Jennifer Marohasy

a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment

Archives for January 3, 2007

The Discipline of Science: Comment from Thomas Huxley

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“My business is to each my aspirations to conform themselves to fact, not to try and make facts harmonise with my aspirations.

Science seems to me to teach in the highest and strongest manner the great truth which is embodied in the Christian concept of entire surrender to the will of God.

Sit down before each fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every preconceived notion, follow humbly wherever and to whatever abysses nature leads, or you shall learn nothing. I have only began to learn content and piece of mind since I have resolved at all risks to do this.”

Thomas Huxley, 1860

Melomies in the Daintree: A Note from Neil Hewett

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Hi Jennifer,

Temperatures in 2006 in the midst of the Daintree rainforest were uncharacteristically moderate.

It was, however, exceptionally wet with a total of 6242.5 mm over 237 rainy days; 14 of which exceeded 100 mm.

Last year was the first year Cooper Creek Wilderness had broadband satellite and rainfall, despite its quantity, never once interfered with the network.

On New Year’s day a two-week old cassowary chick was savaged to death by marauding pig-dogs.

On the same day I captured this photograph of fawn-footed melomies:

Melomys_Daintree_1Jan06 blog.JPG

All the best for 2007.

Neil Hewett

2006, Not That Dry Here in Australia

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During 2006 much was said and written about the “extraordinary drought” conditions here in Australia being a consequence of climate change.

I wrote various pieces suggesting that when all the data was in, rainfall for this last year, even for the Murray Darling Basin, would be within the realms of natural variability.

Well the data is now all in and here’s the rainfall graph for the Murray Darling Basin:

rainfall06_bom_summary.JPG.

The Bureau of Meterology has also just published a summary for last year for rainfall with comment that:

“Preliminary data indicate that the average total rainfall throughout Australia for 2006 was about 490 mm, slightly more than the long-term average of 472 mm. However, it is unlikely that many Australians will remember 2006 as a wet year.

The near-normal all-Australian total was made up of well above average totals across the north and inland Western Australia cancelling out the well below average totals recorded in the southeast and far southwest.

Parts of southeast Australia experienced their driest year on record, including key catchment areas which feed the Murray and Snowy Rivers, as did parts of the Western Australian coast, including Perth. In contrast, record high falls were observed in parts of the tropics and inland Western Australia. It was the third-driest year on record for both Victoria and Tasmania, while for the broader southeast Australian region, which also takes in southeast South Australia and southern New South Wales, it was the second-driest.”

Here’s the graph from the Bureau’s report:

rainfall06_bom_austsummaryb.JPG