Scoresby Research Institute is a weather station located 80 m above sea level. Its records go back to 1948: 48 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 15.1 °C, noticeably higher than over 1961–1990 (14.5 °C): a difference of 0.5 °C. The warmest year of the series is 2018 (15.9 °C) and the coldest 1966 (13.4 °C). The last complete year, 2025, ranks 2 out of 48, from warmest to coldest. Over 1961–2025, the annual mean temperature changes by +0.19 °C per decade. The station ranks 111 out of 227 stations, from the fastest rise to the slowest.
Annual mean temperature since 1948
The first ten years of the series (1965–1974) average 14.3 °C; the last ten (2016–2025) average 15.4 °C, a difference of +1.1 °C. All of the 10 warmest years in the series fall after 1999; the warmest is 2018 (15.9 °C). The ten-year running mean peaks at 15.4 °C (2025) and bottoms out at 14.2 °C (1972).
Annual rainfall since 1948
On average 856 mm of rain falls per year over the 66 documented years. The wettest year, 1952, received 1237 mm; the driest, 2006, only 562 mm, which is 2.2 times less. The 1991–2020 normal (796 mm per year) is 52 mm (6.1 %) below the 1961–1990 one (848 mm). Over 1991–2020, November is on average the wettest month (83 mm) and March the driest (47 mm). Between 2005 and 2025, 6 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.
| Month | Temp. 1961–1990 | Temp. 1991–2020 | Difference | Rain 1961–1990 | Rain 1991–2020 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19.4 °C | 20.7 °C | +1.3 °C | 58 mm | 52 mm | −6 mm |
| February | 20.4 °C | 20.5 °C | +0.1 °C | 43 mm | 60 mm | +17 mm |
| March | 18.3 °C | 18.7 °C | +0.4 °C | 58 mm | 47 mm | −11 mm |
| April | 15.1 °C | 15.3 °C | +0.2 °C | 66 mm | 63 mm | −3 mm |
| May | 12.3 °C | 12.5 °C | +0.2 °C | 99 mm | 69 mm | −30 mm |
| June | 9.8 °C | 10.3 °C | +0.5 °C | 66 mm | 71 mm | +5 mm |
| July | 9.3 °C | 10.0 °C | +0.7 °C | 75 mm | 64 mm | −11 mm |
| August | 10.3 °C | 10.5 °C | +0.2 °C | 88 mm | 71 mm | −17 mm |
| September | 11.8 °C | 12.5 °C | +0.7 °C | 77 mm | 73 mm | −4 mm |
| October | 13.9 °C | 14.4 °C | +0.5 °C | 78 mm | 67 mm | −11 mm |
| November | 15.8 °C | 16.8 °C | +1.0 °C | 70 mm | 83 mm | +13 mm |
| December | 17.9 °C | 18.5 °C | +0.6 °C | 70 mm | 76 mm | +6 mm |
The largest temperature change is in January (+1.3 °C) and the smallest in February (+0.1 °C); over the year the mean difference is +0.5 °C, and 12 months out of twelve are warmer than before. For rainfall, the largest difference is in February (+17 mm) and the smallest in May (−30 mm).
Records at Scoresby Research Institute
- Warmest year: 15.9 °C, in 2018
- Coldest year: 13.4 °C, in 1966
- Driest year: 562 mm, in 2006
- Wettest year: 1237 mm, in 1952
- Warmest month: 23.6 °C, in January 2022
- Coldest month: 7.9 °C, in July 1982
- Wettest month: 212 mm, in February 2011
- Hottest day: 46.1 °C, on 7 February 2009
- Coldest day: −3.6 °C, on 23 July 1994
- Heaviest rain in one day: 145.4 mm, on 3 February 2005
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 49.7 °C.
Temperature trend over 1961–2025
The regression line of annual mean temperature changes by +0.19 °C per decade between 1961 and 2025, about +1.2 °C over the whole period. That is slower than the median of the 227 stations (+0.19 °C per decade), by 0.00 °C per decade: the station ranks 111 out of 227.
The last 24 months against the 1991–2020 normal
Over the last 24 months (August 2024 to July 2026), 14 months out of 18 were warmer than the 1991–2020 normal for the same month; the mean departure is +0.8 °C. The highest departure was in August 2024 (+2.9 °C); the lowest, in November 2025 (−1.4 °C). The last twelve months add up to 663 mm of rain, which is 83 % of the 1991–2020 annual normal (796 mm).
| Month | Temperature | Departure from normal | Rain | Normal rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2024 | 13.4 °C | +2.9 °C | 17 mm | 71 mm |
| September 2024 | 12.8 °C | +0.3 °C | 28 mm | 73 mm |
| October 2024 | – | – | 85 mm | 67 mm |
| November 2024 | 18.3 °C | +1.5 °C | 68 mm | 83 mm |
| December 2024 | 20.1 °C | +1.6 °C | 50 mm | 76 mm |
| January 2025 | 21.3 °C | +0.6 °C | 48 mm | 52 mm |
| February 2025 | 22.0 °C | +1.5 °C | 30 mm | 60 mm |
| March 2025 | 20.4 °C | +1.7 °C | 55 mm | 47 mm |
| April 2025 | 17.6 °C | +2.3 °C | 19 mm | 63 mm |
| May 2025 | – | – | 18 mm | 69 mm |
| June 2025 | 10.2 °C | −0.1 °C | 65 mm | 71 mm |
| July 2025 | 10.2 °C | +0.2 °C | 69 mm | 64 mm |
| August 2025 | 10.2 °C | −0.3 °C | 42 mm | 71 mm |
| September 2025 | 13.1 °C | +0.6 °C | 27 mm | 73 mm |
| October 2025 | 14.6 °C | +0.2 °C | 72 mm | 67 mm |
| November 2025 | 15.4 °C | −1.4 °C | 165 mm | 83 mm |
| December 2025 | 17.8 °C | −0.7 °C | 39 mm | 76 mm |
| January 2026 | – | – | 5 mm | 52 mm |
| February 2026 | 21.0 °C | +0.5 °C | 40 mm | 60 mm |
| March 2026 | – | – | 47 mm | 47 mm |
| April 2026 | – | – | 32 mm | 63 mm |
| May 2026 | 14.2 °C | +1.7 °C | 72 mm | 69 mm |
| June 2026 | 12.2 °C | +1.9 °C | 55 mm | 71 mm |
| July 2026 | – | – | 67 mm | 64 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 Scoresby Research Institute 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 Scoresby Research Institute?
Over 1991–2020, the annual mean temperature at Scoresby Research Institute is 15.1 °C. It was 14.5 °C over 1961–1990, a difference of +0.5 °C.
What is the warmest year ever measured at Scoresby Research Institute?
Since records began in 1948, the warmest year at Scoresby Research Institute is 2018, at 15.9 °C on average. The coldest is 1966 (13.4 °C).
Is the climate at Scoresby Research Institute getting warmer?
Yes: at Scoresby Research Institute, the annual mean temperature rises by 0.19 °C per decade between 1961 and 2025, +1.2 °C in total. 10 of the 10 warmest years in the series fall after 1999.
Neighbouring stations