Share

Australia heating up with longer summers due to climate change - study

Australian summers are lengthening by a month or more while winters are getting shorter due to climate change, according to an analysis by a leading think tank released on Monday.

The Australia Institute said large swathes of the country were experiencing an additional 31 days of summer temperatures each year compared to the 1950s.

READ | Summers are getting hotter as global temperatures keep going up

While Sydney was just under the average with an extra 28 hot days a year, Melbourne added 38 warmer days since the middle of the 20th century.

In some regional areas ravaged by bushfires in recent months, such as the New South Wales town of Port Macquarie, residents are now experiencing seven more weeks of typical summer temperatures.

"Temperatures which were considered a regular three-month summer in the 1950s now span from early-to-mid-November all the way to mid-March," Australia Institute climate and energy programme director Richie Merzian said.

"Summers have grown longer even in recent years, with the last five years facing summers twice as long as their winters."

READ | Higher Antarctic temperatures bad news for South Africa's climate

Devastating bushfire disaster

Australia's capital, Canberra, lost 35 winter days while the city of Brisbane, in the country's east, lost 31 cooler days.

Merzian said global warming was making the country's summers increasingly dangerous, with less time in winter to carry out bushfire prevention work and extreme heat causing health and economic impacts.

"Extreme heat events are the most fatal of all natural hazards and have been responsible for more deaths in Australia than all other natural hazards put together," he said.

Australia's latest summer heralded a devastating bushfire disaster in which more than 30 people died, thousands of homes were destroyed and at least a billion animals perished.

The crisis led to renewed calls for the country's conservative government to cut the emissions contributing to global warming.

But while Prime Minister Scott Morrison belatedly acknowledged the link between the bushfire disaster and a warming planet, he has been reluctant to reduce the country's reliance on coal.

Renewables accounted for just 6% of Australia's primary energy mix in 2018, according to government figures, while the country is one of the world's largest fossil fuel exporters.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 502 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 714 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.90
+0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.86
+0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.36
+0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.31
+0.3%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE