Australia records hottest winter in history: Report

Canberra, Sept 19: Australia recorded its hottest winter in history with temperatures up 2 degrees Celsius on average, a report revealed on Tuesday. In July alone, 72 records were broken for the highest-ever winter temperature including in Sydney which set a record of 26.5 degrees Celsius. “The average maximum temperature for Australia this winter was 23.7 Celsius, 1.9 Celsius above the 1961-1990 average (21.8 Celsius),” David Alexander, a scientist from the Climate Council, told Xinhua. The country also experienced its driest June in history and also the driest winter since 2002. It marks the 10th time since the year 2000 that Australia has set a new record for seasol maximum temperatures; a trend Alexander said was set to continue. (IANS)