NIWA Climate Sumary for December 2009

NIWA National Climate Summary – December 2009: Very sunny in the north




NIWA (National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research) has just issued its official climate summary for December 2009.

Some key points are:

• Sunshine: Very sunny for the north and east of the North Island

• Rainfall: Dry in the north and east of both islands; very dry in the Far North

• Temperature: Near average for most of country

December sunshine totals were well above normal (more than 125 percent of normal) in the north and east of the North Island and parts of North Canterbury. Much of the rest of the country received above normal sunshine (between 110 and 125 percent of normal).

Well below normal rainfall (less than 50 percent of normal) was recorded in much of the Far North District for December. It was also drier-than-normal (between 50 and 80 percent of normal) in Central North Island, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, southern Hawkes Bay, Tararua District, Wairarapa, Northern South Island, Canterbury and Otago. December rainfall was above normal (between 120 and 150 percent of normal) in the south and west of the South Island and coastal Taranaki. Soil moisture levels on 31 December 2009 were well below normal (more than 50mm below normal) in the Far North, Central North Island and Eastern Bay of Plenty.

Temperatures were near average (between -0.5°C and 0.5°C from average) for most of the country. Below average temperatures (between 0.5 and 1.0°C below average) were recorded in parts of Hawkes Bay, Kapiti, South Canterbury, West Coast and Southland. Above average temperatures were recorded in parts of Bay of Plenty, Coromandel and Northland. The national average temperature was 15.3°C (0.3°C below the long-term December average).