Australia Could See Average Precipitation

SYDNEY - Sep 16/04 - SNS -- There is a 50% chance rainfall accumulations over the coming three months will be average across most of Australia, while the country's southeastern regions will likely be drier than normal through the end of December.

"However," the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (ABM) said in its latest outlook, "when looking at the growing season (April-November) as a whole over southern and eastern Australia, widespread below to very much below average falls up to the end of August mean that many places are unlikely to reach their total growing seasonal average by the end of November. The chances of receiving the required rain are widely below 20%, dropping to below 10% along the east coast."

ABM said in the far southeast of the state of South Australia and the adjacent parts of southwest and south-central Victoria, together with some of northern Tasmania, the chances of above median rainfall for the December quarter are between 35 and 40%.

"So in years with ocean patterns like the current, about six October to December periods out of ten are expected to be drier than average in these areas, with about four out of ten being wetter," ABM said.

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