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Adelaide: weather history since 1839

Adelaide is a weather station located 29 m above sea level, 2 km from Adelaide. Its records go back to 1839: 116 years of temperature are available up to 2025, along with rainfall and a comparison with two reference normals. Over 1991–2020 the annual mean temperature there is 17.4 °C, noticeably higher than over 1961–1990 (16.8 °C): a difference of 0.5 °C. The warmest year of the series is 2007 (18.1 °C) and the coldest 1949 (15.6 °C). The last complete year, 2025, ranks 6 out of 116, from warmest to coldest. Over 1961–2025, the annual mean temperature changes by +0.17 °C per decade. The station ranks 140 out of 227 stations, from the fastest rise to the slowest.

Annual mean temperature since 1839

1516171819
1839186018801900192019401960198020002025
Mean temperature of the year   10-year running mean   1961–1990 normal (16.8 °C)   1991–2020 normal (17.4 °C)

The first ten years of the series (1910–1919) average 17.0 °C; the last ten (2016–2025) average 17.6 °C, a difference of +0.6 °C. Of the ten warmest years in the series, 9 fall after 1999. The warmest is 2007 (18.1 °C). The ten-year running mean peaks at 17.7 °C (2018) and bottoms out at 16.2 °C (1952).

Annual rainfall since 1839

0200400600800
1839186018801900192019401960198020002025
Rainfall of the year   Series average (525 mm)

On average 525 mm of rain falls per year over the 147 documented years. The wettest year, 1851, received 786 mm; the driest, 1967, only 258 mm, which is 3.0 times less. Between 1967 and 2025, 8 years out of 20 exceeded the series average.

Monthly normals: 1961–1990 against 1991–2020

The table compares, month by month, the mean temperature and the rainfall total of two thirty-year reference periods. The difference column shows what the recent period changes compared with the earlier one.

Monthly temperature and rainfall normals, 1961–1990 and 1991–2020
MonthTemp. 1961–1990Temp. 1991–2020DifferenceRain 1961–1990Rain 1991–2020Difference
January22.4 °C23.3 °C+0.9 °C–––
February22.5 °C23.2 °C+0.7 °C–––
March20.4 °C20.4 °C0.0 °C–––
April17.9 °C18.4 °C+0.5 °C–––
May14.4 °C14.5 °C+0.1 °C–––
June12.2 °C12.6 °C+0.4 °C–––
July11.4 °C12.0 °C+0.6 °C–––
August12.0 °C12.3 °C+0.3 °C–––
September13.6 °C14.3 °C+0.7 °C–––
October16.4 °C17.4 °C+1.0 °C–––
November18.3 °C19.1 °C+0.8 °C–––
December20.4 °C20.9 °C+0.5 °C–––

The largest temperature change is in October (+1.0 °C) and the smallest in March (0.0 °C); over the year the mean difference is +0.5 °C, and 11 months out of twelve are warmer than before.

Records at Adelaide

  • Warmest year: 18.1 °C, in 2007
  • Coldest year: 15.6 °C, in 1949
  • Driest year: 258 mm, in 1967
  • Wettest year: 786 mm, in 1851
  • Warmest month: 26.6 °C, in January 2001
  • Coldest month: 9.6 °C, in July 1929
  • Wettest month: 218 mm, in June 1916
  • Hottest day: 46.6 °C, on 24 January 2019
  • Coldest day: −1.3 °C, on 12 June 1913
  • Heaviest rain in one day: 141.5 mm, on 7 February 1925

2.5 °C separate the warmest year of the series from the coldest. Between the hottest and the coldest day on record, the range reaches 47.9 °C.

Temperature trend over 1961–2025

The regression line of annual mean temperature changes by +0.17 °C per decade between 1961 and 2025, about +1.1 °C over the whole period. That is slower than the median of the 227 stations (+0.19 °C per decade), by 0.02 °C per decade: the station ranks 140 out of 227.

The last 24 months against the 1991–2020 normal

−4−2024
October 2024September 2026
Warmer than the 1991–2020 normal   Cooler than the 1991–2020 normal

Over the last 24 months (October 2024 to September 2026), 11 months out of 15 were warmer than the 1991–2020 normal for the same month; the mean departure is +0.7 °C. The highest departure was in March 2025 (+3.1 °C); the lowest, in November 2025 (−1.7 °C).

Temperature and rainfall of recent months, compared with the 1991–2020 normals
MonthTemperatureDeparture from normalRainNormal rain
October 202418.5 °C+1.1 °C16 mm–
November 202420.6 °C+1.5 °C20 mm–
December 202422.5 °C+1.6 °C15 mm–
January 202523.9 °C+0.6 °C4 mm–
February 202524.6 °C+1.4 °C2 mm–
March 202523.5 °C+3.1 °C7 mm–
April 202519.6 °C+1.2 °C10 mm–
May 202514.8 °C+0.3 °C23 mm–
June 202512.6 °C0.0 °C77 mm–
July 202511.8 °C−0.2 °C111 mm–
August 202512.7 °C+0.4 °C42 mm–
September 202514.8 °C+0.5 °C25 mm–
October 202517.4 °C0.0 °C44 mm–
November 202517.4 °C−1.7 °C74 mm–
December 202521.4 °C+0.5 °C3 mm–
January 2026––0 mm–
February 2026––15 mm–
March 2026––38 mm–
April 2026––38 mm–
May 2026––83 mm–
June 2026––114 mm–
July 2026––82 mm–
August 2026––99 mm–
September 2026––13 mm–

Data source and licence

Data source: Bureau of Meteorology (ACORN-SAT) and NOAA NCEI (GHCN-Daily) (dataset “ACORN-SAT v2 daily (homogenised) + GHCN-Daily”), licence CC BY 4.0; Public domain (NOAA NCEI). Last updated: 29 October 2026.

The data for Adelaide are shown as the source publishes them; this site does not correct them. A year is kept only if at least eleven months of measurements are available, and a normal is computed only with at least twenty years of data out of its thirty. Temperatures are rounded to 0.1 °C and rainfall to the millimetre. The station is one of 227 stations in Australia: the overview page lets you compare them.

Frequently asked questions

What is the annual mean temperature at Adelaide?

Over 1991–2020, the annual mean temperature at Adelaide is 17.4 °C. It was 16.8 °C over 1961–1990, a difference of +0.5 °C.

What is the warmest year ever measured at Adelaide?

Since records began in 1839, the warmest year at Adelaide is 2007, at 18.1 °C on average. The coldest is 1949 (15.6 °C).

Is the climate at Adelaide getting warmer?

Yes: at Adelaide, the annual mean temperature rises by 0.17 °C per decade between 1961 and 2025, +1.1 °C in total. 9 of the 10 warmest years in the series fall after 1999.

Towns near this station

Neighbouring stations

See all stations in the weather history