‘Particularly dry month' for much of South Island
Talk about a dry July.
Earth Sciences New Zealand climate scientist Gregor Macara said high mean sea level pressure prevailed over much of the South Island during July, creating prolonged dry spells across much of Otago and Southland.
Ranfurly had 26 days without rain (July 4-29); Clyde, Cromwell, Lauder, Middlemarch, Queenstown and Tapanui had 25 days (July 4-28); Oamaru had 18 days (July 12-29); and Alexandra and Dunedin had 17 days (July 12-28).
And even when it did rain, very little fell, he said.
"It was a particularly dry month for Southland, with five locations observing near-record low July rainfall totals.
"This included Gore, where just 8mm of rain (14% of its July normal) was recorded.
"This resulted in the town's second-driest July since records began in 1907.
"Invercargill recorded 27mm of rain (37% of its July normal), making it the city's third-driest July since records began there in 1900."
Lumsden (26mm) and Tiwai Point (22mm) also recorded their third-driest July, and Manapouri (21mm) had its fourth-lowest July rainfall.
Temperatures were near average for most of the southern regions during July.
However, new record mean air temperatures were recorded at Milford Sound (7.5°C), Puysegur Point (10.3°C) and South West Cape (10.1°C) and Nugget Point recorded its second-highest mean air temperature with 7.9°C during the month.
From July 28-30, a warm northwesterly became established over the country, and dozens of locations observed record or near-record high daily maximum temperatures, he said.
On July 28, the relatively high temperatures were centred over southern parts of New Zealand, with Milford Sound, Puysegur Point and South West Cape also setting record high daily maximum temperatures.
"Milford Sound reached 19.3°C, exceeding its previous record of 17.6°C.
"It was also notable that this temperature was recorded well after sunset — between 8pm and 9pm.
"Daily maximum temperatures typically occur in the afternoon during daylight hours."
Mr Macara said at the other end of the scale was Cromwell, where a persistent inversion layer and frequent low cloud contributed to daily maximum temperatures that were lower than average, and daily minimum temperatures that were higher than average.
"Cromwell received 67 hours of sunshine for July (62% of normal), making it the lowest sunshine total for July since the town's records began in 1979."
Mr Macara said the weather records were associated with more northeasterly winds than normal for the country.
"Enso-neutral conditions remained present in the tropical Pacific, but trended towards La Nina-like conditions during the month.
"Sea surface temperatures around New Zealand were above average, particularly off the west coast of the country, with marine heatwave conditions experienced in these areas."
He said the mild start to winter for most of the country in June continued through July.
"The nationwide average temperature in July was 9.2°C, making it New Zealand's fourth-warmest July since Earth Sciences New Zealand's seven-station temperature series began in 1909."
john.lewis@odt.co.nz
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Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
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‘Particularly dry month' for much of South Island
Photo: ODT files Talk about a dry July. Earth Sciences New Zealand climate scientist Gregor Macara said high mean sea level pressure prevailed over much of the South Island during July, creating prolonged dry spells across much of Otago and Southland. Ranfurly had 26 days without rain (July 4-29); Clyde, Cromwell, Lauder, Middlemarch, Queenstown and Tapanui had 25 days (July 4-28); Oamaru had 18 days (July 12-29); and Alexandra and Dunedin had 17 days (July 12-28). And even when it did rain, very little fell, he said. "It was a particularly dry month for Southland, with five locations observing near-record low July rainfall totals. "This included Gore, where just 8mm of rain (14% of its July normal) was recorded. "This resulted in the town's second-driest July since records began in 1907. "Invercargill recorded 27mm of rain (37% of its July normal), making it the city's third-driest July since records began there in 1900." Lumsden (26mm) and Tiwai Point (22mm) also recorded their third-driest July, and Manapouri (21mm) had its fourth-lowest July rainfall. Temperatures were near average for most of the southern regions during July. However, new record mean air temperatures were recorded at Milford Sound (7.5°C), Puysegur Point (10.3°C) and South West Cape (10.1°C) and Nugget Point recorded its second-highest mean air temperature with 7.9°C during the month. From July 28-30, a warm northwesterly became established over the country, and dozens of locations observed record or near-record high daily maximum temperatures, he said. On July 28, the relatively high temperatures were centred over southern parts of New Zealand, with Milford Sound, Puysegur Point and South West Cape also setting record high daily maximum temperatures. "Milford Sound reached 19.3°C, exceeding its previous record of 17.6°C. "It was also notable that this temperature was recorded well after sunset — between 8pm and 9pm. "Daily maximum temperatures typically occur in the afternoon during daylight hours." Mr Macara said at the other end of the scale was Cromwell, where a persistent inversion layer and frequent low cloud contributed to daily maximum temperatures that were lower than average, and daily minimum temperatures that were higher than average. "Cromwell received 67 hours of sunshine for July (62% of normal), making it the lowest sunshine total for July since the town's records began in 1979." Mr Macara said the weather records were associated with more northeasterly winds than normal for the country. "Enso-neutral conditions remained present in the tropical Pacific, but trended towards La Nina-like conditions during the month. "Sea surface temperatures around New Zealand were above average, particularly off the west coast of the country, with marine heatwave conditions experienced in these areas." He said the mild start to winter for most of the country in June continued through July. "The nationwide average temperature in July was 9.2°C, making it New Zealand's fourth-warmest July since Earth Sciences New Zealand's seven-station temperature series began in 1909."
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