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Summer down under


cbmnz

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We had a humid 30C day yesterday and in the afternoon the thunder clouds gathered but I expected it all to slip out to sea. Instead we had thunderstorms and around 10mm of rain overnight. This morning everything is drenched. Around 18C and 98% RH at sun up. The garden is already responding. We are expecting more thunderstorms until Saturday but at the moment there’s not a cloud in the sky and it’s dead still. Going to be a sticky one I think.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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They're promising us some rain tomorrow,  it's been a warm humid few days so I hope they get that forecast right, I'd love some rain.

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Lord Howe Island is expecting ex tropical cyclone Uesi to pass directly overhead today. It's now an extra-tropical system but will still pack the punch of a cat 2 system with gusts to 130kph. The night will be bumpy with sustained winds expected to be around 95kph overnight.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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6 hours ago, sandgroper said:

Typically, the sky is clearing up now with no sign of a drop of rain. Disappointing. 

Yes, I remember those sort of situations in Perth. You'd often see thunder clouds over the hills and you'd wish they'd come to the coast but they just go inland and disappear.

Here we had rain until around lunch. It got really sticky. All gone now I think. A few thunderstorms heading down from the north but they will slide right by towards Esperance direction I think.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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Man it’s hot and sticky down here today. It was too hot in my shadehouse to keep working so I’ve briefly taken a break in the cool inside. Officially it peaked at 32C and 50% rh but my thermometer recorded 35.4C and 45%rh or a dew point of 21.6C. That’s very hot and muggy for us. It’s rained a bit on every day the last 3 days. My tropical stuff will be loving it but I’ve had to provide more shade for my Ceroxylons inside the shadehouse. I think I may lose some.

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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Was 40c here yesterday and muggy as hell, a horrible day. Today is quite a bit milder but still very humid and unpleasant. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Got a week of showers and thunderstorms according to the BOM. Broome looks to get up and personal with a cyclone too. WA is firing up.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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16 hours ago, Tyrone said:

Got a week of showers and thunderstorms according to the BOM. Broome looks to get up and personal with a cyclone too. WA is firing up.

It certainly is Tyrone, I'm in Maddington working right now and finally it's raining! Not heavy at the moment but nice big heavy drops.

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Just got home from work, typically not a drop of rain in Jandakot! Why do the gods hate me so, what have I done to them?

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11 minutes ago, sandgroper said:

Just got home from work, typically not a drop of rain in Jandakot! Why do the gods hate me so, what have I done to them?

That cyclone activity may affect us in the SW and Great Southern eventually. Still a long way out but the models were saying that it would cross the coast near Onslow but now they are saying it will overshoot Northwest Cape. If that happens it can head south and run down the coast a bit and Perth and the great southern may get the moisture it brings down. Normally if they cross the coast between Northwest Cape and Broome all the rain goes inland and pops out near Esperance. But if it heads west of Northwest Cape it's normally a different matter. It will retain its cyclonic structure for much longer and further south.

I was up in Cranbrook this morning and it was drizzling and the southerly was blowing strongly. That area received more than 50mm of rain on the weekend. We didn't get that here. It's wet and drizzling in Albany today. We won't see the sun for many days I think.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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8 minutes ago, Tyrone said:

That cyclone activity may affect us in the SW and Great Southern eventually. Still a long way out but the models were saying that it would cross the coast near Onslow but now they are saying it will overshoot Northwest Cape. If that happens it can head south and run down the coast a bit and Perth and the great southern may get the moisture it brings down. Normally if they cross the coast between Northwest Cape and Broome all the rain goes inland and pops out near Esperance. But if it heads west of Northwest Cape it's normally a different matter. It will retain its cyclonic structure for much longer and further south.

I was up in Cranbrook this morning and it was drizzling and the southerly was blowing strongly. That area received more than 50mm of rain on the weekend. We didn't get that here. It's wet and drizzling in Albany today. We won't see the sun for many days I think.

Enjoy it while you can Tyrone! I was a safari tour guide in nor west cape for almost nine years, it was the best job I've ever had, I still miss it 12 years later. I've been through lots of cyclonic activity up that way, we were the first tour company allowed back in to Exmouth after Vance went through, that was a ferocious cyclone. They're fascinating things, some pack very destructive winds with little rain, others very heavy rain with less wind, some cover thousands of kilometres, others much smaller, each one is an original but they're all very difficult to predict. All part of the adventure of life in Australia. 

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Just cracked 1000mm for the year in our street...1001mm to be precise....a much better year!

 

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Gold Coast, Queensland Latitude 28S. Mild, Humid Subtropical climate. Rainfall - not consistent enough!

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5 hours ago, sandgroper said:

Enjoy it while you can Tyrone! I was a safari tour guide in nor west cape for almost nine years, it was the best job I've ever had, I still miss it 12 years later. I've been through lots of cyclonic activity up that way, we were the first tour company allowed back in to Exmouth after Vance went through, that was a ferocious cyclone. They're fascinating things, some pack very destructive winds with little rain, others very heavy rain with less wind, some cover thousands of kilometres, others much smaller, each one is an original but they're all very difficult to predict. All part of the adventure of life in Australia. 

We used to camp at Yardie Creek between Xmas and New Years every few years. I haven’t been back in about 8 years. Have you seen the one and only Livistona alfredii on the Cape?

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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Just for the 2 WA blokes ^^ .... in case they've forgotten how spectacular the Cape Range and indeed the whole North west Cape region is ! :D
I visited only a few days after the most devastating flash floods hit the area.  Over 400mm ( 16" ) in 12 hours washed away whole camp grounds, Rangers Stations,  and tourist spots on the Indian Ocean side of the Cape Range. On the eastern side the rainfall was slightly less intense, even so there were giant boulders washed down the valleys and they littered the creek crossings on the main road into Exmouth.
This was not tropical Cyclonic rain. It was a system known as a North West Cloudband, which can sometimes deliver good winter rains to the normally arid Pilbara and Kimberley coasts. I was at Roebourne in June 2013 and we had a 225mm ( 9") fall in June that flooded our work site.
The Cape Range National Park area is World Heritage listed ( with good reason ! ) and in all my travels around Australia I rate it as one of the best places to visit.
Oh, and where is the alfredii ?  Naturally grown or planted there ? A long way from Millstream.....
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Thanks for the pictures of Cape Range. It brings back memories. 

The Livistona alfredii is a natural one not planted. The visitor centre has a write up on it. Back in the 1800s when the area was first explored the aboriginal locals told them about a stand of palms in the area. I think 3 or 4 palms existed then. The explorer carved his name in a trunk, but no one believed him that they existed. Around 100 years later from memory the stand was rediscovered on private land on the range towards the Learmonth area. Cyclone Vance knocked all of them down except for 1. The trunk that the explorer engraved is in the visitor centre. The remaining tree does seed but wild goats were eating the seedlings. A fence was set up to protect it from the goats but it’s probably not well maintained. I’ve not seen it myself but it’s probably doomed. One more cat 5 cyclone with no regeneration will end that stand I think.

Its remnant vegetation from when Australia was wetter. The Ashburton river used to empty into the Exmouth gulf and you can imagine Livistona alfredii colonising all the creeks and lagoons in the area that have long dried up. The species then retracted to areas it could survive. Millstream gives stable constant water and I think that on top of Cape Range the slightly cooler air at altitude gives some decent condensation from the ocean even if it doesn’t actually rain. Still it’s just hanging on.

Its not a palm but another interesting plant from the area is Brachychiton obtusilobus. It only grows on Cape Range.

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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I was unable to get to the Visitor's Centre as the area was badly damaged by the floods of April ( Anzac day from memory ) 2014. but now you mention it I think I have read of the alfredii there on the Cape. Its tough country out that way.... and those feral goats really are a pest !
http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/records-supplements/records/rediscovery-palm-livistona-alfredii-on-north-west-cape-peninsul
I arrived in Onslow ( for work on the Solar Salt Project ) 2 days after Vance in April 1999. The place was trashed, roofs off, trees down and defoliated, fishing boats blown way up on the salt flats from the storm surge, and dead grass all around town from salt water flooding. Now Onslow is a bit of a dump at the best of times ( mind you, I loved my time there, 9 months ) and I remember driving in to town after a couple of days on the road from Darwin, and my first impressions were, "what have I let myself in for.... ? LOL.

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3 hours ago, greysrigging said:

I was unable to get to the Visitor's Centre as the area was badly damaged by the floods of April ( Anzac day from memory ) 2014. but now you mention it I think I have read of the alfredii there on the Cape. Its tough country out that way.... and those feral goats really are a pest !
http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/records-supplements/records/rediscovery-palm-livistona-alfredii-on-north-west-cape-peninsul
I arrived in Onslow ( for work on the Solar Salt Project ) 2 days after Vance in April 1999. The place was trashed, roofs off, trees down and defoliated, fishing boats blown way up on the salt flats from the storm surge, and dead grass all around town from salt water flooding. Now Onslow is a bit of a dump at the best of times ( mind you, I loved my time there, 9 months ) and I remember driving in to town after a couple of days on the road from Darwin, and my first impressions were, "what have I let myself in for.... ? LOL.

Yes Onslow...........

I have memories of that place much like yours. I won’t be back there again unless I’m forced to go there.

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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I just plugged into google earth the lat and long in that WA Museum article listed for the Cape Range Livistona alfredii and its right at the back of Yardie Creek basically at the head waters (if you can call them that as its always dry) of Yardie Creek. It would be one hell of a hike from the camp site. Approximate elevation is about 150m above sea level and half way across the Cape from the Indian Ocean to the main Exmouth rd. It would be an awesome expedition, but one that you'd want to do in winter and be an experienced trekker I'd think. There's nothing at all out there not even a track. If you fell and got stuck they'd find your skeleton weeks later I reckon, if they found you at all. Real remote.

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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1 hour ago, Tyrone said:

I just plugged into google earth the lat and long in that WA Museum article listed for the Cape Range Livistona alfredii and its right at the back of Yardie Creek basically at the head waters (if you can call them that as its always dry) of Yardie Creek. It would be one hell of a hike from the camp site. Approximate elevation is about 150m above sea level and half way across the Cape from the Indian Ocean to the main Exmouth rd. It would be an awesome expedition, but one that you'd want to do in winter and be an experienced trekker I'd think. There's nothing at all out there not even a track. If you fell and got stuck they'd find your skeleton weeks later I reckon, if they found you at all. Real remote.

The Cape Range one is a loooong way from Millstream. A real outlier.... and probably a bit more water around Millstream with the permanent waterholes on the Fortesque River.322055_329166553766787_1430416868_o.jpg.fa3d0c14c74608792ccc80394f5636cf.jpg322055_329166557100120_1182439741_o.jpg.d68af302ad5bc7404273ae8cab70a3c3.jpg326181_323969180953191_795584939_o.jpg.d34b66da62332e7cf353f1315ef841e1.jpg

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I just found out today that there is another population of Livistona alfredii at Palm Springs on Duck Creek about 100km west of Tom Price in a very remote and tough to get at location.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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On 2/25/2020 at 10:48 PM, Tyrone said:

I just found out today that there is another population of Livistona alfredii at Palm Springs on Duck Creek about 100km west of Tom Price in a very remote and tough to get at location.

That's interesting.... there are quite a few hidden gorges and permanent waterholes out that way. I used to go for a swim at Python Pool in the Chichester Ranges and at Weeli Wolli near Yandicoogina.
Palm Spring, Duck Creek 100 km WNW of Tom Price, flows westward into the Ashburton B2, B17 ii, iii (Large running spring wetlands, with associated stygofauna. Outlying population of Livistona alfredii).

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7 hours ago, greysrigging said:

That's interesting.... there are quite a few hidden gorges and permanent waterholes out that way. I used to go for a swim at Python Pool in the Chichester Ranges and at Weeli Wolli near Yandicoogina.
Palm Spring, Duck Creek 100 km WNW of Tom Price, flows westward into the Ashburton B2, B17 ii, iii (Large running spring wetlands, with associated stygofauna. Outlying population of Livistona alfredii).

That's lovely country out that way, Python Pool is a beautiful spot.

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2 hours ago, sandgroper said:

That's lovely country out that way, Python Pool is a beautiful spot.

I've seen it full and flooded and green and stagnant all in the one year ! and never seen the falls er falling lol Its all flash flood country out that way and during any rain events the road in from Roebourne was always impassable. But yeah, one of my favourite Pilbara spots to just get away from the Camp on an RDO Sunday. The water too cold to swim in July.... haha.
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12 hours ago, sandgroper said:

The good old days when I was a safari tour guide in the north west.

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That's the sorta job you don't even ask about pay rates......haha !

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Good rainfall, compliments of ex TC Esther, has made things look up. Overnight my dam began to overflow for the first time this season. That normally should have happened in December. Now I have to stop using my dry season driveway and switch to the wet season one. Rainfall is still running below average for this month, as well as for this wet season. Always hoping it's going to make up for it before the official end of the Wet, although indications are not good. However, the 'dimensionally-endowed' lady hasn't sung yet so you never know.

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It’s 30C here with thunderstorms hovering around.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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1 hour ago, tropicbreeze said:

Good rainfall, compliments of ex TC Esther, has made things look up. Overnight my dam began to overflow for the first time this season. That normally should have happened in December. Now I have to stop using my dry season driveway and switch to the wet season one. Rainfall is still running below average for this month, as well as for this wet season. Always hoping it's going to make up for it before the official end of the Wet, although indications are not good. However, the 'dimensionally-endowed' lady hasn't sung yet so you never know.

My seasonal total since 1/10/19 is 744mm and only 67mm out of the ex TC Esther system since midnight Thursday.... very disappointing in the Darwin northern suburbs. Went out to Litchfield this morning and the Finiss was over the bridge, all the waterfalls really pumping and then a massive downpour which had me abort the rest of the day in case the rivers and creeks came back up again.
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Well, that's summer over.

Stats for Christchurch Summer 2019-20:

Average Max/Min 23 11
Days 25 and Over 33  
Days 30 and Over 10  
Days 15 or Below 1  
Hottest Max 35.6  
Coldest Max 15.3  
Hottest Min 19.9  
Coldest Min 2.6  

Compared to our Hottest summer of the last decade(2017-18);

Average Max/Min 24 13
Days 25 and Over 41  
Days 30 and Over 14  
Days 15 or Below 5  
Hottest Max 34.5  
Coldest Max 13.2  
Hottest Min 19.6  
Coldest Min 5.4  

And compared to coldest summer of the last decade (2011-12)

Average Max/Min 21 11
Days 25 and Over 18  
Days 30 and Over 0  
Days 15 or Below 7  
Hottest Max 28.8  
Coldest Max 13.4  
Hottest min 17.9  
Coldest Min 3.5  

 

Note: Due to location taken at Christchurch Airport, the minimums will be cooler to colder than the Central city, but the maximums will be slightly warmer.

My Queen palms have had an excellent summer with lots of lush new fronds, I would say they are growing at their fastest right now.

Autumn outlook from Niwa, is warmer than average for most of the country.

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Plenty of heat and sun for palm growing this summer, too much for my smallest R. Baueri, fried the newest frond (but after 10 days the remaining still look fine so hoping it will survive.) But still so dry. Was very lucky my neighborhood got under an isolated heavy shower weekend before last and got 25mm rain. Other areas missed out. One long time member of a weather discussion forum about 30km North of me has had just 7.8mm since December 18th and large areas of the Northland peninsular have had similar rainfall only. 

Don't know if this is Geoblocked but this longer from video shows how bad it has got up there. 

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/shows/2020/02/northland-drought-locals-plea-for-aid-amidst-water-crisis.html

25mm modeled for me tomorrow, but not much for further North. 

I know other parts of the world including Australia have had to put up droughts like this and worse recently, but we are not used to this in the "land of the long white cloud".

Speculation that climate change has moved the summer belt of near permanent high pressure a few degrees South.   It used to sit between Norfolk Island and NZ, where there is no land anyway.

I know Summers like this are normal in California right up to 40 latitude - almost no rain in Summer is completely normal.

We might have to start growing more grapes and olives and get very good at storing what rain does fall in the cooler season if this is going to be the norm from now on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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No rain in sight for a while here. Got to 31C with howling easterlies that haven’t stopped by night fall. Normally at night it’s dead still here. 

The easterly pattern has no end in sight either. Summer is long from over here.

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Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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A warm week ahead here in Perth, looking forward to seeing some cooler weather and rain, hopefully it's not too far away. 

Screenshot_20200307-054842_Chrome.jpg

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And the east wind just keeps a blowin, and blowin, and blowin. The synoptic charts are essentially stalled here.

Millbrook, "Kinjarling" Noongar word meaning "Place of Rain", Rainbow Coast, Western Australia 35S. Warm temperate. Csb Koeppen Climate classification. Cool nights all year round.

 

 

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