Taupō Weather Report: A wet end to May

It was a wet end to May in Taupō. Photo / NZME

Taupō's weather highlights. Photo / Supplied

The last month of autumn 2022 in Taupō produced weather statistics that were very close to what is expected for May.

Temperatures were very near to the average and only 67mm of rain that fell over the final three days pushed the month's rainfall above the normal. Small and regular amounts of rain fell during the middle of the month followed by almost a week of no precipitation, before the deluge over the final three days.

The wettest day was May 30 when a fall of 37mm was recorded.

The daytime maximum temperatures for May averaged 15.8C, 0.1C above the average with the hottest day being May 16 when the mercury topped 20C. Similarly, the nighttime minimum temperatures proved to be close to the average for the month reading 5.4C, again 0.1C above average.

The coldest day in May was May 27 with -1.8C when there was also a ground frost reading of -4.1C the heaviest frost recorded for the month. There was a total of seven frosts for the month, most of them light.

The month produced a brief period of windy conditions peaking with a gust of 54 km/h on May 21, but generally winds were light.

Overall, the Taupō autumn proved generally milder, calmer and drier than normal. Early indications are that winter is expected to follow a similar pattern.