusually high during both day and night. The maximum shade temperature recorded at the Melbourne Observatory on 8th was 89.8deg., on the 9th 96deg., and on the 12th 95.4deg.

There have been occasions in former years when the thermometer early in November allowed a high degree of heat, as for example on the 8th of November, 1866 when the register was 95.3deg., and on the 11th November, 1865, when shade temperature of 99.2 was recorded.

But going back for ten years we do not find any instance of such continuous heat so early in the season as that which has been experienced this week.

Taking the mean temperature of the air that is to say the temperature of both day and night for the period of five beginning with the 6th and ending with the 10th, the result for 1882 is 68.4deg.

The nearest approaching to these figures during the previous 10 years was in 1872, when the mean temperature was 65.5deg., while in 1878 the mean was as low as 54deg. The average of the 10 years was 57-7deg.,so that during the last five days we have been living in a temperature nearly 10deg. higher than the normal condition.

We have had to endure, in fact, a midsummer temperature before the spring is ended. These

observations apply to Melbourne. In the country districts the heat has been still more severe.

In many places a temperature of over 100deg in the shade has been recorded. There are now signs of a change in the weather. There are indications that the change will be accompanied by rain, which is much wanted for the refreshment of the crops and pastures, which have been parched by the continuous and severe heat of the last three days.