Australia has been having some funny weather of late, with high temperatures in the south and massive rainfall in the north east. Queensland has been buffeted by huge downpours that have flooded large areas that include towns, national highways, and tourist locations. Yet despite all the devastation and heartbreak, many of us Queenslanders are trying to find the right balance between sympathy for those effected and joy that the rains have finally come, breaking the drought in some of the southern reaches of the state which has been worrying farmers and householders for a good few years. Such is the blessing (and curse) of La Niña.

You may recall being taught in highschool about El Niño (’little boy’ in Spanish) and La Niña (’little girl’), the two related weather patterns which effect the coasts of eastern Australia and western Chile. Both patterns are effected by the sea surface temperature in the Pacific Ocean - La Niña has a temperature variation lower than normal, El Niño higher. It’s amazing what a difference 0.5 of degree Celsius can make - in Australia, El Niño brings widespread drought, devastatingly high temperatures and long periods where bad air quality and bushfires are the norm. La Niña, meanwhile, brings large amounts of rain, humidity, and somewhat cooler temperatures. As you can imagine, in a country as big as Australia where droughts can extend for decades and farmers can be broken whilst waiting for rain, La Niña is generally a welcome visitor.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology is always a great source of information, and yet again they’ve come up with the goods. Below is a map of the average rainfall that falls across Australia. The north is prone to monsoonal downpours in the ‘wet’ season, and less rain in the corresponding ‘dry’ season. Further south, the usual seasons apply.

While looking at this map, bear in mind that Brisbane, my home, had been experiencing such significant water shortages (despite what the annual rainfall map may suggest) that our dams were dipping below 17% before the rain came a month or so ago. Thankfully we are now almost at 40%, all thanks to our friend Nina.

Above is the map of the 2007 rainfall across Australia. Notice that the area around Brisbane is marked as ‘Below Average’, as is most of south-eastern Queensland. Whilst looking through the maps on the Bureau’s website, I found that the few years preceding 2007 showed the same ‘Below Average’ or ‘Very Much Below Average’ rainfall indications around the Brisbane area. The 2007 map was actually quite mild in scope compared with some of the years before it.

Will La Niña continue to give us the pleasure of her company, or will we be swinging back to the El Niño patterns quicker than our dams can handle? I for one cordially extend an invitation to stay to our friend Nina, providing she rains in all the right places.