Coastal Pilbara V Inland Pilbara. (climate, hottest, warm, recorded)

[greysrigging]

The Pilbara region of Western Australia.
One of those districts where everything is BIG.
Big distances, big mines, big wages and salaries, big cojones needed to cope with the climate, big climatic numbers for extreme heat and severe tropical cyclones c/w biblical rains and world record windspeeds. A big percentage of Australia's wealth is shipped out to Asia from the Pilbara Iron Ore Ports. A great place ( if you can handle the heat, flies and isolation ) for young 'uns and the not so young to put a few dollars together and spend it all on big boys toys.
Oh, and the WA Premier is a big **** of a bloke, but for some inexplicable reason West Aussies love the b*****d !
www.australiasnorthwest.com/explore/pilbara



i've worked and travelled extensively throughout the Pilbara, commencing a project at Onslow, on the coast in 1998. then in various other locales at Dampier, Karratha, Cape Lambert, Point Sampson and Port Hedland. Inland Pilbara, Newman, Yandi, Tom Price, Wittenoom, Marble bar and Nullagine. A lot of the Iron Ore provinces in the Pilbara, specifically within the Hamersley Ranges, are at modest altitude, between 400m and 700m, and towns like Tom Price and Yandicoogina have the edge taken off the extreme summer heat.
The majority of the Pilbara lies between 20*S - 22.5*S, the 'sweet spot' for Southern Hemisphere ( Australian version ) of prolonged seasonal heat. Lower altitude sites can average upwards of 7 months per year above 35c max temps. The 'winter' months are generally quite pleasant and livable, with max temps around the 24c- 28c mark. Mins, even on or near the coast can drop into single digits and the higher elevation inland towns of Newman and Tom Price have seen the odd frost or 3.
Rainfall is erratic and unreliable, with large seasonal and yearly variations. The engine room for most of the Pilbara rain is the Northern Monsoon and the development and passage of Tropical Cyclones. To give an example of this, at Whim Creek on April 2 to April 3, 1899, the town received 36.49 inches (927 mm) of rain in 48 hours, with 29.41 inches (747 mm) falling in a 24-hour period. Earlier in the same year, on March 22 and March 23 another 27 inches (686 mm) fell. Then in 1924, only 4.3mm fell in the entire year !
Whim Creek rainfall data

Whim Creek a few years ago.


So getting back to the title of the thread, most contruction/miners agree that Coastal Pilbara is a better place to work than the Inland Pilbara. Discounting the obvious advantages of the seaside, ie fishing, boating and beaches, the robust Pilbara climate is somewhat modified by sea breezes blowing onshore. During the cooler months, parts of the Pilbara coast may see some Indian Ocean frontal rain and the occaisional north west cloudband. Otherwise, the sea breeze can raise DPs to 'unbearable' during the 'wet season'. Cape Lambert, Dampier, Point Sampson and Karratha are renowned sweatfests during the summer months, high mins and DP's

Here is a selection of Pilbara sites, both Coastal and Inland

Exmouth is located on the tip of the North West Cape. This is within a World Heritage National Park, and the Cape is surrounded by water on 3 sides which modifies the climate ( barely, haha ) The climate data from the nearby military base at Learmonth. During WW2, this was the furtherest South the Japs bombed the Australian mainland.




Nyang and Emu Creek Stations. Located at the southern edge of the Pilbara, these sheep/cattle stations has some of the hottest summer temps in Western Australia. inland from the coast and at low altitude it is an Aussie version of hell on earth, with temps often peaking above 48c !. When you drive south along the coastal highway from Karratha to Perth, you pass Nanuturra Roadhouse and say to yourself, 'nope, not stopping here, too friggen hot' !
Dry and wet



emucreekstation.com/

Emu Creek Max Temps

Emu Creek Min Temps.

Emu Creek Rainfall

Nyang climate data


Onslow, 280klm south of Karratha is a former port town used mainly for loading out wool to the markets in Perth. Formerly sited at the mouth of the Ashburton River, the original site was prone to flooding, storm surge and Cyclones, so the town was moved in the 1920's to a site on Beaden Creek and a large timber jetty and light rail tramway was built.
With the discovery of off shore oil and gas in the 1960's and the salt flats being turned into salt mines, a new wharf/jetty was built in 1998/99. I worked on this project at the time. Fast forward to the last decade and Onslow is now the site of one of the largest LPG Gas Plants in the world, the Wheatstone Project. Onslow is still subject to devastating Tropical Cyclones and storm surges, and being at sea level, can also experience max temps of +48c.
Shiploader and Jetty project for Onslow Solar Salt.


Onslow has had two official BOM sites, the original Post Office and the Airport.



Mt Tom Price in the Hamersley Ranges is Western Australia's highest altitude town ( 747m ). About 400klm inland from Onslow. Back in 1999, while working at Onslow, us Darwin crew were amazed that Tom Price folk would travel to the coast at Onslow for their R&R, book out all the seaside accommodation etc....Onslow we thought was simply a hick hillbilly outback ****hole, a Newman-by-sea so to speak....but nope, they all thought it was tropical paradise full of swaying coconut palms and sandy beaches. Obviously never been to the QLD coast....haha
Tom Price is one of the original Iron Ore towns, formerly a closed town, built for the local employees of Hamersley Iron. Commencing late 1960's, massive infastructure developement, mines, railways, ports, roads etc. And ongoing into the 2020's, showing no signs of slowing down.
Unlike most of the Pilbara, Tom Price is somewhat 'treed' ie lots of shady eucalypts around the town.

www.aussietowns.com.au/town/tom-price-wa

Climate data hard to find and somewhat out of date.





Mardie Station, located between Onslow and Karratha on the mouth of the Fortesque River. is a working sheep/cattle station and also has large iron ore deposits owned by Sino Iron.
Mardie is on a very cyclone prone part of the Pilbara coast, and holds the record for the second highest official max temp in Australia, 50.5c in Feb 1998. The lowland sites along the Pilbara coast are prime candidates for the next +50c to be recorded in Australia. Only 4 such occaisions since standardised instrumentation in 1910.

kentsaddlery.com.au/2018/08/the-old-homestead-at-mardie-station-wa/




Pannawonica and Paraburdoo are towns built to service the workforce of nearby Iron Ore operations. sited 200klm and 400klm inland and south of Karratha respectively.

Pannawonica has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh), bordering on hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh). In summer, the days are very hot and the nights are warm. On average, there are 66.8 days per year where the temperature reaches 40 °C (104 °F). The record maximum temperature is 48.4 °C (119.1 °F) on 20 January 2003. Precipitation is highly variable. The wet season lasts from December to March, in which storms and tropical cyclones cause rainfall. In winter, the days are warm and the nights are mild. The record minimum temperature is 5.5 °C (41.9 °F) on 5 June 1973.[3]

The Bureau of Meteorology's Pannawonica weather station opened in 1971. All recordings except rainfall closed in 2005. Rainfall is still being recorded as of 2020.


Paraburdoo has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh). In summer, the days are very hot and the nights are warm. The mean annual maximum temperature is 46.0 °C (114.8 °F), and the all time record high is 47.8 °C (118.0 °F), on 30 December 1997. There is an average of 72.2 days per year where the temperature rises above 40.0 °C (104.0 °F). In winter, the days are warm and the nights are cool. Precipitation is highly variable, coming from storms and tropical cyclones. It falls most often between December and March. Some years, summer months can see no rainfall, and other years over 200 millimetres (7.9 in) of rainfall can come in a single month. Rainfall is sparse from July to November.



Dampier/Karratha, both towns were purpose built to service the mining and oil and gas industries in the late 1960's and early 1970's. Dampier is a major shipping port for Salt, LNG and Iron Ore. Karratha is the major regional service center for the Roebourne Shire and has a population of about 18,000 people.





Karratha has a hot semi-arid climate (BSh), that just avoids a hot desert climate (BWh) classification. Temperatures are warm to hot all year round, with low rainfall, most of which falls in late summer due to the influence of tropical cyclones and the monsoon, although there is a second rainfall peak in early winter as the northern edges of cold fronts occasionally cause rain in the region. It is very rare for any rain to fall in the period from August to December. Winter temperatures rarely drop below 10 °C, while maximums stay in the mid to high 20s °C's and days are sunny with low humidity. Summers are very hot and usually dry although the erratic influence of the monsoon can cause periods of high humidity and thunderstorms. The record high temperature is 48.2 °C (118.8 °F), while the record low is 6.9 °C (44.4 °F). The highest monthly rainfall on record was 348.8mm (13.7 in) in February 2011, owing to the passage of Tropical Cyclone Carlos and several other monsoonal lows over Karratha.
Salt farms near Karratha Airport.

Abandoned out bush

The money trains. RIO Iron Ore on the way to Dampier





Wittenoom, former blue asbestos mining town. The worst and most tragic industrial disaster in Austrlia's history.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-0...noom/100216504
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-1...isks/100369764
www.aussietowns.com.au/town/wittenoom-wa
I have worked here several times doing 'clean ups' of the town and processing plant.
Beautiful but deadly place nestled in the Hamersley Ranges.
http://www.watoday.com.au/national/w...904-25bkg.html



Wittenoom climate

The former BOM site at Wittenoom is now known as 'Karijini North'.


Roebourne, coastal lowlands ( 14klm inland ) and about 32klm east of Karratha. Brutal climate typical of this part of the Pilbara.
I've travelled extensively in the district.

Roebourne is situated on the North West Coastal Highway, approximately 40 kilometres east of Karratha, 200 kilometres south of Port Hedland and 1550 kilometres north of Perth. The Withnell family were the first European settlers to arrive in the area, settling at the foot of Mount Welcome in April 1864. The town of Roebourne was gazetted at this location in 1866, the first town to be established in the North West. Roebourne was named for the first Western Australian Surveyor General, John Septimus Roe.

Discoveries of gold, copper and tin in the region and the development of the pearling industry at the nearby port town of Cossack contributed to Roebourne's importance and prosperity. The restored heritage stone buildings date to this period and include some designed by renowned Public Works Department Architect George Temple Poole. Of note is the octagonal shape gaol, which now houses a historical museum.

www.wikiwand.com/en/Roebourne,_Western_Australia

www.aussietowns.com.au/town/roebourne-wa

Roebourne has a bit of an unsavoury reputation re social welfare issues, especially alcohol abuse and some historic child abuse incidents. The Victoria Hotel located on the main north-south highway had an Australia wide reputation as a 'blood house', complete with iron barred windows and doors and the obligatory drunks laying about on the streets and gutters and being occaisionly run over asleep on the highway. The pub was shut by the Authorities about 15 years ago, but in recent years has had a bit of a makeover.







Climate Data



Newman, inland southern Pilbara and at modest altitude has a some 'seasonality', with winter months nights sometimes dropping to zero. Summers are long and very hot. This part of the Hamersley ranges gets some wicked storms during the summer months and hail is not unheard of.
Newman ( formerly Mt Newman ) was a closed BHP built mining town and is now the service center for the massive 'Area C' and Yandi operations.
I enjoyed my time working here....made good money, worked and played hard....as you do !




Newman climate data



Port Hedland, a friggen nightmare of industrial development on the Pilbara coast......endless processions of quad road trains, oversized mining machinery, constant gritty red iron ore dust blowing through the town, mile long ore trains running round the clock dumping the good stuff at the port. I've never been a fan of Port Hedland. It was once a sleepy backwater that has turned into a giant industrial hub, complete with the associated social issues, including the ghetto of South Hedland.
Port Hedland is the second largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with an urban population of 14,320 at June 2018 including the satellite town of South Hedland, 18 km away. It is also the site of the highest tonnage port in Australia.
http://www.australiasnorthwest.com/e...edland#no-back
http://www.globaltrailermag.com/2015...d-road-trains/
Port Hedland Climate
Port Hedland has a hot arid climate (Köppen BWh) although subject to the influence of tropical cyclones. Port Hedland is very warm to sweltering all year round, with mean maximum temperatures of 36.4 °C (97.5 °F) in January and 27.1 °C (80.8 °F) in July. Maximum temperatures in summer are usually moderated by a warm but humid sea breeze. Port Hedland is very sunny, averaging over 10 hours of sunshine per day annually and being in the sunniest region of Australia,[21] receiving around 218.9 clear days annually. Dewpoint in the warmer months typically ranges from 19 to 22 °C (66.2 to 71.6 °F).

Annual rainfall (falling almost exclusively between December and June) averages 311.5 mm (12.26 in) but because of erratic cyclones is subject to some of the largest variations in annual precipitation in the world. As an illustration, in 1942, 1,040 millimetres or 40.94 inches fell, but two years later in 1944 only 32 millimetres or 1.26 inches fell and the town went for over 300 days with no rain. The town received record daily rainfall on 27 January 1967 when a total of 387.1 millimetres or 15.24 inches of rainfall was recorded for 24 hours, which is more than the mean annual rainfall.[22] The high summer temperatures experienced in Port Hedland mean that most tourists to the area choose to visit in the cooler months between May and September.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, the Western Pilbara, including Port Hedland is the sunniest place in Australia; being the only place to record an annual average of more than 10 hours a day of sunshine.




Marble Bar, one of the consistantly hottest towns in Australia. Seems unrelenting between October and April, but must be said that the 3 winter months do offer some relief.
I was there a few Xmas's ago and experienced a massive dust and thunderstorm that dropped the temp to 26c mid afternoon.....in late December, just about unheard of.
A historic old town with some heritage listed buidings, historic gold mines and a massive former WW2 American Airbase used to bomb *** held East Indies.
harsh but pretty country out Marble bar way....
www.aussietowns.com.au/town/marble-bar-wa






Marble Bar has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) with sweltering summers and warm winters. Most of the annual rainfall occurs in the summer. Although annual temperatures indicate Marble Bar should be within the tropics, with a July (winter) mean of 19 °C (66 °F), it does not have the high precipitation requirements for hot-weather climates to sustain tropical vegetation.

During December and January, temperatures in excess of 45 °C (113 °F) are common, and the average maximum temperature exceeds normal human body temperature for six months each year. Marble Bar receives 159.6 clear days annually. Dewpoint in the summers is between 10 and 15 °C (50 and 59 °F). In contrast to most of the year, winters are warm, with days averaging 27 °C (81 °F), low humidity and clear skies. Nights from June to August can be chilly, occasionally as low as 5 °C (41 °F) but frost is unknown. Even in mid winter however, brief bursts of heat can result in the temperature rising to as high as 35 °C (95 °F) for a few days before dropping back to normal.

Rainfall is sparse and erratic, though variability is significantly less extreme than over the coastal Pilbara – the tenth percentile being 190.9 millimetres (7.52 in) vis-à-vis only 67.4 millimetres (2.65 in) in Onslow.[10] It falls largely between December and March, with occasional rain events from autumn northwest cloudbands up to June. As little as 71.1 mm (2.80 in) can fall in a year; however, during heavy wet seasons when the monsoon reaches well south into the Pilbara, the rainfall can be significantly more – as much as 927.1 millimetres (36.50 in) fell between April 1999 and March 2000, and 797.9 mm (31.41 in) fell in 1980 owing to several tropical cyclones. The most rain recorded in a month is 417.4 mm (16.43 in) in March 2007,[11] and the most in one day 304.8 millimetres (12.00 in) on 2 March 1941.




Barrow island
Barrow Island is a 202 km2 (78 sq mi) island 50 kilometres (31 mi) northwest off the Pilbara coast of Western Australia. The island is the second largest in Western Australia after Dirk Hartog Island.
Due to its isolation from mainland Australia and protection afforded under its statutory status, Barrow Island is one of the most important conservation reserves in Western Australia.[8] It is an "A-class" reserve, the highest level of conservation protection available for Crown land in Australia.[9] Once a national park or class A nature reserve is made, mining leases and general purpose leases cannot be granted over them without the consent of both Houses of Parliament, and actual mining cannot take place within them without specific permission of the Minister for Environment. This occurred in 2003, when a portion of the reserve was excised in order to facilitate the Gorgon gas development program.
Oil was discovered on the island in commercial quantities in 1964 by West Australian Petroleum Pty Ltd (WAPET), and the first oil field was established shortly after.[17] In 1995, there were 430 wells producing oil and natural gas across most of the southern half of the island.[18] The site has been Australia's leading producer of oil.

Oil tankers are filled by a submarine pipeline that extends 10 km offshore. WAPET established a 200-room apartment complex for workers on the island.[19] A private airport facility known as Barrow Island Airport (IATA: BWB, ICAO: YBWX) was also established to transport workers and equipment from Karratha and Perth.
In December 2009, a development consortium between the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell received environmental approvals from the Government of Western Australia to develop natural gas reserves 60 km north of the island. Known as the Gorgon gas project, it was completed in 2017.[20] Offering an estimated 40 trillion cubic feet (1,100 km3) of gas makes it one of Australia's largest developments.
During the construction phase of the Gorgon Gas Project, skilled tradies were the highest paid in Australia, and committed employees could take home $4,000.oo a week after tax, leading to the nickname, 'Barrowdise' for the Isand. I resisted going there, opting for employment on the similar sized ( slightly less money ) INPEX Project in Darwin.
Highest wind record

The World Meteorological Organization established Barrow Island as the location of the highest non-tornadic wind gust ever recorded, at 408 km/h (253 mph).[21] The gust occurred on 10 April 1996, during Severe Tropical Cyclone Olivia.[22] The previous record was a 372 km/h (231 mph) gust at Mount Washington, New Hampshire, USA in April 1934




Telfer Mine, West Pilbara
www.newcrest.com/our-assets/telfer
Telfer Climate Data
Telfer has a hot arid climate (Köppen BWh) with sweltering summers and very warm winters. Summer highs average at 40 °C (104 °F) and winter highs at 25 °C (77 °F). These very high temperatures mean that the climate is classed as arid despite receiving around 370 millimetres or 15 inches of rainfall per year. Telfer's location near the hot Indian Ocean leaves the community vulnerable to tropical cyclones. For example, Cyclone Graham affected the area in early 2003, delivering 163 millimetres (6.4 in) of rain. Severe Tropical Cyclone Laurence also passed over the mine site in December 2009