New Colours Added to Weather Chart to Display Australia's Heat Wave

Image courtesy: Australia's Bureau of Meteorology/Public Domain

It's official, 2012 was a record year for heat in the US, and 2013 is already turning out to be historic for Australia, a country that is used to extreme heat, but nothing quite like what they're getting now. A "dome of heat" has settled over the country and caused record-breaking temperatures; so much so that the Australian Bureau of Meteorology actually had to add a new color to its weather maps to show the hottest parts of the country (it's purple, as you can see above). This extends the range up to 54 degrees celsius (129.2 fahrenheit)! This is significantly above the all-time record temperature of 50.7 degrees celsius reached on January 2, 1960 at Oodnadatta Airport in South Australia. On a personal level, I don't handle heat very well; and, these types of temperatures would kill me - literally.

Image courtesy: Australia's Bureau of Meteorology/Public Domain

This second map is the forecast for January 17th, 2013. As you can see, the purple spot is predicted to go away, but the temperatures are still extremely elevated (remember these are celsius degrees, so Fahrenheit, the darker spots are forecast to get around 115F).

The Sydney Morning Herald describes the records that have been broken so far and those that could fall:

And the country has set a new national average maximum of 40.33 degrees on Monday, beating the previous record - set on December 21, 1972 - by a "sizeable margin" of 0.16 degrees, Dr Jones said, adding that the figures are preliminary.

"Today is actually shaping up to be hotter - and it could be a record by a similar margin," he said.
Another record to be smashed on Monday was Australia's mean temperature. The country averaged 32.23, easily eclipsing the previous record - set on December 21, 1972 - of 31.86 degrees. Just 0.13 degrees separated the previous four highest mean temperatures, underscoring how far above average the day was.

The scorching temperatures could last into the weekend and beyond, Dr Jones said, potentially breaking the country's all-time high of 50.7 degrees.

It's not clear when the "dome of heat" will subside, but this could be a preview of the kind of extreme weather events that climate change could bring us with increasing frequency.

$780 Million Desalination Plant To Be Run Entirely On Renewable Energy

Photo via Getty Images

In the next blog or so, I will be looking at using desalination of ocean waters to help remove CO2 from the atmosphere; and, I thought I would segue into the next couple of blogs with this.

Australia is in the worst drought in 117 years. The Murray-Darling river area has been in the drought’s grip for the last ten years. This affects the local farmers which affects Australia’s economy which affects the global food market. It’s the ripple effect; and, farmers have been told that they will have to continue preparing for the worst.

The solution it would appear, on the surface anyway, is a new $780 million desalination facility that is planned for Western Australia. This plant was approved in late June and will boost water supplies in the area by 20% upon completion in 2011.

Photo via jez.atkinson

The Australian government has approved the plans based on the plant meeting strict requirements for wildlife preservation and its commitment to run entirely on renewable energy sources to help reduce its emissions.

Business Green reports WA (Western Australia) Conservation Council and other green groups are carefully watching to make sure the plans for the new plant ensure that it runs on 100% renewable energy in the forms of wind, solar and geothermal.

Western Australia's Minister for Water, Graham Jacobs has made a statement that the plant will run on power purchased from renewable energy suppliers. While this all sounds environmentally friendly, it’s not the same as it powering itself from renewables:

“The Water Corporation intends to purchase all the energy requirements and associated Renewable Energy Certificates for the Southern Seawater Desalination Plant from renewable energy generators,” Jacobs said. “Most will come from generators using proven renewable energy technologies. The corporation is also hoping to have a portion of the energy requirements purchased from renewable energy generators using technologies not yet commercially proven at this stage.”

Construction begins later this year; and, there are many locals and environmentalists that are against the desalination plant. (See video below)

While it would be great to see the plant built with its own solar, wind and geothermal power generation supplies, it's encouraging news that the power purchased will come from these sources. However, vigilance from green groups is still needed.

Conservation Council director Piers Verstegen said, “The previous state government fudged the figures on the Kwinana desalination plant, saying it was carbon neutral, and powered by renewable energy when that was not the case. As the Water Corporation’s annual report shows, greenhouse gas emissions associated with Perth’s water use have increased dramatically since this first plant was brought online.”