Moree has been enjoying another warmer than average winter, with July 2019 being Moree's hottest in more than 90 years.
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The average maximum daily temperature for July 2019 was 20.9 degrees - the highest recorded at Moree Aero, breaking last year's record of 20.6, which in turn broke the 2017 record of 20.2.
It was also 2.7 degrees higher than the overall average for July in Moree, which is 18.2.
However, it wasn't our warmest July ever recorded - that title belongs to the year 1907 which saw an average high temperature of 21.3 degrees, just slightly higher than the 21.2 degree average in July 1927. Both the 1907 and 1927 temperatures were recorded at the old Moree Post Office site.
That makes July of this year Moree's third warmest ever, and the hottest since 1927.
Last month there were 21 days above 20 degrees, with the warmest day being a balmy 24.5 degrees on July 22.
For the past three years in a row, Moree's July daily maximum temperatures have been significantly above average, as have the past three Junes which recorded mean maximum temperatures of 20 in 2019, 20.3 in 2018 and 20.4 in 2017.
According to retired CSIRO weather monitor Peter Nelson, who still regularly monitors Moree's weather records, Moree has never experienced significantly warmer than average June and Julys for three consecutive years.
"I looked at the past records and saw the last three June and Julys were significantly warmer than average, so I went back through the records to see if any three-year period was as warm," he said.
"From the records there has not been a trio of such events occurring in Moree dating back to 1880 although it came close from 1881 to 1883 and again from 1925 to 1927.
"Those early years were very dry conditions as well, similar to now."
July 2019 was not only one of Moree's warmest, but was again drier than average, with only 6.6 millimetres of rain falling for the month - just 19 per cent of its overall July average of 34.3mm.
Meanwhile Mungindi once again topped the state records for the warmest days on average last month, with an average of 22.6 degrees recorded at Mungindi Post Office.
Nation-wide, July was the fourth-warmest on record for Australia as a whole.
The unseasonably warm winter weather looks set to continue in August, with 21-plus-degree days forecast for the majority of the next week.
