Australia got so hot this year that meteorologists had to add a new color to heat maps!
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology has had to add two new colors: deep purple and pink because the temperatures there are literally off the charts. The previous temperature range had been capped at 50 degrees Celsius (122F) and now it goes to 54 (129.2). This is well above the all time record temperature of 50.7 degrees that they reached on January 2, 1960.
The first 6 days of 2013 were among the 20 hottest on record in terms of average maximums, and the country has set a new national average maximum of 40.33 degrees on Monday. Harsh conditions are feeding giant fires that could have catastrophic consequences.