Weather: Cold temperatures to kick off weekend before rain hits north

The country is waking to chilly single-digit temperatures this morning with central and southern regions hovering around or below freezing point.

Overnight temperatures dropped to -2C in Queenstown, marking the coldest part of the country.

Meanwhile, Auckland dipped to 6C overnight after clear skies returned following a stormy few days and as at 7am the city was sitting at 7C, although the MetService reported it feels like 5C.

The warmest place overnight appeared to be Kaitaia reaching 9C.

The mercury in Taupō and Milford Sound plunged to 0C overnight and got even lower in Twizel, Wanaka, Queenstown and Invercargill.

Yesterday, MetService said clear skies and light winds would mean the temperature would quickly drop away after sunset and lead to frosty spots in the morning.

There's plenty of clear sky across New Zealand tonight and that will help our temperatures take a bit of a dip.

A chilly morning to start the weekend. pic.twitter.com/s8TvDYazZi

— MetService (@MetService) July 22, 2022

It comes after a wild few days where hurricane-force winds battered the capital, forcing all flights in and out of Wellington to be cancelled, along with ferry sailings across Cook Strait.

An 11m wave was recorded at the mouth of Wellington's harbour on Thursday and a stretch of road in Eastbourne was closed because surging waves were breaking over it.

Rain is expected in several areas from Sunday into early next week.

MetService says a front, preceded by a strong to gale northeast flow, will move slowly southwards across Northland late on Sunday, bringing heavy rain.

Another northerly rainmaker next week - what's behind the wet? 💧

The combination of a strengthening negative Indian Ocean Dipole + restrengthening La Niña = more moisture for lows to harness as they track toward New Zealand.

The pattern may continue into August. pic.twitter.com/lPc8vPqZJH

— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather) July 22, 2022

The largest accumulations of rain are likely in the north and east and MetService has issued a Heavy Rain Watch, which is in force from 6pm Sunday until midnight on Monday.

The rain and strong east to northeast winds are expected to move south over central New Zealand and rain is also expected to start increasing in the east of the South Island.

Heavy rain and severe gales are predicted for Auckland, Coromandel Peninsula, western Bay of Plenty and northern Waikato.