This storm sent Sydney into social media mania. Picture: Braden Fastier

Australia loves a good weather event. From heatwaves, snow storms, hammering hail or even cold snaps — mother nature is big business.

Twitter’s 2015 most tweeted terms indicate hot, climate, vicweather, summer and sunset were some of the biggest trending words across the country — with Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane being the biggest weather junkies of all.

On a social scale; weather sends us wild.

“They stand out. Weather events are often unique and different and people are drawn to that,” clinical psychologist Dr Vivienne Lewis from University of Canberra said.

“Even though we have storms quite often, they aren’t regular enough for people to be bored by them. People think ‘ooh that’s different,’ and because the big ones are quite rare, people are intrigued by them.

“Same with heatwaves. They are treated with the same intrigue like when someone gets a new job at work, or you’re going on a holiday — people are interested in that.”

Storm chaser and cameraman Daniel Shaw agreed that weather was one of the rare elements of life that everyone had an opinion on.

“Everyone has a natural curiosity with the weather, and it’s perhaps the most topical conversation on the planet,” Mr Shaw said.

“It effects people that have been rained on, effected by heat, witnessed something spectacular.

“Storms have a beauty to them. It’s a photographers dream and it’s a challenge to know how to track a forecast and capture these weather events in such a dynamic environment. Being a witness to these forces of nature and being able to capture them in such a relative way is a reward in itself.”

In a climate of around-the-clock weather coverage and social media trends, why has our weather sent us wild?

Channel 9’s Today Show prides itself on comprehensive weather coverage across the country. If there’s an event, their weatherman Stevie Jacobs is on the beat.

“You have peoples lives on the line when it comes to weather, and that’s why people sit up and take note and listen,” Mr Jacobs told news.com.au

“People have always been interested in the weather. They always stop to talk about it. In the past five years, there’s been a real shift in people wanting to know more about what to expect, where the weather is coming from and when it will happen.

“Now with the Bureau of Meteorology and the research that’s out there, people want to know ahead of time what’s happening because there’s been so much devastation because of the weather. They was to be able to prepare.

“Media needs to keep up with social media, be the Johnny-on-the-spot who can report what’s going on as fast as anyone else. We get sent photos every morning and we even call for photos. People are really quick to send their pictures because they want to share what’s happening in their backyard with the world.”

Some would suggest we are just in the grip of yet another modern-day addiction spurred on by the media, like local TV weather forecasts, internet sites, blogs, mobile apps, or 24-hour channels dedicated to bringing you the latest and greatest in weather events around the country, and even the world.

“There is a bit of competition to capture something first [during a weather event],” Dr Lewis said.

“If you’re the first person to capture and post the first drop of snow from the year, or the lightening strike during a big storm, people respond and are interested. But if you’re the 20th person to post it, viewers just aren’t as interested in. People pay more attention to the first post, so they want to get it up there first.

“Children are also a category who are more intrigued by weather events as well. It’s why kids also develop phobias around storm events, because they haven’t seen it before and it can be frightening.”

Australia isn’t the only country who loves a good weather event. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied

Weather junkies span worldwide. One of the classic cliches about the Brits is their obsession with fluculations in the weather and their headlines to match. But if you think they’re obsessed, try the Americans.

“We Americans love our weather,” said Justin Roberti, a spokesman for AccuWeather told Pittsburgh Post Gazette. “Weather is very personal to us. We use it to run our lives, and we’re very emotional about it.”

And Mr Shaw, who splits his time tracking tornadoes in the US agrees.

“They [Americans] call Australia the lucky country when you consider people who are affected by weather in the US,” Mr Shaw said.

“While we have very significant weather, the US are subjected to storms of such great magnitude that their cities and towns can be relocated in to other states. For this reason, Australia really is the lucky country.”