Tuesday is set to be a scorcher with temperatures possibly hitting 30C in some parts of the country. Photo / iStock
Put away the heaters and get out the sunhats, summer is well and truly here.
This week is set to be a scorcher with some parts of the country tipped to see temperatures soar to 30C on Tuesday, WeatherWatch has forecast
The places most likely to hit the 30C mark are Hawke's Bay, Canterbury, and Northland.
Temperatures would be boosted on Tuesday, and for some today as well, by a hot nor'wester that would be subtropical for North Islanders, the agency said.
The incoming warm subtropical winds would be caused by a departing high currently over northern New Zealand, it said.
"This high-pressure system will lie northeast of New Zealand on Tuesday and the anticyclonic flow around it will reach up to Samoa and Fiji and pull that airflow down and over New Zealand."
But by late Wednesday and Thursday, a cooler southwest flow will push it all away.
High cloud may limit how hot some parts of the country get, but if the sun is out - coupled with the nor'wester - then the 30C mark is possible in some places, it said.
Daytime highs in the east of both islands are forecast to be solidly in the mid to late 20s, WeatherWatch said.
Hawke's Bay - WeatherWatch tips Hawke's Bay to possibly be the hottest region with overnight lows on Monday night/Tuesday morning around 18 to 20C at the coolest part of the morning (5-6am). Highs in the shade on Tuesday will likely be in the late 20s with Hastings tipped to reach 29C. It is possible places inland could go a few degrees higher than that.
Northland - The upper half of the North Island will have the added aspect of humidity with the subtropical winds. Whangarei has a high of 28C on Tuesday but the Humidex temperature (or "feels like") is likely to be 32C.
Canterbury - Further south, Canterbury is more borderline with thicker cloud cover spreading over the Southern Alps at times and most places not quite in that subtropical flow. Still, highs in the mid to late 20s are possible so 30C isn't out of the question when a north-to-northwest wind is at play in December.
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