Is it always hot in Australia? Why does Darwin talk about the wet season while Hobart gets out the winter coats? Climate is a Year 3 geography topic, and a great one to explore with a map. Here are Australia’s climate zones for kids, explained simply: the difference between weather and climate, the tropical north, the arid centre, the temperate south, Mediterranean Perth and Adelaide, and how the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) maps it all.
What is the difference between weather and climate?
The BOM explains that weather is the conditions we get “from hour to hour, or day to day”: temperature, rain, wind and sunshine. Climate is “the same conditions over a much longer period”, usually described as averages. KidStudy’s lesson puts it in words a child can hold onto: “Weather is what the sky is doing today. Climate is the usual weather of a place, year after year.”
How long is long enough? The BOM’s climate maps are each “based on 30 years of observational data”, the period the World Meteorological Organisation recommends. So one chilly day in Darwin doesn’t change Darwin’s climate.
What climate zones does Australia have?
The BOM describes climate zones as “regions of the world that share similar temperature and rainfall patterns”, and says their location “is largely determined by their distance from the equator.” In Australia, that gives us:
- tropics in the north
- subtropics across much of the centre
- temperate zones in the south.
Mountains and the sea change the picture. The Great Dividing Range helps the temperate zone stretch up the New South Wales coast, and “Much of Australia’s interior is desert.” And, in the BOM’s words, “There are no cold or polar zones in Australia.” Its example of a polar zone is the Australian Antarctic Territory.
KidStudy’s lesson uses four everyday words for the main climates, all of which appear in the Victorian Curriculum: tropical, arid, temperate and Mediterranean. Here’s how some places compare, using long-term BOM averages.
| Place | Climate | Average top, January | Average top, July | Rain, January | Rain, July |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darwin | Tropical | 31.8 °C | 30.7 °C | 432.1 mm | 1.0 mm |
| Yulara (near Uluṟu) | Arid | 38.6 °C | 20.8 °C | 28.7 mm | 14.8 mm |
| Melbourne | Temperate | 26.7 °C | 13.2 °C | 42.4 mm | 35.0 mm |
| Hobart | Temperate | 21.8 °C | 11.9 °C | 46.3 mm | 51.9 mm |
| Perth | Mediterranean | 31.9 °C | 18.0 °C | 10.2 mm | 152.8 mm |
Stations: Darwin Airport, Yulara Airport, Melbourne Airport, Hobart (Ellerslie Road) and Perth Airport. Each average covers the station’s whole record.
The tropical north
The BOM says the tropical zone, “which includes places like Cairns and Darwin, is warm and humid most of the year.” Darwin’s average top temperature stays above 30 °C in every month. The north has distinct wet and dry seasons: the BOM defines the northern wet season as 1 October to 30 April, and the dry season as 1 May to 30 September. Look at the table: Darwin averages over 400 mm of rain in January and almost none in July.
The very top of Australia, including the Tiwi Islands and the Torres Strait Islands, is part of an equatorial zone. Our post on seasons in Australia for kids explains the wet and dry seasons, and the seasonal calendars of First Nations peoples, in more detail.
The arid centre
Arid means very dry. Geoscience Australia says Australia’s mainland deserts “are classified as arid”, and its list of the ten largest deserts adds up to 18% of the mainland. It describes Australia’s rainfall pattern as rings around “the extensive arid core of the continent”.
Desert temperatures swing a lot. At Uluṟu, Parks Australia says October to March “can get extremely hot, with daytime temperatures regularly exceeding 35°C”, while winter nights “can be very cold”. In July, Yulara averages a top of 20.8 °C but a minimum of just 4.5 °C.
One thing that can confuse: in its simple north-to-south zones, the BOM calls Alice Springs “subtropical”, because of its distance from the equator. On its more detailed climate map, much of the centre is “Desert”, surrounded by “Grassland”.
The temperate south
The BOM says temperate places like Hobart and Melbourne “have distinct seasons. There are warm, long days in summer, and cold, short days in winter.” It adds that most temperate regions tend to get more rain in winter than in summer. The BOM describes Melbourne as having “a temperate oceanic climate, characterised by four distinctive seasons”, and Sydney as temperate too.
Tasmania and the alpine regions have cold winters. The alpine regions get snow, although the BOM notes that snow depth, cover and the number of snow days there have decreased since the late 1950s.
Mediterranean Perth and Adelaide
A Mediterranean climate has hot, dry summers and wet winters. The BOM says “The Perth region experiences a hot-summer Mediterranean climate” and “The Adelaide region experiences a Mediterranean climate”. In Perth, about 80% of the year’s rain falls between May and October. Perth Airport averages just 10.2 mm of rain in January but 152.8 mm in July.
How does the BOM classify Australia’s climates?
The BOM publishes three kinds of climate map, each built from 30 years of data. On its website you can tap the coloured areas to see what each one means.
- Köppen (vegetation) map: six major classes and 28 sub-classes, “based on the climatic limits of different types of vegetation”. The six major classes are equatorial, tropical, subtropical, desert, grassland and temperate.
- Seasonal rainfall map: six major zones, based on when the rain falls, such as “Summer dominant”, “Winter dominant (Marked wet winter and dry summer)” and “Arid”.
- Temperature and humidity map: six zones, from “Hot humid summer” to “Mild to warm summer, cold winter”.
You won’t find a class called “Mediterranean” on these maps. The closest descriptions in the BOM’s lists are the temperate classes with a “distinctly dry” summer, and the “Winter dominant” rainfall zone. The curriculum’s four words are simpler labels for the same big pattern, which is why your child might see different names in different places.
What children learn about climate at school
- In Victoria, Geography for Years 3 and 4 (Levels 3 and 4) covers “climate and the characteristics and location of the main climatic types in Australia and the world, such as the temperate, Mediterranean and arid climates” (VC2HG4K06). Examples include “identifying the difference between climate and weather”. Children also learn to “locate, collect and record information and data from a range of sources” (VC2HG4S02).
- In the Australian Curriculum, used in most other states, Year 3 includes “identifying and locating examples of the main climatic types in Australia and neighbouring countries (for example, equatorial, tropical, arid, semi-arid, temperate)” (an example under AC9HS3K05).
KidStudy’s Year 3 Geography lesson Australia’s Climates sorts weather from climate, then visits tropical Darwin, the arid centre around Uluṟu, temperate Melbourne and Hobart, and Mediterranean Perth, with a map activity to find Darwin, Uluṟu, Melbourne and Perth. Its home activity, Climate detective, asks your child to guess which city will be warmest today, then look up the forecast for Darwin, Melbourne and Perth on the Bureau of Meteorology website or app and record the top temperature and whether rain is expected. For a map refresher, see Australia’s states and territories for kids, and our guide to sun safety for kids explains when to protect skin from UV.
Questions parents ask
What are the climate zones in Australia?
The Bureau of Meteorology describes tropics in the north, subtropics across much of the centre and temperate zones in the south, with desert across much of the interior. Its Köppen map has six major classes: equatorial, tropical, subtropical, desert, grassland and temperate.
What is the difference between weather and climate for kids?
Weather is what the sky is doing today. Climate is the usual weather of a place over many years. The BOM’s climate maps use 30 years of data.
What climate does Melbourne have?
Temperate. The Bureau of Meteorology describes Melbourne’s climate as temperate oceanic, with four distinctive seasons, mild to cold winters and warm to hot summers.
Why is Perth’s climate called Mediterranean?
The Bureau of Meteorology describes Perth’s climate as a hot-summer Mediterranean climate: warm to hot, dry summers and cool to mild, wet winters. About 80% of the Perth region’s rain falls between May and October.
Is most of Australia desert?
Much of the interior is desert. Geoscience Australia says the ten largest deserts cover 18% of the mainland, and the country has a large arid core with wetter land towards the coast.
Does Australia have a polar climate?
No. The BOM says “There are no cold or polar zones in Australia.” Its example of a polar zone is the Australian Antarctic Territory.
Sources
- Climate knowledge centre, Bureau of Meteorology
- Australian climate zones, Bureau of Meteorology
- Climate classification maps, Bureau of Meteorology
- Climate statistics for Australian locations: Darwin Airport (and Yulara, Melbourne Airport, Hobart and Perth Airport), Bureau of Meteorology
- National Water Account 2025: Perth climate and water (and the Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney pages), Bureau of Meteorology
- Areas of Australian and territory deserts, Geoscience Australia
- Climatic extremes, Geoscience Australia
- When to come: Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park, Parks Australia
- Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0: Geography, VCAA
- Australian Curriculum v9.0: HASS F–6, curriculum content, ACARA
