Seven hundred kilometres south of Alice Springs, Oodnadatta sits in the hot, dry heart of the Australian outback. Here, temperatures regularly rise past the mid thirties and rain is rarely seen.
Hobart, with an annual average of 626mm, is Australia's second-driest capital city (after Adelaide), while on the west coast an annual average of 2400mm ensures the rainforest thrives.
Adelaide is actually statistically the driest of all Australia's capital cities with the rain being unreliable, light and infrequent throughout various times of the year.
Australia's rainiest city is Cairns in Queensland, with 117 days of precipitation.
One of the driest areas in Australia however, is Birdsville in Queensland. The desert town experiences only 10 days of rainfall per year. Although going further up North in Queensland, areas in Bamaga and Weipa are subject to much heavier rainfall, with about 75 rainfall days per year.
The city of Perth has the best weather/climate in Australia. The city enjoys a temperate Mediterranean climate with hot and dry summers and mild but wet winters. Perth is also the sunniest capital city in Australia and is considered one of the hottest experiencing over 250+ days of sunny blue skies.
Oodnadatta, South Australia
The record for the highest official temperature ever recorded in Australia belongs to the remote outback town of Oodnadatta in South Australia.
This is probably the most well-known rainfall statistic - how much rain falls, on average, during an entire year. Darwin is by far the wettest capital city in Australia by this measure, with an annual average of 1723.8 mm.
Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia
That's a whopping 3,456 hours of sunlight.
True or false: True. Brrr. The nation's capital is the only entirely planned city, and at 600m above sea level, and the only inland capital, it's also the coldest. It's similar to Hobart during the day in winter, but at night, Canberra's temperature drops with fogs and frosts and light snow once or twice a year.
Average Annual Rainfall
In addition to being the sunniest and one of the warmest cities in the United States of America, Yuma is also the driest city in the country. The city is situated in the southwestern part of Arizona, has a population of about 203,881, and receives less than 3 inches of rain every year.
The climate in the Australian desert – generally referred to as the outback on maps – is very hot and dry. During summer, the outback is very hot and humid – some days have seen temperatures as high as 50 °C. Unknown to many, the outback can experience below-freezing temperatures during the winter months.
Arica, Chile, in the northern Atacama holds the world record for the longest dry streak, having gone 173 months without a drop of rain in the early 20th century. In another Atacama neighbor to the south of Arica, the average annual rainfall in the city of Antofagasta is just 0.07 inches.
After putting their tastebuds to the test a group of thirsty judges has decided the best drinking water in the country is from the Richmond Valley Council in the New South Wales Northern Rivers region.
Western Australians (at one hour and 51 minutes per day) are the nation's biggest tapwater users.
The remote city of Quibdó is sometimes cited as the rainiest in the world, with average rainfall of 7,328mm a year, according to one estimate from local weather station data.
Melbourne is considered by some to be the best city to live in Australia, and has even been ranked as the world's most livable city more than once. It's home to a thriving live music scene, late-night bars and laneways dotted with cafés and coffee shops.
Melbourne has had the coolest maximum temperatures
On the other hand, Melbourne experiences a range of temperatures, with the lowest average maximum temperature out of the 5 major capital cities, at 25.9°C.
Is Australia hotter than India? India is closer to the equator as compared to Australia, and is therefore expected to be hotter. The average temperature in most of the interior regions of India is 90–104 °F. Whereas in Australia the average temperature in summer is 86 °F.
1. Adelaide. Adelaide is often described as Australia's most underrated and beautiful city, and it is not hard to see why once you have visited this gorgeous place. It is a cultural hub, home to an excellent dining culture, several museums and art galleries, as well as gorgeous scenery wherever you look.
Cold Coast
Gold Coast is one of the cheapest places to live in Australia (89th globally). It is known for its high-standard education and academia and its budget-friendly living.
Between 2011 and 2021, Melbourne had the largest growth (up by 806,800 people), followed by Sydney (650,800) and Brisbane (421,500).