Weather Watch: Mother Nature keeps us guessing around globe

Days of historic heat in California are ending with scattered thunderstorms and lightning strikes. Photo / AP

September was the month Mother Nature woke up after what was a long sleep. After a quiet summer, autumn and winter, spring has started off in spectacular fashion - from the 7.1 magnitude quake in Christchurch on September 4, to the 300 aftershocks that followed, to the Southern Ocean storm that cut power to 80,000 nationwide, spawned tornadoes in the north and killed half a million lambs in Southland.

But the rough side of nature stopped the minute we put our clocks forward last weekend - as if Mother Nature knew we were now in summer mode.

Southland's highs jumped into the top end of the teens this week. Federated Farmers board member David Rose told me on Country99TV that the sunnier weather has really lifted farmers' spirits in the region.

The heat also spread into eastern and northern areas, with highs jumping to 24C in both islands, that same day we put our clocks forward.

September really was an unpredictable month. The Bay of Plenty Times reported Tauranga recorded 155.5 sunshine hours, saying it was "woeful compared with normal figures".

Of the country's six main centres, Tauranga took the dubious honour of being the wettest - its recording of 528mm over the season was 144 per cent above normal.

But if you love the warm weather, you're going to like the forecast for this coming week: more sun and warmth for everyone as a large high moves in from Australia.

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Speaking of heat, Los Angeles this week recorded its highest ever temperature: a sizzling 45C. This was their hottest day since records began back in 1877. The record heat comes hard on the heels of the Weather Channel naming Los Angeles as having one of the five worst summer of 2010, because it was so unusually cool.

Meanwhile, John Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology policy, said the term global warming was a dangerous misnomer, which should be replaced by global climate disruption.

Why do I get the feeling this will also lead to further debate? Heated debate, of course.