Study finds South Australian summers have grown 36 days since the 1950s, and winter has shrunk ten days
Summer in Adelaide is 36 days longer and our winter is shrinking by 10 days, according to a new study which has climate experts worried.
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It might sometimes feel like a never-ending summer, now data has shown that Adelaide’s hottest season is running 36 days longer than in the 1950s.
Research released today from the Australia Institute’s Climate and Energy Program shows the Australian summer is starting earlier and lasting longer, while winter is getting shorter.
According to the study by the progressive thinktank, Adelaide’s winter has shrunk 10 days, while the city’s summer season now runs from November to March.
Adelaide’s 36-day longer summer was the second greatest seasonal growth rate of Australian capital cities.
The study used Bureau of Meteorology data to track the changes of daily temperatures marking the beginning of each season from 1999-2018, compared to the 1950s and 60s.
It found South Australians are experiencing summers that are twice as long as winters and that trend has intensified over the last six years, with climate experts concerned for the future, particularly following the devastating bushfire season.
“Longer, hotter summers and shorter winters are already taking a significant toll on South Australia,” said Noah Schultz-Byard, SA Director of the Australia Institute.
“Temperatures which were considered to be a regular South Australian summer in the 1950s, now span from early to mid-November all the way through to mid-March,” he said.
“Extended summers will have significant impacts on South Australia’s tourism, construction and mining sectors, as well as impacting the everyday lives of Australians. When it comes to agriculture, extended summers can damage crops and exhaust livestock.”
Primary Producers SA chairman Rob Kerin said the study’s findings were consistent with concerns previously raised over the changing climate. Mr Kerin said warmer and drier days for longer would remove moisture from soil, affecting crops and reducing drinking water supply for livestock. He said longer summers highlighted the need to transition and adapt SA farming to the changing seasons.
Salisbury Heights mother Kaitline White spent the first day of autumn at Semaphore Beach yesterday – her son Maximus Turner taking an impromptu swim in the warm water. “I’ve certainly noticed the warmer weather staring earlier in the year and lasting longer,” she said.
Adelaide recorded record breaking temperatures in December last year, with above-average summer temperatures statewide despite cooler-than-average February temperatures. Last year, SA recorded its second hottest year on record and the driest year on record, with rainfall down 65 per cent and mean temperatures up 1.45 degrees Celsius.
Adelaide’s hottest day last year broke records when the mercury reached 46.6C on January 24, beating the mark set 80 years earlier. The BOM's long-range forecast for autumn in SA is warmer but with a 60 to 70 per cent chance of wetter-than-average conditions.