While this month's five days with maximum temperatures above 37 degrees set a record for Canberra it still was not as hot as it was 12 months ago.
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On January 18, 2013 - the 10th anniversary of the Canberra bushfires - the temperature soared to 42 degrees. Not only the warmest day of the year, it was the hottest January day since records began. It also remains the second hottest day the capital has experienced since February 1, 1968, when the mercury topped 42.2 degrees.
Much has already been made of 2013's ''freakish'' weather patterns and the fact it was Canberra's second hottest year on record with an average maximum of 21.7 degrees compared to 21.8 degrees in 2006.
This warming trend formed a key part of the weather narrative with 47 days above 30 degrees (compared with an average of 32) and one of the mildest winters on record.
Only four days in June and July, had maximums of less than 10 degrees compared with an average of 19 days. Just two nights recorded a minimum of more than minus 5 - well down on the average of seven nights.
While overnight temperatures tended to be unseasonably cool in autumn and spring, they were well above average in winter.
A cold snap in October, which damaged crops across the region, resulted in five nights with minimum temperatures below zero.
Of these, two nights were below minus 2 and included the coldest October night on record (minus 3.4) on October 18.
Overall 2013 was also much drier than average. Rainfall totalled 533.8 millimetres for the year, 13 per cent below the historical average of 614.4 millimetres.
This was despite a dramatically wet and wild beginning to the year with 43mm of rain recorded at Canberra Airport on January 27.
That was almost four times the 13.4mm logged for the whole of our sixth-driest-ever October.
''Rainfall was closer to normal during winter and spring,'' a Bureau of Meteorology spokesman said.
''June was the ninth wettest on record and September the seventh wettest , including 57.8 millimetres on September 17, the wettest September day on record.
''November rainfall (which included 28.6mm on Remembrance Day) was also well above average with the most days above 25mm on record.''
