Why is Melbourne weather so bad: How long will La Nina continue in Australia?

The third and final ODI between England and Australia will take place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground today in just a few hours from now, and along expected lines, chances for weather to stay clear so as to not play spoilsport is not a certainty.

Even during the recently concluded T20 World Cup 2022, while three matches had to be abandoned due to rain, one result had to be arrived at by the DLS method.

Fans were lucky to have witnessed the grand finale without any rain interruption, as the forecast ahead of the match eve did not look promising at all. In fact, the day after the final (November 14) experienced torrential rainfall.

Melbourne, the capital city of Victoria, the New South Wales, and the state of Tasmania were under emergency flood warnings throughout most of the previous month, with Victoria being the hardest hit state by the floods of them all.

Why is Melbourne weather so bad

Australia is experiencing the effect of the ‘La Lina’ weather phenomenon for the third consecutive year. La Lina refers to a weather condition in the Pacific Ocean, which results in more than an average rainfall in Australia’s Eastern part in particular. For those unaware, Melbourne is situated in the Southeastern part of the country.

This phenomenon, which generally occurs once in every few years, begins in the Pacific Ocean. During a La Lina year, the winds above the Pacific Ocean blow/move at a really high intensity which pushes lots of warm ocean water west toward Australia and Indonesia.

With these warm waters the clouds move as well, thereby bringing about more than usual, torrential rainfall in Australia and Indonesia. The Eastern part of Australia is the most affected by this La Nina phenomenon.

How long will La Nina continue in Australia?

The effect of La Lina usually dissipates especially during the upcoming summer season, which is also when Australia experiences the monsoonal rains.

However, as per the Bureau of Meteorotology, there is a warning of widespread flooding in eastern and northern Australia until April, as the stubborn La Lina effect is expected to last at least till the end of this year, impacting weather and climate.