Fluctuating rainfall nothing new for Alice Springs
Jacobus Cronje,
Sunday May 15, 2016 - 09:20 AEST
So far this May, 34.6mm of rain has fallen over just three days over Alice Springs. The timing and amount of rain seems strange, right? Maybe.
Weird rainfall statistics are nothing new for the interior of Australia, and in particular for Alice Springs.
The town receives on average about 18mm during May. The highest monthly total recorded to date was a torrential 103.6mm, in 1990.
In the last 12 years, 3 years have seen not a single drop of rain for the month of May. In 2013, monthly rainfall totals of 43.4mm were measured, while in 2011, only 2mm fell.
It's also interesting to note that only two to three days of rainfall are common for May, rarely exceeding five days.
The seemingly erratic rainfall totals make sense, if we take into account the nature of rainfall over the interior of Australia. Most falls will be in the form of rainbands from the northwest, supported by tropical moisture from the north, which usually produce periods of precipitation.
Since tropical moisture begins to recede back to the tropics during April, at the end of the tropical wet season, the relatively few rainfall days are also not anomalous.
Looking at the remainder of this month, it's unlikely that the town will receive any rainfall into next weekend. After that, an uncertain week for rainfall is expected.
What is certain, is that rainfall at any time, in almost any amount, is always welcomed in Alice Springs. May 2016 is not over yet, and here's hoping for a drop or two more before month's end.
- Weatherzone
© Weatherzone
2016