Severe Weather Information
Learn about the different severe weather events that we are all likely to experience at some point given Australia's location and climate.
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Wind is simply air in motion. When strong, wind can be destructive and is capable of blowing down even large trees and heavily built structures.
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Thunderstorms develop in very unstable air and are produced by a cloud type called cumulonimbus. The lifecycle of a thunderstorm typically takes 1-3 hours although under some conditions...
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Tropical Cyclones, known as ‘hurricanes’ in the Americas and typoons across Asia, form over warm ocean waters and require a sea surface temperature of at least 27C to get started. Tropical cyclones are...
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East coast Lows, or ECL’s as they are called, are intense low-pressure cells that develop rapidly off the east coast of mainland Australia, particularly New South Wales...
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Tsunami is a Japanese word meaning “harbour wave”. A tsunami is a wave or series of waves generated in the ocean by such phenomena as earthquakes, undersea land-slides, volcanic eruptions...
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Heat waves are a deadly meteorological extreme, killing many more people each year than tropical cyclones, bushfires, thunderstorms and floods.
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Floods in Australia are often associated with tropical cyclones in northern areas and slow-moving low-pressure cells further south. Even the vast tracts of desert that cover much of our interior...
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Bushfires can occur over many different parts of our continent, at various times of the year. However because of population distribution, it is south-eastern Australia that has experienced...
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Both El Niño and La Niña have a strong effect on Australian rainfall, with both having major impacts on Australian agriculture. El Niños are often associated with below average rainfall over much...
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