Fire climates of Australia: Past, present and future

A detailed fire weather history for Australia is discussed. This history has been created from high-quality temperature, humidity and rainfall datasets and covers a network of over 50 stations across Australia from 1957-2003.

This history is used to investigate the factors which affect the fire climate on interannual time scales. Preliminary results indicate, as was found in earlier studies, that ENSO is a strong driver of drought and fire weather in Australia. The network of stations details the regional variation of this influence.

Other climate influences are also being investigated.

The historical record is also being used to examine the potential impact of climate change on fire weather in Australia. The record is used with cliamte model output to quantify the enhanced bushfire risk associated with increased CO2 and global warming.

Ultimately, the understanding gained in historical studies will lead to a greater ability to predict fire weather on seasonal timescales.