Your weather: Calm start to the week before rain, snow arrive tonight

A cloudy morning is on the cards for the upper North Island. File photo / Michael Craig

A ridge of high pressure is bringing mostly calm and warm weather across the country today ahead of another wintry blast arriving tonight.

The central and upper North Island would see just a bit of cloud this morning and temperatures in the mid-teens, MetService meteorologist Mark Todd said.

Similar settled weather was the story for much of the country, with just some heavy rain forecast about Fiordland ahead of a front arriving in Southland around midnight.

The front was forecast to stall over the lower western South Island, with snow levels lowering to 300m.

After a chilly start in many places, mild to warm temperatures are forecast for your Monday afternoon https://t.co/Yjbq0jxdqz ^PL pic.twitter.com/xL0VJsVDn3

— MetService (@MetService) August 26, 2018

The area was under a heavy snow watch, with up to 10cm forecast over 500m and lesser amounts to 300m.

On Tuesday the front would weaken, with just some patchy rain forecast in Canterbury.

A ridge of high pressure over the north of New Zealand would move away to the east during the day, allowing a moist and strong north to northeast flow to spread over the country.

On Wednesday, a front would move on to New Zealand from the west and was forecast to become slow moving over eastern Bay of Plenty on Thursday, before moving away to the east on Friday.

This front would bring rain to all of New Zealand, with the heaviest falls in western areas, Todd said.

The final week of winter is upon us! What is the weather up to? 🌥️ 🌧️

Mon: mild day south, dry north with fog clearing.
Tue: increasing cloud north, southerly change south.
Wed: rainy for many.
Thu: rain lingering east, sunny breaks elsewhere.
Fri: decent end to the week. pic.twitter.com/bsTr9aZtcF

— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather) August 26, 2018

Rain could get particularly heavy about northern parts of Nelson, and also about Westland, Buller, Northland, northern Auckland including Great Barrier Island, Coromandel Peninsula, western Bay of Plenty and Mt Taranaki.

The risk of heavy rain would extend to eastern Bay of Plenty including the Gisborne ranges from later Wednesday through to early Friday.

On Friday a low could develop along the front east of Gisborne before moving away to the east later in the day, with potential for more heavy rain.

Today's weather

Whangārei

Morning cloud then fine apart from evening cloud. Light winds. 16C high, 7C overnight.

Auckland

​ Low cloud or fog clearing in the morning, then fine apart from some evening cloud. Light winds. 16C high, 7C overnight.

Hamilton

Morning fog or frosts, then fine apart from evening cloud. Light winds. 15C high, 3C overnight.

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Tauranga

Fine with light winds. 16C high, 6C overnight.

New Plymouth Fine apart from some morning cloud. Northwest breezes. 15C high, 8C overnight.

Napier Fine with early frosts. Northerlies. 17C high, 2C overnight.

Wellington Fine apart from morning cloud. Gusty northerlies. 14C high, 11C overnight.

Nelson Fine with a frosty start. Light winds. 15C high, 4C overnight.

Christchurch Fine with morning frosts. Northerlies. 18C high, 3C overnight.

Dunedin Fine with high cloud. Rain developing overnight as northerly turns southerly. 17C high, 7C overnight.