KEY POINTS:
Subtropical Low
I'd be keen to hear from people who live in Gisborne, Wairoa and other north eastern parts of the North Island to report back on rainfall yesterday and overnight. MetService hasn't yet built the well overdue rain radar for East Cape so I'm not too sure exactly how much rain fell in the area - but early indications is that it was better than last weeks low.
Well that low will today fall apart...it simply doesn't have enough steam to keep going so will crumble, or the centre will "fill in". So what happens to our weather when a low just falls apart like that? Well it usually leaves somewhat unstable weather...usually humid, relatively calm weather, that creates nice big juicy afternoon heat showers developing.
Well they're likely today (although isolated) across northern and north eastern parts of the country. If you don't have access to rain radars the best tool for tracking them is simply using your eyes and watching the big fluffy clouds develop.
You'll get a good feeling if you see some moving in, they're not usually too hard to miss and may even be accompanied by an isolated thunder rattle.
I think they're most likely around Northland, East Cape and the ranges near Gisborne and northern Hawkes Bay.
Hot spots:
Plenty more late 20s and early 30s recorded in the South Island and lower North Island on Monday. Today will be no different although northern New Zealand, from Waikato upwards, might feel a bit more punch today with higher temps and high humidity making things feel hotter than they really are.
New Year's Eve quick update
Still looking hot and dry for most places - windy in Wellington, with rain or showers likely in Southland and the West Coast. A few drizzle patches are possibly in Taranaki and maybe a late shower or drizzle patch for Nelson...just depends on the wind direction for them. Go to the Weather Watch Centre for a full New Year's Eve forecast.
Next Update: Wednesday...your New Year's Eve forecast.
- Philip Duncan
