Rainfall 2020: Where the rain has fallen

Parts of eastern Australia have received a year’s worth of rain in less than nine months. We have analysed 178 weather stations to find out who has received the most and who has missed out. SEARCH DATABASE HERE

PARTS of eastern Australia have surpassed their annual average rainfall totals with more than three months of the year remaining.

An analysis by The Weekly Times of 178 Bureau of Meteorology weather stations in Victoria, NSW, Queensland and South Australia shows several centres have already topped their calendar-year average, and in some instances are well on their way to doubling them.

Leading the charge is Nowra on the NSW South Coast, which has received 1372mm of rain so far this year, or 157 per cent of what it would expect in a normal calendar year and more than double the 577mm it received in 2019.

West of the Great Dividing Range, Condobolin’s 402mm in the past nine months equals about 130 per cent of what it would expect in 12 months, and is more than three times the 125mm it recorded last year.

Coonabarabran (795mm), West Wyalong (512mm), Forbes (557mm) and Dunedoo (696mm) have also recorded well-above average falls so far this year, accounting for 124 per cent. 123 per cent, 119 per cent, 116 per cent and 114 per cent of their annual averages.

Last year, Coonabarabran recorded 323mm of rain, West Wyalong 243mm, Forbes 236mm and Dunedoo 286mm.
At Forbes, farmer Jarrod Amery said the season was tracking along well for his 1300ha of wheat, 600ha of barley and 450ha of canola planted this year.

“We’ve had no rain for three weeks but it was wet until the end of August so we are still going well,” Mr Amery said. “Some rain this weekend would be perfect.”

Other centres to have already topped their annual average rainfall totals this year include Grafton, Taralga, Dubbo, Wellington, Braidwood, Narrandera and Pilliga. In Victoria, Shepparton clocked over its average with rain in the past week taking its total for 439mm for the year.

On the flip side, Broken Hill in the NSW Western Division has recorded just 67mm of rain for the year so far, equalling 27 per cent of its annual average.