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Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020

Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020: 127 records at 85 stations, peak on 15 December 2020. Closed.

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

Key Facts

  • Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 set or tied 127 station records at 85 stations.
  • It ran from 13 December 2020 to 24 December 2020 (12 days) and its peak day was 15 December 2020.
  • Status: closed.
  • Mount Gambier Post Office set a daily record high minimum temperature of 20.1 C (68.2 F) on 13 December 2020.
  • The busiest day was 15 December 2020 with 39 records.
  • The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 107 years.

Footprint

13 to 24 December 2020
Footprint of Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 The area covered by Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 is outlined, with 17 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type.
The area covered by Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 is outlined, with 17 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.
Footprint of Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020: stations that set records in the event
StationTypeValueDate
Mount Gambier Post OfficeRecord high minimum temperature20.1 C (68.2 F)2020-12-13
Cairns Post OfficeRecord high minimum temperature25.4 C (77.7 F)2020-12-22
Mount WellingtonRecord high minimum temperature15.3 C (59.5 F)2020-12-15
Hobart AirportRecord high minimum temperature21.1 C (70.0 F)2020-12-15
Hobart (Ellerslie Road)Record high minimum temperature20.7 C (69.3 F)2020-12-15
Wynyard AirportRecord high maximum temperature29.8 C (85.6 F)2020-12-15
WonthaggiRecord high minimum temperature19.6 C (67.3 F)2020-12-15
Laverton RaafRecord high minimum temperature21.1 C (70.0 F)2020-12-15
Essendon AirportRecord high maximum temperature35.0 C (95.0 F)2020-12-15
Mount BarkerRecord high minimum temperature21.4 C (70.5 F)2020-12-14
Cape Bruny LighthouseRecord high minimum temperature17.0 C (62.6 F)2020-12-15
Townsville AeroRecord high maximum temperature34.4 C (93.9 F)2020-12-22
Murray Bridge ComparisonRecord high minimum temperature24.3 C (75.7 F)2020-12-14
Bombala (Therry Street)Record high minimum temperature16.5 C (61.7 F)2020-12-17
Melbourne AirportRecord high minimum temperature20.7 C (69.3 F)2020-12-15
Sydney Airport AMORecord high minimum temperature22.9 C (73.2 F)2020-12-18
Ayr Dpi Research STNRecord high maximum temperature36.0 C (96.8 F)2020-12-23

Records per Day

Peak day 39
Records per day during Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 Records set or tied each day from 13 December 2020 to 24 December 2020. The most in one day was 39 on 15 December 2020. 0 10 20 30 40 12-1312-1512-1712-1912-2112-23
Records set or tied each day from 13 December 2020 to 24 December 2020. The most in one day was 39 on 15 December 2020.
Records per day during Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020
DateRecords
2020-12-137
2020-12-1421
2020-12-1539
2020-12-165
2020-12-1712
2020-12-1814
2020-12-195
2020-12-206
2020-12-212
2020-12-229
2020-12-236
2020-12-241

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced
Top records of Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 ranked by margin
Mount Wellington, 12-146.4 C (11.5 F)
Wynyard Airport, 12-155.8 C (10.4 F)
Mount Wellington, 12-155.3 C (9.5 F)
Hobart Airport, 12-154.3 C (7.7 F)
Wonthaggi, 12-153.6 C (6.5 F)
Hobart (Ellerslie Road), 12-153.1 C (5.6 F)
Mount Wellington, 12-153.0 C (5.4 F)
Bombala (Therry Street), 12-172.8 C (5.0 F)
Laverton Raaf, 12-152.6 C (4.7 F)
Mount Barker, 12-142.2 C (4.0 F)
Murray Bridge Comparison, 12-142.1 C (3.8 F)
Melbourne Airport, 12-152.1 C (3.8 F)
Cape Bruny Lighthouse, 12-142.0 C (3.6 F)
Cape Bruny Lighthouse, 12-151.5 C (2.7 F)
Mount Gambier Post Office, 12-131.2 C (2.2 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, 13 to 24 December 2020 127 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 30 60 90 120 0.02.04.06.08.0 Margin (C) Years the old record stood
127 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, 13 to 24 December 2020
Margin (C)Years the old record stood
1.297
0.2107
4.347
5.352
3.146
6.452
5.818
3.647
2.659
0.265
3.052
2.247
0.162
1.547
2.147
2.845
2.047
1.243
2.146
0.449
1.434
1.045
1.247
1.348
0.555
5.013
0.151
0.739
1.238
0.347
0.448
1.047
0.948
0.452
0.150
0.447
6.46
0.539
1.438
0.445
2.133
0.441
5.08
0.445
1.933
0.339
0.738
0.438
0.733
0.730
1.915
0.245
5.52
1.023
1.025
1.121
0.633
3.421
0.130
0.632
2.52
1.621
0.921
0.132
0.132
0.229
0.525
1.226
0.432
1.418
1.613
0.127
0.122
1.314
0.320
1.013
0.219
0.325
2.46
1.321
2.95
2.78
2.78
1.313
0.222
0.519
2.53
0.222
0.88
1.06
1.05
1.55
1.413
0.62
1.51
0.56
0.38
0.213
0.411
1.13
2.24
0.421
3.72
0.68
0.711
0.72
1.010
1.013
0.45
1.28
0.18
0.52
1.13
1.01
0.113
0.913
1.42
1.42
1.05
0.28
0.82
0.36
0.82
0.55
0.11
0.33
0.18

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event
Station records in Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020 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, 13 to 24 December 2020 (this event)127 records

Every Record Set

20 of 127
Every record set or tied during Heat wave in Australia, 13 to 24 December 2020, in date order
DateStationRecordValueMarginYears stoodSignificance
2020-12-13Mount Gambier Post OfficeRecord high minimum temperature20.1 C (68.2 F)1.2 C (2.2 F)9742 of 100 (Notable)
2020-12-14Mount WellingtonRecord high maximum temperature24.5 C (76.1 F)6.4 C (11.5 F)5233 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-14Mount BarkerRecord high minimum temperature21.4 C (70.5 F)2.2 C (4.0 F)4726 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-14Murray Bridge ComparisonRecord high minimum temperature24.3 C (75.7 F)2.1 C (3.8 F)4725 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-14Cape Bruny LighthouseRecord high maximum temperature31.0 C (87.8 F)2.0 C (3.6 F)4725 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Hobart AirportRecord high minimum temperature21.1 C (70.0 F)4.3 C (7.7 F)4735 of 100 (Notable)
2020-12-15Mount WellingtonRecord high minimum temperature15.3 C (59.5 F)5.3 C (9.5 F)5235 of 100 (Notable)
2020-12-15Hobart (Ellerslie Road)Record high minimum temperature20.7 C (69.3 F)3.1 C (5.6 F)4634 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Wynyard AirportRecord high maximum temperature29.8 C (85.6 F)5.8 C (10.4 F)1832 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15WonthaggiRecord high minimum temperature19.6 C (67.3 F)3.6 C (6.5 F)4731 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Laverton RaafRecord high minimum temperature21.1 C (70.0 F)2.6 C (4.7 F)5931 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Essendon AirportRecord high maximum temperature35.0 C (95.0 F)0.2 C (0.4 F)6527 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Mount WellingtonRecord high maximum temperature22.0 C (71.6 F)3.0 C (5.4 F)5227 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Cape Bruny LighthouseRecord high minimum temperature17.0 C (62.6 F)1.5 C (2.7 F)4726 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-15Melbourne AirportRecord high minimum temperature20.7 C (69.3 F)2.1 C (3.8 F)4624 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-17Bombala (Therry Street)Record high minimum temperature16.5 C (61.7 F)2.8 C (5.0 F)4525 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-18Sydney Airport AMORecord high minimum temperature22.9 C (73.2 F)1.2 C (2.2 F)4324 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-22Cairns Post OfficeRecord high minimum temperature25.4 C (77.7 F)0.2 C (0.4 F)10741 of 100 (Notable)
2020-12-22Townsville AeroRecord high maximum temperature34.4 C (93.9 F)0.1 C (0.2 F)6226 of 100 (Routine)
2020-12-23Ayr Dpi Research STNRecord high maximum temperature36.0 C (96.8 F)0.4 C (0.7 F)4923 of 100 (Routine)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 127 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.