1000
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE
No. 41

CLIMATOLOGICAL TABLE—continued
Summary of the Records of Temperature, Rainfall, and Sunshine for June 1956—continued

†Observations for 25 days.

LATE RETURNS

| Waihi, April 1956 .. | 354 | 69·5 | 58·6 | 64·0 | +6·6 | 78·0 | 12 | 43·0 | 3 | 18·39 | 27 | +10·74 | 4·93 | 5 | 64 |
| Waihi, May 1956 .. | 354 | 62·5 | 49·9 | 56·2 | +3·7 | 70·4 | 6 | 33·3 | 19 | 14·59 | 19 | +6·17 | 2·98 | 28 | 91 |
| Molesworth, April 1956 .. | 2,930 | 62·4 | 42·5 | 52·4 | +5·2 | 74·0 | 2 | 27·0 | 30 | 3·87 | 12 | +1·81 | 1·57 | 23 | .. |
| Molesworth, May 1956 .. | 2,930 | 51·3 | 33·9 | 42·6 | +2·1 | 64·2 | 4 | 23·0 | 16 | 1·87 | 9 | −0·67 | 0·86 | 28 | .. |
| Roxburgh Hydro, May 1956 .. | 350 | 52·9 | 37·7 | 45·3 | .. | 65·1 | 12 | 27·0 | 17 | 2·88 | 8 | −1·48* | 0·90 | 13 | .. |

NOTE.—At stations where departures from normal have an asterisk, 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 JUNE 1956

General: June was a mild month, but unsettled, especially in western districts. Generally the mild weather proved favourable to stock, and growth was good for the time of the year. However, in the Auckland Province it was the third month of wet weather, and in some areas the ground was waterlogged.

There was an unusually high frequency of winds from a westerly quarter for June. Three small local tornadoes were reported. Two of these occurred on the 7th, one at Bell Block, New Plymouth, and the other at Mangatoitoi, north-east of Kaitaia. The third occurred on the 29th at Oakura, south-west of New Plymouth.

Rainfall: Rainfall was appreciably above normal in western districts and also in most of the high country. In Waikato, and in parts of the King Country, North Taranaki, and Rotorua totals were more than twice the usual value. In the Hamilton-Ngaruawahia area rainfalls ranged from 12½ to over 17 inches, and it was the wettest month for over 40 years.

It was drier than usual in eastern districts from Dunedin to Castlepoint and from just north of Napier to East Cape. On the Canterbury Plains rainfall was only half the usual amount.

An unusually large number of thunderstorms were reported, especially in western districts, from the 18th to the 22nd.

Following on considerable rain from the 17th to the 20th, the Waikato River was in flood below Hamilton, in the Rangiriri area, for the last ten days of the month and until well into July. Flooding was reported in many other parts of the Auckland Province during the month. On the 2nd and 3rd parts of the Coromandel coast were seriously affected, while on the 11th parts of Northland were flooded for the tenth time in six months.

Temperatures: Temperatures were above normal over the whole country, mainly by 2–3°F.

From the 19th to the 21st snow fell on the high country of both islands and to low levels in parts of Otago and Southland.

Sunshine: Sunshine was mainly a little below normal. However, in the Nelson-Buller area and the Waikato the deficiency was equivalent to an hour a day.

Weather Sequence: During the first four days of the month a depression which had formed near Gisborne at the end of May moved away south-eastward. However, another depression over the North Tasman Sea crossed the North Island, bringing with it more rain. Some heavy falls were reported from the Auckland Province, with flooding in Northland and the Coromandel Peninsula. A temporary clearance occurred on the 5th with the passage of a weak ridge of high pressure, but during the next two days rain again affected the North Island as a depression from the central Tasman Sea moved through Cook Strait. Many districts of both islands also received some brief rain on the 8th during the northward passage of a weak trough of low pressure.

Behind the trough pressures rose rapidly, and by the 9th an intense anticyclone was centred over the South Island. At first the whole country benefited, but conditions soon deteriorated again in the north with the approach of a deep depression over the Tasman Sea. By the 11th rain and strong to gale north-easterly winds were affecting most of the Auckland