Bureau of Meteorology data showed that averaged temperatures ranked in the top five warmest Septembers for every state and territory, and the sixth hottest for the Northern Territory. Minimum night-time temperatures across the continent averaged 2.52C above the norm, narrowly surpassing the previous record of 2.51C set in 2023.
In New South Wales, 45 separate locations recorded their warmest September on record. Nationally, the bureau confirmed that Australia has not recorded a September with below-average mean temperatures since 2004, underscoring the long-term warming trend.
Alpine regions were hit particularly hard. The snow depth in Kosciuszko National Park fell to zero during September for the first time since records started in 1954. Dr Linden Ashcroft, a climate scientist at the University of Melbourne, said the data pointed to a clear driver. "There's only one clear driver of this and that's climate change," he said. "This is also a clear example of seasonal creep where winter is ending earlier and spring is starting sooner." Dr Ashcroft noted that global heating has warmed the continent by more than 1.5C since country-wide records began in 1910.
Rainfall patterns were also extreme. All states and territories recorded below-average rainfall for September except Western Australia, which had its second wettest September on record and its wettest since 1904.