Temperatures have been warmer closer to shore, but the difference is more noticeable offshore. Pictured is Tuross Main Beach. Photo: Andrew McLaughlin.
When you dipped your toes into the ocean this summer, you might have caught yourself thinking how the water was a little warmer than normal.
It turns out that the further away from the coastline you got, the greater these anomalies in the temperature would have been.
It also tops off what was a warm year in our oceans in general.
Preliminary data shows the average sea surface temperatures for Australia were around 0.8 to 1.0 degree Celsius above the 1961–1990 average throughout 2024, the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) says.
Earlier this month (January), Region asked BOM if the ocean temperatures off the NSW coast were currently warmer than usual.
“Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are slightly above normal closer to the coasts,” a BOM spokesperson said.
“Further away from the coasts, the magnitude of positive anomalies is higher for this time of the year.”
They said while most of these anomalies ranged from 0.5 to 2 degrees, they reached 3 degrees in some regions further away from the coast.
These warmer than average SSTs mostly appeared off the NSW coast in early December 2024, but have stuck around since then.
“For the Tasman Sea further south, these anomalies have been occurring over the last several years,” the BOM spokesperson said.
“This is expected to persist for at least several more months.”
And why are these warmer ocean temperatures currently occurring? It seems the weather, sea level pressure and climate change play a role.
“Atmospheric conditions related to weather variability can lead to enhanced ocean temperatures when skies are clear, winds are weak and thus the ocean is warmed by the sun,” the BOM spokesperson said.
“Anomalous high mean sea level pressures have been observed over that region since November last year, which would lead to clear skies, weak winds and thus warmer SSTs.
“There is a general trend toward warmer SSTs due to climate change.”
However, the current warm temperatures also do not stand out from previous years.
“While the ocean off the coast of NSW is warmer than climatological values, the magnitudes and spatial extent of the anomalies is not significantly different from anomalies observed in previous years,” the BOM spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the full Annual Climate Statement for 2024 would be published in early February.
This is the official record of climate conditions across Australia for the year.
Loading ...
