# Is it "Summer" in Australia right now? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 13, 2011, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467 "2011-01-13T16:15:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/41 "2011-01-17T00:19:42Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > Since the words spring, summer, autumn, winter are English and thus developed on the Norther hemisphere, they initially referred to particular months of the year. When English as a language started spreading to the Southern hemisphere, it would just as well have been possible to keep it that way. So, you’d say that it’s universally “winter” all over the world in December and universally “summer” in August, even though “summer” would be the (relatively) cooler time of the year to the people on the Southern hemisphere. Of course, that’s not the usage that developed, but that was more of an historical coincident. It could have happened otherwise. I suppose so, but I greatly doubt it. The English word “winter” was never just a descriptor of a fixed calendar period. It also carried connotations of cold weather, shorter days, different diets, different clothes etc. It seems very unlikely to me that the colonial settlers from the northern hemisphere would simply have jettisoned all of that “baggage” and been comfortable referring to their hot weather period as “winter”. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/42 "2011-01-17T00:58:57Z")
> [@Gleena](#): > > Holy cow, I’ve been here 8 years and I never noticed about the moon! > > I need to go outside more. I made a handy-dandy [graphic](http://guanolad.com/stuff/moon_orientation.jpg) to explain (I hope it’s correct). We also have School years that start and end in Summer, like the US and UK do, but for us that is January to December, which conveniently fits a calendar year. It was a long time before I realised the Northerners do that differently, and once I did it cleared up a lot of confusion. ---
**Author:** ![MobiusStripes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d6d6ee/32.png) [@MobiusStripes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MobiusStripes)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/43 "2011-01-17T01:25:20Z")
> [@Weedy](#): > > This season starts when the wattle Weetjallen comes into flower and changes to Bana’marrai’yung when the lilly-pilly fruit starts to ripen.. We’re still talking about Australia, right? It’s starting to sound like Dr. Seuss 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/44 "2011-01-17T02:18:38Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I made a handy-dandy [graphic](http://guanolad.com/stuff/moon_orientation.jpg) to explain (I hope it’s correct). > > We also have School years that start and end in Summer, like the US and UK do, but for us that is January to December, which conveniently fits a calendar year. It was a long time before I realised the Northerners do that differently, and once I did it cleared up a lot of confusion. That is the number one thing I get asked about or have to explain is the difference in school years. ---
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/45 "2011-01-17T03:04:09Z")
Arrrhgh! I want to be in Melbourne right now! [sobs] In Calgary we’ve just had a whole week of minus 25C (-15F) with wind chill factors (_temp. the wind makes it feel like to human skin_) in the minus 30sC (-22F). Just walking from street to school door to get the kid and my cheeks hurt… Wife’s car battery died. And it was parked inside our house’s garage… I can feel the snot inside my nose freeze and get hard as I breathe… I got icicles in my moustache when I shoveled the driveaway… Can some aussie doper have a VB or a Fosters’s on a terasse and think of me… I wish I were with you… ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/46 "2011-01-17T07:25:00Z")
> [@trupa](#): > > Can some aussie doper have a VB or a Fosters’s on a terasse and think of me… I wish I were with you… I’d rather have my nose frozen than drink Fosters … but I’ll have a James Squires or two for you. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/47 "2011-01-17T10:08:58Z")
> [@trupa](#): > > Can some aussie doper have a VB or a Fosters’s on a terasse and think of me… I wish I were with you… Contrary to popular belief, Australians don’t actually drink Fosters. It is not marketed here and I haven’t noticed it being on sale (I’m sure it is but it is not placed prominently.) I have literally never seen someone drink Fosters. I would gladly have a James Squires Amber Ale for you though (just to get more specific.) ---
**Author:** ![Sevastopol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@Sevastopol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevastopol)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/48 "2011-01-17T10:25:49Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I made a handy-dandy [graphic](http://guanolad.com/stuff/moon_orientation.jpg) to explain (I hope it’s correct). Impressive work on the graphic there **GuanoLad**. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/49 "2011-01-17T12:22:35Z")
> [@Sevastopol](#): > > Impressive work on the graphic there **GuanoLad**. Except it’s upside down. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/50 "2011-01-17T12:52:27Z")
It may not be 100% correct orientation (it depends on your latitude) but it’s not 180° upside down. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/51 "2011-01-17T13:45:01Z")
Indeed, else people at the equator would get very confused. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/52 "2011-01-17T14:03:54Z")
> [@Sevastopol](#): > > Impressive work on the graphic there **GuanoLad**. Actually, compared to the other stuff on his website it’s quite ordinary ;). (Seriously, you have some awesome art there.) ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/53 "2011-01-17T17:48:16Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I can’t believe some of you didn’t know that’s how this worked. > > Did you also not know that we can see stars that you don’t, and the moon is upside down? Maybe the moon is right-side up for you and upside down for us! ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/54 "2011-01-17T21:28:58Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > It may not be 100% correct orientation (it depends on your latitude) but it’s not 180° upside down. Traitor! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/55 "2011-01-17T22:15:15Z")
> [@Sevastopol](#): > > Impressive work on the graphic there **GuanoLad**. I can’t see the sunset because of the giant man standing in central Canada. (seriously, nice graphic.) ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/56 "2011-01-17T23:18:14Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > I can’t see the sunset because of the giant man standing in central Canada. > > (seriously, nice graphic.) You think you’ve got it bad? Pity the poor people in South Africa – the impact of his counterpart in the South Atlantic caused the entire continent of Antarctica to slam into them. And yes, it’s a terrific graphic! ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/57 "2011-01-17T23:44:39Z")
Just like to point out I got the globe graphic from a clipart site, which is why it’s funny looking/partially transparent. And the moon was originally a photo. The rest is all my own work. ---
**Author:** ![A.Gwilliam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@A.Gwilliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.Gwilliam)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2011, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/58 "2011-02-12T00:55:01Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > Not only does everybody not agree when the seasons begin and end; they don’t even agree that there are four seasons. > > As others have pointed out, the in the tropical areas of Australia most people recognise only two seasons - wet and dry. In the temperate areas, the white population mostly recognises four, a habit imported from Europe, but the indigenous population have their own reckoning of seasons, based not only on weather but on what animals are doing, what plants can be eaten, and so on. Here in Perth six seasons are recognised. Six seasons are also recognised by at least some of the Aboriginal groups in the far north of the Northern Territory. I’m pretty sure that a book I have covers this in at least some detail, but it’s in storage… ☹ > [@](#): > > Note that all or nearly all native Australian trees and shrubs are evergreen, so there is no season when the leaves fall, and no season of new growth. I think the seasons in Tasmania approximate quite closely to the “traditional” seasons, though? ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2011, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/59 "2011-02-12T01:15:04Z")
> [@A.Gwilliam](#): > > I think the seasons in Tasmania approximate quite closely to the “traditional” seasons, though? I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t- New Zealand, which is on a similar latitude, generally has four distinct seasons (except in the Bay Of Islands and Far North area where it starts getting a bit sub-tropical, and at the southern end of the South Island, where it’s Cold most of the year) ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2011, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467/60 "2011-02-12T12:43:43Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t- New Zealand, which is on a similar latitude, generally has four distinct seasons (except in the Bay Of Islands and Far North area where it starts getting a bit sub-tropical, and at the southern end of the South Island, where it’s Cold most of the year) According to Wikipedia, the record cold in the South Island is “−21.6 °C (−6.9 °F) in Ophir, Otago.” [I think the Fahrenheit conversion is wrong, that should be more like 15°F] Right now, it is -29 °C (-20°F) outside my house. I have no sympathy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-summer-in-australia-right-now/567467.md?page=4)