New Zealand’s warmest November on record.
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Temperature |
November 2021 was New Zealand’s warmest November on record. Temperatures were well above average (>1.20°C above average) across the entire North Island, along with large portions of the upper, western, and lower South Island. Above average temperatures (0.51°C to 1.20°C above average) were observed across much of Canterbury, with small pockets of near average temperatures (±0.50°C of average) in Banks Peninsula and interior Otago. |
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Rainfall |
Rainfall was above normal (120-149% of normal) or well above normal (>149% of normal) across Gisborne, northern Hawke’s Bay, a small portion of eastern Northland, the northern West Coast, southern Canterbury, interior Otago, and parts of Fiordland. Below normal (50-79% of normal) or well below normal (<50% of normal) rainfall was observed in parts of Northland, much of Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula, Bay of Plenty, the Central Plateau, Manawatū-Whanganui, Wellington-Wairarapa, Nelson, Marlborough, and northern and central Canterbury. Elsewhere, near normal rainfall (80-119% of normal) was observed. |
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Soil Moisture |
At the end of November, soil moisture levels were below normal across northern Waikato, Bay of Plenty, most of the Central Plateau, northern Manawatū-Whanganui, Wairarapa, Nelson, Marlborough, northern and central Canterbury, and the lower West Coast. Soil moisture levels were above normal in a portion of the Far North, coastal Gisborne, interior southern Canterbury, and interior Southland. Elsewhere, soil moisture levels were near normal. |
Overview
November 2021 was characterised by higher than normal mean sea level pressure (MSLP) located to the southeast of Aotearoa New Zealand, with lower than normal MSLP over eastern Australia. This setup resulted in a northeast airflow anomaly (i.e. more northeasterly winds than normal). These warm and humid northeasterly winds from the subtropics combined with well above average sea surface temperatures surrounding the country, resulting in New Zealand’s warmest November on record. The pattern was associated with a developing La Niña in the equatorial Pacific.
Overall, the nationwide average temperature in November 2021 was 15.4°C. This was 1.7°C above the 1981-2010 November average, making it New Zealand’s warmest November since NIWA’s seven station temperature series began in 1909. November 2021 surpassed November 2019 as the warmest on record, and three of the four warmest Novembers have now occurred since 2013.
Temperatures were well above average (>1.20°C above average) across the entire North Island, along with large portions of the upper, western, and lower South Island. Above average temperatures (0.51°C to 1.20°C above average) were observed across much of Canterbury, with small pockets of near average temperatures (±0.50°C of average) in Banks Peninsula and interior Otago.
Rainfall patterns were very mixed across the country, with above normal (120-149% of normal) or well above normal (>149% of normal) rainfall observed in Gisborne, northern Hawke’s Bay, a small portion of eastern Northland, the northern West Coast, southern Canterbury, interior Otago, and parts of Fiordland. Below normal (50-79% of normal) or well below normal (<50% of normal) rainfall was observed in parts of Northland, much of Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula, Bay of Plenty, the Central Plateau, Manawatū-Whanganui, Wellington-Wairarapa, Nelson, Marlborough, and northern and central Canterbury. Elsewhere, near normal rainfall (80-119% of normal) was observed. A notable heavy rain event affected Gisborne and northern Hawke’s Bay early in the month, resulting in flooding and the declaration of a State of Emergency (see Highlights and extreme events section for further details).
Further highlights
- The highest temperature was 31.7°C, observed at Hastings on 14 November.
- The lowest temperature was -3.8°C, observed at Cass (inland Canterbury) on 4 November.
- The highest 1-day rainfall was 178 mm, recorded at Tolaga Bay on 3 November.
- The highest wind gust was 152 km/h, observed at Puysegur Point on 19 November.
- Of the six main centres in November 2021, Tauranga was the warmest, Dunedin was the coolest and sunniest, Hamilton was the wettest and least sunny, and Christchurch was the driest.
Of the available, regularly reporting sunshine observation sites, the sunniest four regions in 2021 so far are Taranaki (2368 hours), Marlborough (2317 hours), Greater Nelson (2317 hours), and Hawke’s Bay (2301 hours).
Download
- Climate Summary - November 2021 [PDF 6MB]
- Climate Statistics - November 2021 [PDF 159 KB]
