Query: The unusual heat was most noteworthy in Europe, which had its warmest April on record, and Australia, which had its second-warmest.

Relevant passages:
Climate of Australia <=SEP=> Australia 's climate is governed largely by its size and by the hot , sinking air of the subtropical high pressure belt . This moves north and south with the seasons , so that the rainfall pattern over Australia is highly seasonal . Australia 's rainfall is the lowest of all continents except Antarctica . But it is variable , with frequent droughts lasting several seasons -- thought to be caused in part by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation . The climate varies widely due to its large geographical size , but by far the largest part of Australia is desert or semi-arid . Only the south-east and south-west corners have a temperate climate and moderately fertile soil . The northern part of the country has a tropical climate , varied between tropical rainforests , grasslands and part dessert .   Because Australia is a small continent , separated from polar regions by the Southern Ocean , it is not subject to the movements of frigid polar air that sweep over Northern Hemisphere continents during winter . Consequently , its winter is relatively mild , so that there is n't the great contrast between summer and winter temperatures there is in the northern continents . Yet in many parts of the country , seasonal highs and lows can be considerable : temperatures have ranged from above 50 C to well below zero . Nonetheless , minimum temperatures are moderated .   The El Niño-Southern Oscillation is associated with seasonal abnormality in many areas in the world . Australia is one of the continents most affected and experiences extensive droughts alongside considerable wet periods . Occasionally a dust storm will blanket a region and there are reports of the occasional tornado . Tropical cyclones , heat waves , bushfires and frosts in the country are also associated with the Southern Oscillation . Rising levels of salinity and desertification in some areas is ravaging the landscape .   Climate change in Australia is a highly contentious issue . Temperatures in the country have risen following an increasing trend of global warming between the years of 1910 to 2004 by approximately 0.7 ° C. Overnight minimum temperatures have warmed more rapidly than daytime maximum temperatures in recent years . The late-20th century warming has been largely attributed to the increased greenhouse effect . According to the Bureau of Meteorology , 80 % of the land has less than 600 mm of rainfall per year and 50 % has even less than 300 mm . As a whole , Australia has a very low annual average rainfall of 419 mm .

Australia <=SEP=> Australia ( -LSB- əˈstreɪliə -RSB- , -LSB- ɒ - -RSB- , -LSB- - ljə -RSB- ) , officially the Commonwealth of Australia , is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent , the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands . It is the world 's sixth-largest country by total area . The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea , Indonesia and East Timor to the north ; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east ; and New Zealand to the south-east . Australia 's capital is Canberra , and its largest urban area is Sydney .   For about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century , Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians ,  who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups . After the European discovery of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606 , Australia 's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788 . The population grew steadily in subsequent decades , and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored and an additional five self-governing crown colonies established . On 1 January 1901 , the six colonies federated , forming the Commonwealth of Australia . Australia has since maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states and several territories . The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard .   Australia has the world 's 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income ( IMF ) . With the second-highest human development index globally , the country ranks highly in quality of life , health , education , economic freedom , and civil liberties and political rights . Australia is a member of the United Nations , G20 , Commonwealth of Nations , ANZUS , Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ( OECD ) , World Trade Organization , Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation , and the Pacific Islands Forum .