Monthly climate
Science Centres: Pacific Rim
Climate developments in January 2003
El Niño related convection continues in the equatorial region
Suppressed convection in eastern Pacific, southeast from Papua New Guinea to New Caledonia
The SPCZ was close to its average position during January, extending southeast from Solomon Islands to Society Islands. This region merged with the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) resulting in enhanced convection over Western Kiribati and in the central equatorial Pacific just north and east of the dateline.
January rainfall was at least 180% of average (and approximately 500 mm or more at Tarawa) over the central equatorial Pacific region. Three tropical cyclones brought high rainfall events to countries which were experiencing dry conditions, i.e. New Caledonia, parts of Fiji and Tonga.
The large region of suppressed convection continues in the Indonesian region, extending to affect Papua New Guinea, northern Australia, Vanuatu and New Caledonia, where rainfall is less than 60% of average in many areas. Rainfall was also below average in parts of Fiji, Cook Island, Society Islands and Marquesas Islands.
Temperatures were generally warmer than usual with Fiji recording three new high maximum temperature records during January.
Climate extremes in January 2003
| Country | Location | Rainfall (mm) | % of average | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Brisbane | 10.0 | 6 | Record Low |
| Australia | Sydney | 12.2 | 12 | Extremely Low |
| Australia | Willis Island | 27.0 | 13 | Extremely Low |
| New Caledonia | Koumac | 22.6 | 13 | Extremely Low |
| Niue | Hanan Airport | 433.3 | 167 | Record High |
| Kiribati | Tarawa | 501.2 | 179 | Well above average |
| Fiji | Ono-i-Lau | 367.0 | 221 | Extremely High |
| Tonga | Fua’amotu Airport | 413.1 | 203 | Extremely High |
| French Polynesia | Hereheretue | 526.2 | 199 | Extremely High |
| Country | Location | Max Air Temp (°C) | Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiji | Ono-I-Lau | 33.2 | 10th | Record High |
| Fiji | Labasa | 34.9 | 11th | Record High |
| Fiji | Vatukoula | 37.4 | 12th | Record High |
Outgoing Long-wave Radiation (OLR) anomalies, in Wm-2 , for January 2003 represented by shaded areas, and rainfall percentage of average, shown by numbers. High radiation levels (yellow) are typically associated with clearer skies and lower rainfall, while cloudy conditions lower the OLR (blue) and typically mean higher rainfalls. The January 2003 position of the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ), as identified from total rainfall, is indicated by the solid green line. The average climatological position of the SPCZ is identified by the dashed green line. Data source: NOAA-CIRES Climate Diagnostics Center.