21 Dec. THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE 2029

CLIMATOLOGICAL TABLE—continued
Summary of the Records of Temperature, Rainfall, and Sunshine for November 1955—continued

• Observations for 26 days only.

LATE RETURNS

| Kawerau, Oct. 1955 .. | 100 | 66·4 | 48·1 | 57·2 | .. | 73·0 | 23 | 37·0 | 9 | 8·69 | 16 | .. | 1·87 | 5 | .. |
| Ngaumu, Mastn., Oct. 1955 | 600 | 62·9 | 40·9 | 51·9 | .. | 71·6 | 31 | 27·1 | 29 | 2·44 | 9 | .. | 0·60 | 5 | .. |
| Appleby, Nelson, Oct. 1955 | 57 | 63·2 | 46·6 | 54·9 | +1·1 | 70·2 | 28 | 40·9 | 24 | 3·33 | 12 | (+0·07) | 0·94 | 12 | .. |

NOTE.—At stations where departures from normal are in parentheses, the temperature record has been maintained for less than ten years; the rainfall record for less than twenty years. Rainfall normals have been revised and now refer to the standard period 1921–50. Where observations are not available for the whole period, or where the site of the rain-gauge has been changed, the normals are partly interpolated.

NOTES ON THE WEATHER FOR NOVEMBER 1955

General: November was a warm, windy month, fairly typical of late spring. Temperatures were relatively uniform, in fact the prevailing warmth and absence of cold spells have been a feature of the whole season. Winds were mostly from a westerly quarter and often strong; a strong north-westerly gale caused minor damage over a wide area between Canterbury and Hawke’s Bay on the 26th.

On the east coast there was little growth, and shortage of feed was beginning to cause concern. In the dairying districts, however, conditions were generally very favourable.

Rainfall: It was very dry in east coast districts of the North Island, rainfall being less than half the average. In Northland and the greater part of the South Island rainfall was about average. The remainder of the North Island, Banks Peninsula, and inland districts of Southland and North Canterbury received about one-half to three-quarters of the average rainfall.

Temperatures: Apart from a small negative departure in Westland, temperatures were above average — mostly by about 1° F., but by as much as 2° F. about the middle portions of Canterbury and Hawke’s Bay.

Sunshine: The duration of bright sunshine was about an hour a day better than average from the Otago coast northwards to Wairarapa. Southland and Westland were slightly less favoured, but in Nelson and the greater part of the North Island totals were about half an hour a day below average.

Weather Sequence: At the beginning of the month a deep depression was passing far to the south. During the first three days several troughs of low pressure moved across the country causing rather unsettled weather, except in eastern districts which received very little rain. From the 4th to the 8th an extensive belt of high pressure covered New Zealand and the weather was fine, apart from a few showers and some thunder in the North Island on the 7th and 8th.

From the 9th to the 18th a series of fast-moving westerly depressions caused rapid alternations in weather. In the west and south there were moderate falls of rain on the 10th, 13th, and 16th, with brief fine spells between. On the east coast between Christchurch and Gisborne, however, the only rainfall occurred with a few showers on the 10th.

The weather deteriorated generally over the North Island during the 18th when a cold front became stationary to the north. Two small depressions which formed on it over the North Tasman Sea moved across the Auckland Province on the 19th and 20th, causing substantial rainfalls from Hamilton northward over the three days. Conditions remained somewhat unsettled on the West Coast and in the far south. By the 21st a deep depression had developed far to the south-east, and showers extended to eastern districts of the South Island, with some thunderstorms. On the following day pressure was rather low to the north-east, and showers extended further northwards accompanied by thunder and hail in places, especially on the central plateau of the North Island.

Another two westerly depressions crossed the country between the 23rd and 27th, the second being very deep. As its centre passed Campbell Island on the morning of the 26th there were strong north-westerly gales from Canterbury to Hawke’s Bay. A weak ridge of high pressure brought a general clearance on the 27th.

The passage of a complex depression on the 28th was accompanied by rain over the greater part of the country, especially in the North Island, with some substantial falls in the far north. On the next day pressures rose sharply in the south and there was an improvement in the weather in most districts. However, cool southerly winds brought showers about Cook Strait and the east coast from Kaikoura to Gisborne. On the last day of the month the weather was generally fair or fine during the passage of a weak ridge of high pressure.

M. A. F. BARNETT, Director,
(N.Z. Met. S. Misc. Pub. 107)