Atmospheric analysis

Whether you're at the beach, in the bach, on the boat or by the barbecue, summer holiday fun hinges on knowing when conditions outside will be favourable and not-so-favourable for the activities you have in mind.

This is a special series of stories put out to the media in the 2012/2013 summer.

Compiled by NIWA from the United Nations report "Keeping Track of Our Changing Environment: From Rio to Rio+20 (1992-2012)".

LakeSPI delivers information that is directly applicable to lake-ecosystem conservation and management. It is being widely used in regional environmental monitoring programs and for national and regional reporting.

LakeSPI (Lake Submerged Plant Indicators) is based on the principle that New Zealand lakes can be characterised by the composition of native and invasive plants growing in them, and the depths to which these plants grow.

Mangrove forests, which are important parts of estuarine ecosystems in a number of ways, are sensitive to changing sea level.