o NSW Department of Primary Industries technical officer, Warren Smith, oversees the Trangie Agricultural Research Centre weather station. Rainfall records from the centre have informed researchers and farmers since 1915.
More than 100 years of official Trangie rainfall records have delivered a valuable insight into local weather patterns and climatic variability, according to the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI).
NSW DPI technical officer, Warren Smith, said rainfall had been recorded at the Trangie Post Office since 1887 and Trangie Agricultural Research Centre since 1915 until the present day.
“While rainfall at Trangie is generally not seasonal, certain months do show a higher probability to receive more or less rain,” Mr Smith said.
“Winter rains are effective for local producers as the moisture gives them better growth - summer rains are subject to higher evaporation and transpiration rates, from soil and plants, due to the warmer conditions.”
Mr Smith said historical data indicated there was an 85 per cent chance of getting more than 12.5 millimetres of rain in June.
“Or to put it another way, in 85 years out of 100 years June rainfalls can be expected to exceed 12.5mm,” he said.
“This compares favourably with April, which has a 59 per cent chance of getting rainfalls greater than 12.5 mm.
“While the chances of heavy or flooding rain are highest in January, February, March and April, in January there is a 5.6 per cent chance of getting more than 150mm of rain.
“When it comes to our annual rainfall there is 92 per cent chance of getting more than 250mm of rain, an eight per cent chance of getting less than 250mm, and a 10 per cent chance of getting 700mm or more in one
year.”
Mr Smith pointed out that this information was produced from historical data which may not reflect future rainfall patterns.