Australia swelters through its fifth hottest year on record: Bureau of Meteorology

Warmer average temperatures and the effect of El Nino have made 2015 Australia's fifth hottest year on record.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology said in its annual report on Wednesday that warmer temperatures, weather phenomena such as El Nino, and lower than average rainfall contributed to a warm, dry 2015.

Acting assistant director for climate information services, Scott Power, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that a number of heatwaves also resulted in the hot weather.

"The national mean temperature was 0.83 degrees Celsius above average, with a number of notable heatwaves during the year and record-breaking temperatures from October to December," Power said on Wednesday.

El Nino was declared in May last year, with the bureau forecasting long, dry spells as well as prolonged drought for areas already experiencing lower than average rainfall.

Power told the ABC it was the most damaging El Nino that Australia has witnessed in nearly two decades.

As a result, droughts formed in southern states, with parts of Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia all recording significantly lower levels of rainfall.

Meanwhile the usually-tropical Queensland recorded its third straight poor wet season, resulting in the continuation of the drought crippling its rural areas.

However, despite the big dry, Australia experienced a number of significant 'cold snaps' throughout 2015, which produced snow in low-lying areas which normally don't experience freezing conditions.

The findings from the bureau come on the back of a World Meteorological Organization report which said that 2015 would likely be the world's warmest year on record. Endit