According to the Bureau’s surface temperature record, 2014 was the 3rd hottest year on record. The satellite derived Lower Troposphere data from UAH (University of Alabama- Huntsville) show a different picture.
If rankings are important to you, 2014 at +0.40C was in equal seventh place with 2006, and cooler than 1980, and warmer than 1988 by 0.01C.
| 2013 | 0.71 | 1 |
| 2009 | 0.64 | 2 |
| 1998 | 0.63 | 3 |
| 2005 | 0.51 | 4 |
| 2007 | 0.50 | 5 |
| 1980 | 0.49 | 6 |
| 2014 | 0.40 | 7 |
| 2006 | 0.40 | 8 |
| 1988 | 0.39 | 9 |
| 2002 | 0.23 | 10 |
| 1991 | 0.22 | 11 |
| 2010 | 0.22 | 12 |
| 1996 | 0.17 | 13 |
| 2008 | 0.16 | 14 |
| 2012 | 0.14 | 15 |
| 2011 | 0.10 | 16 |
| 1990 | 0.09 | 17 |
| 2004 | 0.02 | 18 |
| 1981 | -0.01 | 19 |
| 1995 | -0.04 | 20 |
| 2003 | -0.05 | 21 |
| 1982 | -0.12 | 22 |
| 1979 | -0.13 | 23 |
| 1999 | -0.15 | 24 |
| 1985 | -0.22 | 25 |
| 1989 | -0.22 | 26 |
| 1987 | -0.22 | 27 |
| 1997 | -0.22 | 28 |
| 2000 | -0.24 | 29 |
| 2001 | -0.29 | 30 |
| 1986 | -0.29 | 31 |
| 1993 | -0.29 | 32 |
| 1983 | -0.36 | 33 |
| 1994 | -0.38 | 34 |
| 1992 | -0.56 | 35 |
| 1984 | -0.62 | 36 |
But don’t expect to find this reported by the ABC.
Tags: ABC, Bureau of Meteorology, UAH
kenskingdom 
January 11, 2015 at 4:48 pm
Ken, The UAH plot is of course only since 1979 whereas BOM claim that 2014 was the third hottest year since 1910. Unadjusted data indicates similarly hot years in the 1910s and 1920s.
I have plotted the 1910-2014 data for our nearby station at Moruya Heads and find that 2014 ranked as the 22nd hottest over that period! I suspect that an analysis at other locations would find similar results. The idea of computing average values over a state or nation is fairly meaningless to me. Better to concentrate on individual locations where there are good quality data.
January 12, 2015 at 10:59 am
Thank you Ken,
I have sent another…. email to the BOM, I’m not holding my breath….
I’ll cut and paste your table and resend,…. Maybe they’ll answer???
January 12, 2015 at 12:09 pm
Thanks, don’t expect much joy.
January 20, 2015 at 10:14 am
36 years of record and guess what 18 below the average and 18 above