Wet spring ahead: Australia braces for more rain as BoM declares negative Indian Ocean dipole

Floodwaters west of Sydney, Australia in early July. Meteorologist Ben Domensino says Sydney has had a record wet weather this year so there is concern about the negative Indian Ocean dipole. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

A negative Indian Ocean dipole event has been declared, increasing the chances of above-average rainfall over much of Australia during the rest of winter and spring.

It is believed to be the first time since reliable records began in 1960 that negative Indian Ocean dipole events have occurred two years in a row.