2013 in review: a year of increasing extreme weather events
2013 was the seventh warmest year on record and saw one of the strongest cyclones, some of the longest heatwaves and the most topsy-turvy weather experienced in decades.
Heat extremes dominated the year. The last four months of 2012 were abnormally hot in Australia but January 2013 was the hottest month ever measured on the continent, with record temperatures being set in every state and territory and the highest recorded maximum of 49.6C at Moomba in South Australia. Temperatures were regularly above 48C, the Bureau of Meteorology added a new temperature colour to its maps and Sydney experienced its hottest night on record when it was still 34C at midnight on 10 January. According to the since axed Australian Climate Commission, Australians should get used to it: not only are heatwaves getting longer, hotter and more frequent, the number of record hot days is expected to quadruple in Sydney by the end of the century.
Portugal, China, Hungary, Finland, and Britain, all recorded heatwaves, and the temperature in Death Valley, California hit 129.2F (54.0C), the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth during June. Meanwhile, Shanghai had 24 days with temperatures at or above 35C in July and recorded 40.6C, the highest ever temperature recorded in 140 years of records in the city. Northeast Brazil, which often suffers long droughts, experienced its worst in 50 years followed last week by massive floods.
Europe, overall, was warmer than usual but the heat turned quickly to massive rainstorms. As much rain fell in a few hours in June in central Europe as normally falls in two months. The Czech Republic , Austria, south and east Germany, Switzerland, Slovakia, Belarus, Poland, Hungary and Serbia all experienced heavy flooding in what were desribed as one in 100 year rains. In some places in Austria, 150 to 200mm of rain (5.9 to 7.9 inches) fell in a day
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/dec/18/2013-extreme-weather-events
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