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Data as of 2026-10-17
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Built 2026-10-19 (19 October 2026)

Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018

Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018: 149 records at 101 stations, peak on 28 May 2018. Closed.

Data as of . Last revised (2026-10-17).

Key Facts

  • Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 set or tied 149 station records at 101 stations.
  • It ran from 21 May 2018 to 30 May 2018 (10 days) and its peak day was 28 May 2018.
  • Status: closed.
  • Sydney (Observatory Hill) set a daily record high maximum temperature of 25.6 C (78.1 F) on 29 May 2018.
  • The busiest day was 28 May 2018 with 63 records.
  • The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 126 years.

Footprint

21 to 30 May 2018
Footprint of Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 The area covered by Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 is outlined, with 16 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type.
The area covered by Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 is outlined, with 16 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.
Footprint of Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018: stations that set records in the event
StationTypeValueDate
Sydney (Observatory Hill)Record high maximum temperature25.6 C (78.1 F)2018-05-29
Adelaide West TerraceRecord high maximum temperature24.8 C (76.6 F)2018-05-26
Parafield AirportRecord high maximum temperature25.2 C (77.4 F)2018-05-26
Sydney Airport AMORecord high minimum temperature16.1 C (61.0 F)2018-05-25
Ceduna AMORecord high minimum temperature14.8 C (58.6 F)2018-05-27
Maatsuyker Island LighthouseRecord high maximum temperature18.0 C (64.4 F)2018-05-27
East Sale ComparisonRecord high minimum temperature12.0 C (53.6 F)2018-05-21
East Sale AirportRecord high minimum temperature12.4 C (54.3 F)2018-05-22
Katoomba (Murri St)Record high maximum temperature19.1 C (66.4 F)2018-05-23
Oberon (Springbank)Record high maximum temperature18.0 C (64.4 F)2018-05-24
Hillston AirportRecord high maximum temperature25.0 C (77.0 F)2018-05-28
Cape Otway LighthouseRecord high minimum temperature16.3 C (61.3 F)2018-05-28
KerangRecord high maximum temperature23.8 C (74.8 F)2018-05-28
CleveRecord high minimum temperature14.6 C (58.3 F)2018-05-28
Coonabarabran (Namoi Street)Record high maximum temperature24.5 C (76.1 F)2018-05-24
Balranald (Rsl)Record high maximum temperature24.9 C (76.8 F)2018-05-28

Records per Day

Peak day 63
Records per day during Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 Records set or tied each day from 21 May 2018 to 30 May 2018. The most in one day was 63 on 28 May 2018. 0 20 40 60 80 05-2105-2205-2305-2405-2505-2605-2705-2805-2905-30
Records set or tied each day from 21 May 2018 to 30 May 2018. The most in one day was 63 on 28 May 2018.
Records per day during Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018
DateRecords
2018-05-212
2018-05-227
2018-05-233
2018-05-246
2018-05-252
2018-05-2615
2018-05-2735
2018-05-2863
2018-05-2915
2018-05-301

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced
Top records of Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 ranked by margin
Kerang, 05-283.2 C (5.8 F)
Balranald (Rsl), 05-282.8 C (5.0 F)
Oberon (Springbank), 05-242.7 C (4.9 F)
Parafield Airport, 05-262.4 C (4.3 F)
Hillston Airport, 05-281.7 C (3.1 F)
Cape Otway Lighthouse, 05-281.6 C (2.9 F)
Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse, 05-271.3 C (2.3 F)
Katoomba (Murri St), 05-231.3 C (2.3 F)
Sydney (Observatory Hill), 05-291.2 C (2.2 F)
Cleve, 05-281.0 C (1.8 F)
Adelaide West Terrace, 05-280.9 C (1.6 F)
Adelaide West Terrace, 05-270.9 C (1.6 F)
Ceduna AMO, 05-270.9 C (1.6 F)
Adelaide West Terrace, 05-260.5 C (0.9 F)
Sydney Airport AMO, 05-250.3 C (0.5 F)

Margin is how far the new value is beyond the record it replaced. Ties are not shown.

Margin Against Age of the Broken Record

Margin against age of the broken record in Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 149 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right. 0 38 75 113 150 0.01.02.03.04.0 Margin (C) Years the old record stood
149 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right.
Margin against age of the broken record in Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018
Margin (C)Years the old record stood
1.295
0.5126
2.464
0.968
0.964
0.373
0.964
0.368
1.357
0.264
1.356
2.747
1.757
0.368
0.368
1.636
3.240
1.055
2.840
0.260
2.133
1.140
0.652
0.455
1.040
2.136
1.445
0.544
2.032
1.540
0.940
1.536
3.120
0.933
1.241
2.033
1.532
0.544
1.624
1.533
1.532
1.532
0.544
2.74
0.537
1.924
2.424
0.741
1.332
0.636
0.541
0.141
1.815
0.240
0.640
0.633
1.628
1.532
0.736
1.332
1.332
0.237
1.124
0.832
2.024
1.324
1.132
0.828
0.932
0.732
0.536
0.433
1.220
0.236
2.08
0.136
0.328
2.34
0.928
0.428
0.132
0.236
0.520
0.420
0.332
0.532
0.832
0.533
1.817
2.30
0.732
1.028
1.119
0.811
0.619
1.80
1.58
1.311
1.711
1.511
0.811
2.73
0.527
0.511
1.74
2.54
2.04
2.50
2.40
0.228
1.011
1.011
0.216
1.50
0.811
1.212
1.64
0.911
0.94
1.011
1.83
0.720
0.520
0.44
0.73
0.75
1.04
1.211
0.911
0.811
1.43
0.211
0.811
1.24
1.04
0.211
0.211
0.511
0.37
0.24
0.711
0.38
0.511
0.111
0.44
0.28
0.33
0.73
0.13

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event
Station records in Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 compared with similar events
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 16 January to 14 February 20249,869 records
Heat wave in United States, 28 January to 24 February 20266,528 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 24 May to 19 June 20205,047 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 26 March to 17 April 20213,669 records
Heat wave in Germany and 49 other countries, 18 December 2021 to 15 January 20223,626 records
Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018 (this event)149 records

Every Record Set

20 of 149
Every record set or tied during Heat wave in Australia, 21 to 30 May 2018, in date order
DateStationRecordValueMarginYears stoodSignificance
2018-05-21East Sale ComparisonRecord high minimum temperature12.0 C (53.6 F)0.3 C (0.5 F)6827 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-22East Sale AirportRecord high minimum temperature12.4 C (54.3 F)0.3 C (0.5 F)6827 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-23Katoomba (Murri St)Record high maximum temperature19.1 C (66.4 F)1.3 C (2.3 F)5627 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-24Oberon (Springbank)Record high maximum temperature18.0 C (64.4 F)2.7 C (4.9 F)4727 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-24Coonabarabran (Namoi Street)Record high maximum temperature24.5 C (76.1 F)0.2 C (0.4 F)6024 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-25Sydney Airport AMORecord high minimum temperature16.1 C (61.0 F)0.3 C (0.5 F)7331 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-26Adelaide West TerraceRecord high maximum temperature24.8 C (76.6 F)0.5 C (0.9 F)12641 of 100 (Notable)
2018-05-26Parafield AirportRecord high maximum temperature25.2 C (77.4 F)2.4 C (4.3 F)6434 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-27Adelaide West TerraceRecord high minimum temperature16.8 C (62.2 F)0.9 C (1.6 F)6432 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-27Ceduna AMORecord high minimum temperature14.8 C (58.6 F)0.9 C (1.6 F)6429 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-27Maatsuyker Island LighthouseRecord high maximum temperature18.0 C (64.4 F)1.3 C (2.3 F)5728 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-27Parafield AirportRecord high minimum temperature16.5 C (61.7 F)0.2 C (0.4 F)6427 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28Adelaide West TerraceRecord high minimum temperature15.0 C (59.0 F)0.9 C (1.6 F)6833 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28Parafield AirportRecord high minimum temperature13.8 C (56.8 F)0.3 C (0.5 F)6828 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28Hillston AirportRecord high maximum temperature25.0 C (77.0 F)1.7 C (3.1 F)5727 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28Cape Otway LighthouseRecord high minimum temperature16.3 C (61.3 F)1.6 C (2.9 F)3627 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28KerangRecord high maximum temperature23.8 C (74.8 F)3.2 C (5.8 F)4026 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28CleveRecord high minimum temperature14.6 C (58.3 F)1.0 C (1.8 F)5525 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-28Balranald (Rsl)Record high maximum temperature24.9 C (76.8 F)2.8 C (5.0 F)4024 of 100 (Routine)
2018-05-29Sydney (Observatory Hill)Record high maximum temperature25.6 C (78.1 F)1.2 C (2.2 F)9542 of 100 (Notable)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 149 records the event counts. The counts above use the full total.

Download the Data

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily (GHCN-Daily). Records are computed by World Extreme Weather Monitor and are not official NOAA products. (US Government open data (NOAA NCEI)) Data as of 2026-10-17. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.