Climate & Weather

The driest soils across the North Island compared to normal for this time of the year are found in parts of Northland, Taupo, and Tararua District. A small hotspot is currently in place in northwestern Marlborough.

An abnormal El Niño weather event is looking likely for New Zealand over summer, according to NIWA meteorologist Ben Noll.

The driest soils across the North Island compared to normal for this time of the year are found in Whangarei and Kaipara districts, along with Taupo and Tararua. No hotspots are currently in place in the South Island.

The largest hotspot in the North Island continues to be found in Napier and southern Hastings District. A new, very small hotspot has also emerged this week near Cape Reinga. No hotspots are currently in place in the South Island.

With the recent rain, the soil moisture has generally improved across the North Island since last week. However, the soils are still drier than normal for the time of year in eastern Northland, western Auckland, western Waikato, western Taranaki, as well as Hawke’s Bay, central and southern Manawatu-Wanganui and Wairarapa.

NIWA climate scientists are calling for volunteers to unearth weather secrets from the past – including those recorded by members of Captain Robert Scott’s doomed trip to the South Pole in 1912.

NIWA climate scientists are calling for volunteers to unearth weather secrets from the past – including those recorded by members of Captain Robert Scott’s doomed trip to the South Pole in 1912.

Sampling salps from different depths

24 October 2018: NIWA Blake Ambassadors Lana Young and Siobhan O'Connor report back

Students at Leigh School have been working with marine scientists and the 'Year of the Salps' project partners to learn how to count sea salps, understand salp life cycle phases and the importance of salps in marine ecosystems and their carbon-cycling effects on climate change.

Soils are drier than normal for the time of year in the majority of the North Island, excluding the eastern Gisborne region where the soil moisture is near average. Parts of Queenstown-Lakes District in Otago, the Grey and Buller Districts in the West Coast, northeastern Marlborough, and the Waimate District in southern Canterbury experience well below average rainfall for this time of year, while the rest of the South Island had near normal rainfall.

Inhabitants of the Marshall Islands may not be able to avoid drought, but thanks to a new tool co-developed by NIWA they can now plan ahead to better manage water resources when the big dry looms.