Australia experienced its hottest month on record in January, despite floods and storms that devastated parts of the country's east, officials said. The Bureau of Meteorology said both the average mean temperature of 29.68 degrees Celsius (85.42 degrees Fahrenheit) and the average mean maximum temperature of 36.92 Celsius surpassed previous records set in January 1932. The nation's central outback sweltered under a "dome" of heat for much of the month, with the Northern Territory posting its hottest mean temperature on record for January of 31.93 Celsius, the bureau said.