September 2008

[J07]

http://www.niwascience.co.nz/ncc/cs/monthly/mclimsum_08_09

http://www.niwascience.co.nz/__data/assets...299/0809sum.pdf

Temperatures above average almost everywhere, national average temperature of 11.1C is 0.7C above average.

In Wellington:

In a word, dull....

Average temperature of 11.0C which is 0.4C above average.

We had 181 mm of rain, which is 180% of normal. That is rather a lot.

We had 127 hours of bright sunshine, a pitiful 81% of normal. That is less than we had in August and only very slight more than in June.

Luckily, October has begun on a sunny note.

Wind

We've got wind. Back on form.

Castlepoint recorded a gust of 102mph, the highest September gust recorded there.

Hot

Clear to all was how the month was characterised by persistent and strong northwesterlies and northerlies. This is a cue for hot, dry weather in the east.

Record high September temperatures were recorded in:

Timaru with 26.8°C,

Dunedin with 25.6°C,

Kaikoura with 25.5°C,

Nugget Point with 23.9°C

Culverden, eastern South Island had an average daily high of 18C, 3C above average. This is down to the significance of the Foehn wind that blew there frequently all month. That to me is more like late Spring or early Summer.

Cold

However, just to even the score, several places recorded near-record coldest September days ever, with Waipawa West reaching only 6C early in the month, it's 2nd lowest September temperature on record.

Also a number of cold nights, with Ngawi falling to 3C one night- a record low temperature in September for them, and Balclutha to -4.2C, also a record low.

The lowest temperature was -6C in Alexandra.

Wet

I find this quite a large total. Mount Cook Village (it's not on the mountain itself, it's on the eastern side, at about 800m ASL) got a 1-day rainfall of 236mm, their third highest one day total in September since 1928.

Dry

Gisborne had only 13mm of rain, 15% of normal. The whole of the North Island.....except Wellington it seems.....had a generally dry month. A welcome change after a wet July and August.

Sunny

Again....apart from Wellington.

Waipawa hit 207 hours, 141% of normal.

Kaitaia hit 198 hours, and also an average daily high of 17C. Which to me does not sound like the first month of Spring.

Auckland had 199 hours. I call that "stealing".

Snow

Snowbase at 2000m on Ruapehu remains at 4m+. Skifields on South Island less healthy.

Some interesting stories this month.

Wedderburn in Central Otago got 12cm of snow in a few hours. 9cm of snow in 3 hours at Athol. Lindis Pass closed due to a jackknifed truck in the snow.

Arrowtown went from a high of 20C one day to a midday temperature of 2C the next, with decent snow falling.

Comparison with the UK March 2008

Mean Temps:

NZ: 11.1C (0.7C above average)

UK: 5.1C (0.4C above average)

Max Temps:

NZ: 26.8C

UK: 15.8C

Min Temps:

NZ: -6.0C

UK: -11.4C

Wind:

NZ: 102mph

UK: 91mph

Sunshine:

NZ: 159 hours (mean of 5 main cities)

UK: 116 hours (Meto cited)