Seasonal climate summary southern hemisphere (winter 2003): a warm season with an exceptionally wet August

Southern hemisphere circulation patterns and associated anomalies for the austral winter 2003 are reviewed, with emphasis given to the Pacific Basin climate indicators and Australian rainfall and temperature patterns. Some oceanic warming was observed during the middle of the season, associated with the passage of a downwelling Kelvin wave. However by season’s end, surface and subsurface ocean temperatures had returned to close to the long-term normals. Overall, observations showed that the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) was in a neutral state. Across Australia, winter 2003 was a season with higher than average temperatures over much of the country. The season as a whole witnessed a return to near average rainfall totals, due mainly to an exceptionally wet August. In fact, 86 per cent of Australia received above median rain for that month.