Hotter and Drier Australia and Europe by 2030

SYDNEY - Jan 15/04 - SNS -- Global warming will sharply reduce the number of days with below freezing temperatures, double the number of very hot summer days in some Australian cities, and bring more and deeper droughts by 2030.

This conclusion is consistent with findings that summer heatwaves will be common in Europe by the end of this century, says a CSIRO climate scientist.

Results reported in the journal Nature by European researchers this week agree with what CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology have been saying about global warming in Australia for some years.

"We have analyzed climate change projections from nine climate models," says Kevin Hennessy, a senior research scientist with CSIRO Atmospheric Research's Climate Impact Group. "By the year 2030, we expect most of Australia to become 0.4 to 2.0° C warmer on average, with 10 to 50% more summer days over 35°C."

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