Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025

Name: Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025
Start: 2025-05-21
End: 2025-06-04
Location: Australia

Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025: 255 records at 144 stations, peak on 27 May 2025. Closed.

Data as of 2026-10-12. Last revised 12 October 2026 (2026-10-12).

Key Facts

Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025 set or tied 255 station records at 144 stations.
It ran from 21 May 2025 to 4 June 2025 (15 days) and its peak day was 27 May 2025.
Status: closed.
Cairns Post Office set a daily record high minimum temperature of 23.0 C (73.4 F) on 27 May 2025.
The busiest day was 27 May 2025 with 43 records.
The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 124 years.

Footprint

21 May to 4 June 2025

The area covered by Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025 is outlined, with 15 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.

Footprint of Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025: stations that set records in the event
Station	Type	Value	Date
Cairns Post Office	Record high minimum temperature	23.0 C (73.4 F)	2025-05-27
Palmerville	Record high maximum temperature	34.0 C (93.2 F)	2025-05-25
Double Island Point Lighthouse	Record high maximum temperature	27.7 C (81.9 F)	2025-05-25
Cairns Aero	Record high maximum temperature	30.3 C (86.5 F)	2025-05-27
Taroom Post Office	Record high maximum temperature	32.1 C (89.8 F)	2025-05-25
Rockhampton Aero	Record high maximum temperature	28.9 C (84.0 F)	2025-05-22
Ballarat Aerodrome	Record high maximum temperature	16.9 C (62.4 F)	2025-05-31
Eddystone Point	Record high maximum temperature	20.2 C (68.4 F)	2025-05-23
Cape Moreton Lighthouse	Record high minimum temperature	20.9 C (69.6 F)	2025-05-26
Mount Barker	Record high maximum temperature	21.1 C (70.0 F)	2025-05-31
Injune Post Office	Record high maximum temperature	30.9 C (87.6 F)	2025-05-25
Lockhart River Airport	Record high maximum temperature	31.7 C (89.1 F)	2025-05-26
Gladstone Radar	Record high maximum temperature	28.3 C (82.9 F)	2025-05-28
Walkamin Research Station	Record high minimum temperature	20.9 C (69.6 F)	2025-05-25
Yamba Pilot Station	Record high minimum temperature	17.9 C (64.2 F)	2025-05-27

Records per Day

Peak day 43

Records set or tied each day from 21 May 2025 to 4 June 2025. The most in one day was 43 on 27 May 2025.

Records per day during Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025
Date	Records
2025-05-21	12
2025-05-22	33
2025-05-23	33
2025-05-24	8
2025-05-25	27
2025-05-26	33
2025-05-27	43
2025-05-28	14
2025-05-29	8
2025-05-30	6
2025-05-31	9
2025-06-01	13
2025-06-02	14
2025-06-03	1
2025-06-04	1

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced

Top records of Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025 ranked by margin
Taroom Post Office, 05-25	2.7 C (4.9 F)
Double Island Point Lighthouse, 05-22	2.3 C (4.1 F)
Double Island Point Lighthouse, 05-25	2.1 C (3.8 F)
Lockhart River Airport, 05-26	1.7 C (3.1 F)
Walkamin Research Station, 05-25	1.6 C (2.9 F)
Injune Post Office, 05-25	1.5 C (2.7 F)
Eddystone Point, 05-23	1.2 C (2.2 F)
Yamba Pilot Station, 05-27	1.1 C (2.0 F)
Cairns Aero, 05-27	1.0 C (1.8 F)
Cairns Post Office, 05-27	0.8 C (1.4 F)
Cairns Aero, 05-25	0.8 C (1.4 F)
Cairns Aero, 05-26	0.8 C (1.4 F)
Ballarat Aerodrome, 05-31	0.8 C (1.4 F)
Rockhampton Aero, 05-22	0.5 C (0.9 F)
Mount Barker, 05-31	0.5 C (0.9 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

255 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 May to 4 June 2025
Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
0.8	124
0.1	124
2.1	67
1.0	70
2.7	67
0.8	70
0.8	70
0.2	68
0.5	63
0.8	68
0.5	68
0.2	55
0.3	67
2.3	34
1.2	50
1.7	15
0.4	62
1.5	56
1.6	44
1.1	42
0.9	47
2.0	44
1.2	42
0.7	44
0.5	52
2.0	42
1.2	40
1.6	44
1.8	42
0.4	52
1.7	26
1.6	30
1.8	42
0.8	48
1.8	42
1.5	42
0.6	48
1.3	43
1.6	44
1.3	40
1.0	44
1.7	34
0.2	51
0.1	42
0.8	42
1.9	11
1.7	34
0.4	44
0.1	30
0.4	42
0.6	42
0.6	39
2.0	20
1.3	42
4.0	24
0.9	42
0.4	34
0.4	36
0.2	42
0.2	42
0.3	42
0.3	42
0.7	42
1.1	34
0.2	34
0.7	42
0.4	34
1.7	31
1.2	28
0.7	34
0.1	36
0.3	30
1.2	23
0.4	34
2.1	16
2.6	24
0.5	34
2.9	11
0.6	39
0.5	31
0.3	31
0.6	34
0.1	31
0.2	20
2.1	6
0.5	31
1.2	16
0.2	34
0.2	34
0.3	35
0.3	32
0.4	34
0.9	26
0.9	18
0.9	20
1.2	6
0.2	31
1.1	26
0.6	26
1.6	12
0.8	28
0.5	23
0.5	32
1.1	11
0.5	11
0.4	31
0.1	24
3.1	4
1.5	16
1.9	16
2.0	16
2.6	8
1.2	16
2.7	16
0.2	32
0.7	27
0.8	28
0.5	16
1.7	4
0.4	28
0.6	18
0.9	18
0.3	18
0.2	23
0.6	15
1.3	6
1.4	8
1.0	11
2.8	11
1.0	26
1.0	10
0.9	16
1.2	16
1.5	16
0.1	32
1.8	14
0.7	26
0.7	22
0.2	20
0.2	22
0.4	8
0.5	10
0.7	18
1.0	8
0.5	26
3.0	8
1.7	16
1.5	16
0.3	26
1.6	16
1.9	16
0.7	8
2.1	11
0.1	16
0.2	24
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.7	8
1.0	8
0.5	11
0.5	11
0.9	8
0.7	8
0.8	16
1.0	16
0.6	16
0.4	11
0.3	22
0.4	11
0.9	15
0.4	14
0.2	22
0.6	18
0.6	16
0.6	16
0.1	18
0.3	16
1.2	4
0.3	15
0.6	12
0.3	15
0.2	8
1.1	8
0.4	8
0.6	11
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.6	18
0.3	18
0.5	14
0.8	16
0.4	16
1.0	16
1.0	16
2.5	3
0.4	16
0.8	8
1.1	14
0.6	11
0.1	14

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event

Station records in Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025 compared with similar events
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 16 January to 14 February 2024	9,869 records
Heat wave in United States, 28 January to 24 February 2026	6,528 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 24 May to 19 June 2020	5,047 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 26 March to 17 April 2021	3,669 records
Heat wave in Germany and 49 other countries, 18 December 2021 to 15 January 2022	3,626 records
Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025 (this event)	255 records

Every Record Set

20 of 255

Every record set or tied during Heat wave in Australia, 21 May to 4 June 2025, in date order
Date	Station	Record	Value	Margin	Years stood	Significance
2025-05-22	Rockhampton Aero	Record high maximum temperature	28.9 C (84.0 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	63	28 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-22	Double Island Point Lighthouse	Record high maximum temperature	27.0 C (80.6 F)	2.3 C (4.1 F)	34	27 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-23	Eddystone Point	Record high maximum temperature	20.2 C (68.4 F)	1.2 C (2.2 F)	50	27 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-25	Palmerville	Record high maximum temperature	34.0 C (93.2 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	124	40 of 100 (Notable)
2025-05-25	Double Island Point Lighthouse	Record high maximum temperature	27.7 C (81.9 F)	2.1 C (3.8 F)	67	36 of 100 (Notable)
2025-05-25	Taroom Post Office	Record high maximum temperature	32.1 C (89.8 F)	2.7 C (4.9 F)	67	34 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-25	Cairns Aero	Record high minimum temperature	24.1 C (75.4 F)	0.8 C (1.4 F)	70	32 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-25	Injune Post Office	Record high maximum temperature	30.9 C (87.6 F)	1.5 C (2.7 F)	56	25 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-25	Walkamin Research Station	Record high minimum temperature	20.9 C (69.6 F)	1.6 C (2.9 F)	44	24 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-26	Cairns Aero	Record high minimum temperature	23.8 C (74.8 F)	0.8 C (1.4 F)	70	32 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-26	Cape Moreton Lighthouse	Record high minimum temperature	20.9 C (69.6 F)	0.3 C (0.5 F)	67	27 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-26	Lockhart River Airport	Record high maximum temperature	31.7 C (89.1 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	15	25 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-27	Cairns Post Office	Record high minimum temperature	23.0 C (73.4 F)	0.8 C (1.4 F)	124	43 of 100 (Notable)
2025-05-27	Cairns Aero	Record high maximum temperature	30.3 C (86.5 F)	1.0 C (1.8 F)	70	35 of 100 (Notable)
2025-05-27	Yamba Pilot Station	Record high minimum temperature	17.9 C (64.2 F)	1.1 C (2.0 F)	42	24 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-28	Cairns Aero	Record high maximum temperature	30.1 C (86.2 F)	0.2 C (0.4 F)	68	29 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-28	Gladstone Radar	Record high maximum temperature	28.3 C (82.9 F)	0.4 C (0.7 F)	62	25 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-29	Palmerville	Record high maximum temperature	33.5 C (92.3 F)	0.2 C (0.4 F)	55	27 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-31	Ballarat Aerodrome	Record high maximum temperature	16.9 C (62.4 F)	0.8 C (1.4 F)	68	28 of 100 (Routine)
2025-05-31	Mount Barker	Record high maximum temperature	21.1 C (70.0 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	68	27 of 100 (Routine)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 255 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 2026-10-12. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
0.8	124
0.1	124
2.1	67
1.0	70
2.7	67
0.8	70
0.8	70
0.2	68
0.5	63
0.8	68
0.5	68
0.2	55
0.3	67
2.3	34
1.2	50
1.7	15
0.4	62
1.5	56
1.6	44
1.1	42
0.9	47
2.0	44
1.2	42
0.7	44
0.5	52
2.0	42
1.2	40
1.6	44
1.8	42
0.4	52
1.7	26
1.6	30
1.8	42
0.8	48
1.8	42
1.5	42
0.6	48
1.3	43
1.6	44
1.3	40
1.0	44
1.7	34
0.2	51
0.1	42
0.8	42
1.9	11
1.7	34
0.4	44
0.1	30
0.4	42
0.6	42
0.6	39
2.0	20
1.3	42
4.0	24
0.9	42
0.4	34
0.4	36
0.2	42
0.2	42
0.3	42
0.3	42
0.7	42
1.1	34
0.2	34
0.7	42
0.4	34
1.7	31
1.2	28
0.7	34
0.1	36
0.3	30
1.2	23
0.4	34
2.1	16
2.6	24
0.5	34
2.9	11
0.6	39
0.5	31
0.3	31
0.6	34
0.1	31
0.2	20
2.1	6
0.5	31
1.2	16
0.2	34
0.2	34
0.3	35
0.3	32
0.4	34
0.9	26
0.9	18
0.9	20
1.2	6
0.2	31
1.1	26
0.6	26
1.6	12
0.8	28
0.5	23
0.5	32
1.1	11
0.5	11
0.4	31
0.1	24
3.1	4
1.5	16
1.9	16
2.0	16
2.6	8
1.2	16
2.7	16
0.2	32
0.7	27
0.8	28
0.5	16
1.7	4
0.4	28
0.6	18
0.9	18
0.3	18
0.2	23
0.6	15
1.3	6
1.4	8
1.0	11
2.8	11
1.0	26
1.0	10
0.9	16
1.2	16
1.5	16
0.1	32
1.8	14
0.7	26
0.7	22
0.2	20
0.2	22
0.4	8
0.5	10
0.7	18
1.0	8
0.5	26
3.0	8
1.7	16
1.5	16
0.3	26
1.6	16
1.9	16
0.7	8
2.1	11
0.1	16
0.2	24
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.7	8
1.0	8
0.5	11
0.5	11
0.9	8
0.7	8
0.8	16
1.0	16
0.6	16
0.4	11
0.3	22
0.4	11
0.9	15
0.4	14
0.2	22
0.6	18
0.6	16
0.6	16
0.1	18
0.3	16
1.2	4
0.3	15
0.6	12
0.3	15
0.2	8
1.1	8
0.4	8
0.6	11
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.6	18
0.3	18
0.5	14
0.8	16
0.4	16
1.0	16
1.0	16
2.5	3
0.4	16
0.8	8
1.1	14
0.6	11
0.1	14

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
0.8	124
0.1	124
2.1	67
1.0	70
2.7	67
0.8	70
0.8	70
0.2	68
0.5	63
0.8	68
0.5	68
0.2	55
0.3	67
2.3	34
1.2	50
1.7	15
0.4	62
1.5	56
1.6	44
1.1	42
0.9	47
2.0	44
1.2	42
0.7	44
0.5	52
2.0	42
1.2	40
1.6	44
1.8	42
0.4	52
1.7	26
1.6	30
1.8	42
0.8	48
1.8	42
1.5	42
0.6	48
1.3	43
1.6	44
1.3	40
1.0	44
1.7	34
0.2	51
0.1	42
0.8	42
1.9	11
1.7	34
0.4	44
0.1	30
0.4	42
0.6	42
0.6	39
2.0	20
1.3	42
4.0	24
0.9	42
0.4	34
0.4	36
0.2	42
0.2	42
0.3	42
0.3	42
0.7	42
1.1	34
0.2	34
0.7	42
0.4	34
1.7	31
1.2	28
0.7	34
0.1	36
0.3	30
1.2	23
0.4	34
2.1	16
2.6	24
0.5	34
2.9	11
0.6	39
0.5	31
0.3	31
0.6	34
0.1	31
0.2	20
2.1	6
0.5	31
1.2	16
0.2	34
0.2	34
0.3	35
0.3	32
0.4	34
0.9	26
0.9	18
0.9	20
1.2	6
0.2	31
1.1	26
0.6	26
1.6	12
0.8	28
0.5	23
0.5	32
1.1	11
0.5	11
0.4	31
0.1	24
3.1	4
1.5	16
1.9	16
2.0	16
2.6	8
1.2	16
2.7	16
0.2	32
0.7	27
0.8	28
0.5	16
1.7	4
0.4	28
0.6	18
0.9	18
0.3	18
0.2	23
0.6	15
1.3	6
1.4	8
1.0	11
2.8	11
1.0	26
1.0	10
0.9	16
1.2	16
1.5	16
0.1	32
1.8	14
0.7	26
0.7	22
0.2	20
0.2	22
0.4	8
0.5	10
0.7	18
1.0	8
0.5	26
3.0	8
1.7	16
1.5	16
0.3	26
1.6	16
1.9	16
0.7	8
2.1	11
0.1	16
0.2	24
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.7	8
1.0	8
0.5	11
0.5	11
0.9	8
0.7	8
0.8	16
1.0	16
0.6	16
0.4	11
0.3	22
0.4	11
0.9	15
0.4	14
0.2	22
0.6	18
0.6	16
0.6	16
0.1	18
0.3	16
1.2	4
0.3	15
0.6	12
0.3	15
0.2	8
1.1	8
0.4	8
0.6	11
0.6	8
0.6	8
0.6	18
0.3	18
0.5	14
0.8	16
0.4	16
1.0	16
1.0	16
2.5	3
0.4	16
0.8	8
1.1	14
0.6	11
0.1	14