340

THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE

No. 14

CLIMATOLOGICAL TABLE—Summary of the Records of Temperature, Rainfall, and Sunshine for January 1961—continued

NOTE—At stations where departures from normal have an asterisk, the temperature record has been maintained for less than 10 years, the rainfall record for less than 20 years. Rainfall normals have been extensively revised and 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 JANUARY 1961

General: January was the third successive month of unusually cloudy, wet weather in Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay, owing to the comparatively high frequency of winds from an easterly quarter. In these districts many crops were seriously affected by the wet weather, and in some areas sheep were lost in flooding on the 16th and 17th.

In many areas elsewhere there was very little rain from the middle of December to the middle of January, and in parts of the Taranaki and Nelson Provinces and on the West Coast conditions became unusually dry. However, heavy rain in the third week of January caused a marked recovery, with good pasture growth.

Rainfall: Rainfall was about double the average in Coromandel, Gisborne, and Hawke’s Bay, around Taihape, and also in parts of Marlborough. Over the remainder of the North Island and in most eastern districts of the South Island it was mainly close to or somewhat above normal.

In and west of the Alps, and in western Southland, rainfall was only a third to a half of the average.

Many thunderstorms were reported in the North Island from the 18th to the 23rd, with some severe local flooding causing disruption of road and rail services at times. During a violent thunderstorm at Palmerston North on the 20th 2·09 in. of rain fell in half an hour. On the previous day during a thunderstorm at Tara Hills, Omarama (North Otago), 2·66 in. were recorded in an hour.

Temperatures: Temperatures were more than 2 degrees above average in Taranaki and Nelson and on the West Coast, but more than a degree below average in eastern districts from Gisborne to Canterbury. Intermediate areas between west and east were mainly somewhat above normal.

Sunshine: Except in and west of the Alps, in parts of Central Otago, and in Wellington, sunshine was below normal. In Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay, with deficiencies of 70 to 100 hours, it was one of the cloudiest Januaries on record. Elsewhere the deficiency was mainly 40 to 60 hours.

In Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay the last season with similar persistent cloud and rain during November, December, and January was 1952–53.

Weather Sequence: The first fortnight was a period of predominantly settled weather, with very little rain over the greater part of the country. From the 1st to the 5th an anticyclone, initially over the North Island and later centred to the east, caused mainly fair weather. However, depressions passing close to Southland brought wet weather at times to western and far southern districts of the South Island. During the next three days the presence of a depression near Raoul Island caused some rain in Bay of Plenty, Northland, and Gisborne; but the 9th was generally fine under the