Covering period of Thursday 28 November – Monday 2 December – After a spell of high temperatures across Aotearoa New Zealand, MetService is forecasting cooler conditions to start the weekend in the wake of a southerly change.
Rain and wind affect the South Island today (Thursday) as a cold front moves north over the island through this afternoon and evening. Northwesterly winds strengthen ahead of the front before switching to cold southerlies; a Strong Wind Watch is in force for Otago and Southland until 7pm this evening.
MetService meteorologist Ngaire Wotherspoon elaborates, “This moist northwesterly flow over the Southern Alps is a classic setup for the foehn effect, where rain on one side of the mountain means warmer and drier winds on the leeward (other) side. We’re already seeing hot, windy conditions in the east, while in the west there is heavier rainfall with a Heavy Rain Watch in place for Fiordland.”
Temperatures are expected to reach the high 20s for Canterbury and Otago, with a high of 29°C forecast for Timaru and 28°C for Christchurch. The southerly change passing through this afternoon and evening will mark significant drop in temperatures for both regions, as well as a sprinkling of rain. Timaru may struggle to reach the mid-teens on Friday, with a high of only 16°C forecast.
Northwesterlies also become strong and hot over the lower North Island this afternoon, with a Strong Wind Watch set to take effect for Wairarapa and southern Hawke’s Bay at 3pm, and Hastings and Wairoa are both forecast to hit 30°C.
The front moves on to the North Island early tomorrow, spreading a band of scattered rain and cooler temperatures as far north as Rotorua before stalling.
Wotherspoon remarks, “Rain from this weakened front sticks around over the North Island for the weekend, clearing on Sunday night. Down south the weekend is looking sunnier, with temperatures starting to warm up again on Sunday as we head into summer.”
MetService’s Canterbury weather radar is back in action today after undergoing a complete replacement over the past nine weeks. The new radar will provide improved services to communities in the Canterbury region. The radar imagery is very popular on metservice.com and the MetService weather app.
