HOT WEATHER

SO we think it’s been hot recently. Newspaper records in the archives are quite revealing. The temperature in 1896, before the quoted quadrillion megawere tonnes of emissions, quite surprising. News archives are full of temperatures above 121 degrees F, (50 degrees C).

Admittedly these were done in the 1800s so could be one or two degrees out as they were done on devices that the BOM regards as non-standard equipment.

But even if we allow a degree or two discrepancy, how scary, really, is global warming when these temps were recorded 120 plus years ago. The BOM supposedly so concerned about the state of our climate actually shows very little interest in our past history or for that matter, even mentioning it.

All modern temps are measured on electronic equipment, sometimes in places affected by urban heat islands caused by concrete, bitumen, vehicles etc. So they may well vary degree or two too.

In 1896 the heat was so bad that emergency trains were run so people could flee the inland heat and head to the a bit cooler coast. In 1939 Sydney reached 122 degrees F at the Windsor Observatory.

In 1932 millions of birds are said to have fallen from the sky due to the severe heat. These are all recorded in the news/press archives of the day.

Could they all be wrong. Not likely.

RAY HARCH, Toowoomba