It's not only the appearance of dragonflies but many other signs in nature which reveal the dry season has arrived in Katherine.
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With only a few weeks to go before the official end of the wet season, it is time to see how bad it actually was.
No-one would be surprised to learn rain totals are down by a quarter.
Calculating our wet season totals so far against average, rain has fallen 25 per cent short.
So far the wet season has produced 800.8mm, according to Tindal weather station records. The average is 1064mm.
The Bureau of Meteorology says the monsoonal flow which affected parts of northern Australia last week has completely dissipated.
In its place, the Trade Winds, a persistent east to southeasterly wind flow, have resumed as the dominant wind regime over northern Australia.
The trade winds are typically associated with dry season conditions over northern Australia. However, as a moist, onshore wind they can generate significant rains along the tropical Queensland east coast at virtually any time of the year.
Typically, the weather pattern and conditions that support the Australian monsoon break down at this time of the year, as the annual wet season (October to April) comes to an end.
"The official northern dry season commences May 1 each year, however there are already signs that dry season conditions are developing," the bureau said.
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"Typical signs include increased sunshine and less cloudiness, lack of widespread rain and a reduction in relative humidity during daytime hours.
"During the next few weeks, relative humidity will decrease even further and become noticeable overnight as well, leading to a reduction in overnight temperatures."
While daytime and overnight temperatures will gradually moderate in the coming weeks and months, the bureau's climate outlook suggests temperatures are likely to continue to be higher than average over northern Australia during May to July.
This follows a very warm summer period with average daytime and overnight temperatures at record levels across much of northern Australia since December 2018, due in part to the below-average rainfall experienced across much of the region in recent months.
The Bureau's ENSO Outlook remains at El Nino ALERT. This means the chance of El Nio developing in 2019 is approximately 70%; around triple the normal likelihood.
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