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

† Observations for 26 days.

LATE RETURNS

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 NOVEMBER 1956

General: November was a month of unsettled weather. For most of the country the combination of adequate rain and warm temperatures proved favourable for growth, but in some inland districts of the South Island it was too wet. Shearing and haymaking have been delayed in many districts of both islands.

A small local tornado passed over Roto-o-Rangi, near Cambridge, on the 6th.

Rainfall: Rainfall was more than 50 per cent above normal over most of the provinces of Taranaki, Canterbury, and Otago. The interior of Canterbury and North Otago received mainly two to three times as much rain as usual.

The only substantial area with rainfall appreciably below normal was southern Hawke’s Bay.

A number of severe thunderstorms with hail were reported in Taranaki and the National Park - Taihape area on the afternoon of the 26th. In New Plymouth 1·75 inches of rain fell in just under an hour, flooding many streets and causing considerable damage. Another thunderstorm downpour affected New Plymouth in the early hours of December 1st, again causing flooding.

It has been an unusually wet year in the North Island. In the northern half of Northland the rainfall to date already exceeds any previous totals for the whole year.

Temperature: Mean temperatures were a degree above normal over most of Southland, in coastal districts of Otago and South Canterbury, also in southern and eastern districts of the North Island. The Palmerston North - Napier area was two degrees warmer than usual.

In the interior of the South Island temperatures were below normal by a degree.

Sunshine: Sunshine was below normal, except in parts of Northland and Taranaki and in the Wellington - Palmerston North area. In some western and inland districts of the South Island the deficiency amounted to 2–3 hours per day. For Lake Tekapo, Alexandra, and Queenstown it was the cloudiest November in 25–30 years of record.

Weather Sequence: On the 1st a deep depression from the Tasman Sea moved across the South Island, bringing rain to the whole country. For the next two days fair weather prevailed under the influence of a ridge of high pressure extending from an anticyclone to the north.

From the 4th to the 7th two more depressions crossed the South Island. The weather was unsettled in most districts and temporarily much colder, with snow well down on the Southern Alps. For the next five days an anticyclone was centred near the Chatham Islands, and at first a depression was stationary off the Westland coast. Later a deeper depression passed close to Southland. It was a period of unsettled weather, except in eastern areas from Canterbury to Gisborne. On the 8th and 9th a number of thunderstorms with hail were reported in coastal districts from Invercargill to Oamaru.

On the 13th a ridge of high pressure brought fair weather, but on the following day there was rain in Otago and Southland with the passage of a weak trough. From the 15th to the 18th the weather was fair and at times rather warm over the greater part of the country, under the influence of an anticyclone centred near the Chatham Islands. However, the presence of a depression over the central Tasman Sea caused rain on the West Coast; and a deep depression of tropical origin to the north brought showers to Northland. By the 19th the first of these two depressions covered New Zealand, with centres east and west of the South Island. For the next three days showery conditions predominated, with some severe thunderstorms in parts of Otago and Canterbury on the 20th. On the 23rd and 24th a depression moved down the east coast of the North Island, bringing rain to the Auckland Province, while a trough of low pressure affected most of the South Island.

For the remaining six days of the month westerly conditions prevailed as two depressions in succession passed to the south of the South Island. Unsettled weather prevailed, especially in western districts. Some severe thunderstorms were reported in the Taranaki - National Park - Taihape area on the 26th and in parts of the South Island on the 27th.

M. A. F. BARNETT, Director.

(N.Z. Met. S. Misc. Pub. 107)