Strong southwest winds give way to high pressure this week

Strong, cool west to southwest winds have covered the country the last few days, bringing a return to a more Autumn weather pattern.

West to southwest gales have affected many parts of central and southern New Zealand this past week, “Especially the far south on Wednesday where containers were blown off the wharf in Bluff and Stewart Island saw a gust of 148 km/h. While stations in the lower North Island were around 100-120 km/hr for much of the week.” Explains MetService Meteorologist Kyle Lee.

The southwest wind regime also meant a lot of the areas sheltered in this direction experienced more settled weather, which equates to cooler night time temperatures which are more along what we expect for this time of year. “Places at higher elevation in the South Island have been dropping well below 0C, with a ski field reporting as low as -9C, and more populated areas such as Pukaki and Tekapo dropping to about -2 or -3C over the last few days,” continues Lee.

MetService forecasts an easing trend from tomorrow as a ridge of high pressure builds from the Tasman Sea. Although there is still a Strong Wind Watch in force for the lower South Island until tomorrow morning.

Looking forward, the ridge of high pressure is expected bring more settled weather as well as lighter winds for most this working week. “Overnight temperatures are likely to continue to drop below 0C with frosts possible for many inland spots as we expect clearer skies over the next few days,” said Lee.

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