Aug. 22] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE 1179

CLIMATOLOGICAL TABLE—continued

Summary of the Records of Temperature, Rainfall, and Sunshine for July, 1946—continued

NOTE.—At stations where departures from normal are in parentheses the record has been maintained for less than ten years in the case of temperatures and for less than twenty years in the case of rainfall and the normals are partly interpolated.

NOTES ON THE WEATHER FOR JULY, 1946

General.—July was a remarkably mild month, more like early spring than mid-winter. The snow fall in the high country has been unusually light. Some growth has been maintained in northern and central districts. A feature was the transition from the north-easterly type of weather situation which had been prevailing for many weeks past, and which early in the month gave exceptional rains in the far north to the westerly type, which brought substantial rain to the west coast of the South Island.

Rainfall.—With the exception of slight deficiencies in the Gisborne district, the Auckland Province received excess rain. For the middle portion of the Auckland Peninsula amounts were two to three times the average. Whangarei, with 20·10 in., experienced the wettest of any calendar month since records commenced in 1910, and 15·01 in. fell within the four-day period from the 3rd to 6th. Rainfall was a little below normal in Taranaki and the Manawatu, while the remainder of Wellington Province and Hawke’s Bay had deficiencies of about 50 per cent. Falls in the South Island were above average in western districts, but were rather lighter than usual elsewhere.

Temperatures.—For the country as a whole this was the mildest July since 1917. Over the North Island, as well as in Nelson and Marlborough, mean temperatures were from 2° to 4° F. above normal. Further south several frosty nights kept the values nearer normal. The first nine days were notable for the succession of sharp frosts in Southland and Central Otago. At Alexandra air temperatures remained below 32° F. from the 4th to the 8th July inclusive.

Sunshine.—The duration of bright sunshine was not significantly different from the normal for the month. The best totals were Nelson, 143·4 hours, and Auckland, 142·0 hours.

Weather Sequence.—Pressure systems were static during the first eight days, an anticyclone being located to the south-east of New Zealand and a low-pressure area to the north and west. Southerlies were giving showers on the 1st and 2nd in Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne. Winds then tended easterly or north-easterly generally, and rain spread southward over most of the Auckland Province, continuing over the Peninsula until the 6th, with serious flooding over its middle portion. It remained fine in Westland and Southland, where there were heavy frosts and only brief periods of drizzle occurred east of the ranges. On the 7th and 8th there was occasional rain restricted to the Bay of Islands and northward.

During the 9th and 10th a depression from the west passed Stewart Island, and a secondary centre passed over Auckland the following day. Rain was only light between Dunedin and Napier, but most other districts received moderate falls. Westerly conditions then prevailed with showery periods in western districts and Southland, there being heavy falls in the Southern Alps. Winds tended south-westerly, and by the 15th an anticyclone was moving centrally on to the country. The weather was generally fine, with widespread frosts on the 16th.

This anticyclone intensified as it moved eastward, and a depression off the west coast of Auckland was accompanied by some heavy rain on the 16th and 17th, but this disturbance weakened rapidly as it proceeded southward. Another from Lord Howe Island followed and passed through Cook Strait on the 19th. This was associated with moderate rains in most places, and north of its centre westerly winds were strong for a time.

A wedge from a northern anticyclone gave mainly fair weather on the 20th and 21st. A weakening trough passing eastward on the 22nd gave moderate rain in western districts of the South Island. There were numerous thunderstorms on the 24th with the passage of an active frontal system, and falls were very heavy in Westland, but only light amounts occurred in eastern districts.

Showers were clearing on the 25th as a wedge from an anticyclone to the north began to intensify. A complex system of depressions gave rather unsettled conditions from the 27th. One depression drifted eastward over Otago and a secondary travelled south-eastward across the North Island. Finally, on the 29th, a deep centre became established east of Chatham Islands. A ridge extended northward on to southern New Zealand, but a small depression moved eastward across Auckland on the 30th, and a trough was advancing on to Westland at the close of the month.

M. A. F. BARNETT, Director.

RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND

STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES OF THE RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND AS AT THE CLOSE OF BUSINESS ON MONDAY, 12TH AUGUST, 1946

*Expressed in New Zealand currency.

Proportion of reserve (No. 7 less No. 5) to notes and other demand liabilities, 72·396 per cent.

W. R. EGGERS, Chief Accountant.