News

Australia records first 50°C in four years

Source Weatherzone Fri 30 Jan 2026

Two South Australian locations – Andamooka and Port Augusta – have reached 50°C during the past two days as a gruelling week-long heatwave continues to grip several states. A large pool of extremely hot air has been lingering over southern and southeastern Australia this week thanks to a slow-moving upper-level high pressure system creating a phenomenon known as a ‘heat dome’. A heat dome occurs when hot air gets trapped beneath an upper-level high pressure system and air descending towards the ground makes the near-surface air become even hotter – a process called subsidence warming. When these heat domes last for several days, like we have seen this week, the heat can become extreme. SA outback hits 50°C A weather station at Andamooka, a small town located near Roxby Downs about 600 km to the north of Adelaide, registered a maximum temperature of 50.0°C on Thursday. One day later, Port Augusta also reached 50.0°C shortly before 3pm ACDT. These were both new maximum temperature records at these locations. Prior to this week, 50°C had only officially been recorded in SA on two occasions. These were both in 1960 when Oodnadatta reached 50.7°C on January 2 and 50.3°C on January 3. This week's pair of 50°C maximum temperatures were also the 8th and 9th 50°C on record in Australia. Image: Andamooka, SA reached 50°C on Thursday this week. Source: Weatherzone. Prior to this week, the last time an Australian weather station reached 50°C was in 2022, when Onslow (50.7°C) Roebourne (50.5°C) and Mardie (50.5°C) all surpassed this mark. Other extremely high temperatures this week While Andamooka is the first official weather station to reach 50°C in Australia this week, a lot of other places have hit the high 40s over the past few days. Over the five-day period from Monday to Friday this week, 12 separate weather stations across New South Wales and SA exceeded 49°C. These locations were: 50.0°C at Andamooka, SA on Thursday 50.0°C at Port Augusta, SA on Friday 49.8°C at Marree, SA on Thursday and 49.5°C on Friday 49.7°C at Pooncarie, NSW on Tuesday 49.7°C at Tarcoola, SA on Friday 49.6°C at Renmark, SA on Tuesday 49.6°C at Roxby Downs, SA on Thursday and 49.4°C on Friday 49.5°C at Ceduna, SA on Monday 49.2°C at Borrona Downs, NSW on Wednesday 49.1°C at Fowlers Gap, NSW on Tuesday 49.0°C at Wanaaring, NSW on Tuesday 49.0°C at Woomera, SA on Friday It’s likely that other areas of outback SA and NSW exceeded 50°C this week in between official weather stations. Image: Forecast maximum temperatures over SA on Friday, January 30, 2026, according to the ACCESS-C model. Source: Weatherzone. What makes a temperature official? Measuring temperatures is remarkably easy these days. You can find thermometers in many modern cars, and you can even buy digital weather stations off the shelf at some shops. However, the Bureau of Meteorology has strict guidelines for measuring official temperatures across Australia. The Bureau measures temperatures using a thermometer placed inside a white louvered box called a Stevenson Screen. These boxes are used by most meteorological organisations around the world for international consistency. Image: A Stevenson Screen in Wagga Wagga Airport, NSW. Source: Bidgee / Wikimedia Commons Stevenson screens are typically placed over grass away from objects like buildings and trees that can reflect or absorb heat. The thermometer inside the Stevenson Screen is positioned at 1.2 metres above the ground and the screen is faced towards the south in Australia (so its door opens away from the sun). A Stevenson Screen allows air to circulate inside while sheltering the thermometer from rain and direct sunlight. It is common for non-official thermometers to register higher temperatures compared to official weather stations, particularly when they are exposed to direct sunlight or heat radiating from nearby objects. - Weatherzone © Weatherzone 2026