Source: Earth Sciences New Zealand
Exactly how wet was it last month? Very.
Fifteen locations recorded their wettest or second-wettest January, including an astounding 494 mm of rain at Whitianga in the Coromandel Peninsula. Kaikōura logged 266 mm of rain, which is 562 percent of normal January rainfall, and Tauranga and Whitianga both had 515 percent of their normal rainfall.
This was thanks to two significant areas of low pressure 18-20 January and 20-22 January.
More highlights:
– The highest temperature was 36.8°C, observed at Napier on 11 January.
– The lowest temperature was 0.0°C, observed at Waipounamu on 30 January.
– The highest 1-day rainfall was 274 mm, recorded at Tauranga on 21 January.
– The highest wind gust was 194 km/h, observed at Cape Turnagain on 11 January.
– Of the six main centres, Tauranga was the warmest and wettest, Dunedin was the coolest, driest, and least sunny, and Auckland was the sunniest.
– The sunniest four regions in 2026 so far are Taranaki (286 hours), Tasman (270 hours), Auckland (258 hours), and wider Nelson (254 hours).
