Climate

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Hotspot Watch 9 April 2021

9 April 2021

Final Hotspot Watch update for this season. Weekly Hotspot Watches will return in the spring.

A weekly update describing soil moisture patterns across the country to show where dry to extremely dry conditions are occurring or imminent. Regions experiencing significant soil moisture deficits are deemed “hotspots”. Persistent hotspot regions have the potential to develop into drought.

Hotspot Watch 12 March 2021

Hot spot

12 March 2021

Scientists watching lake on South Island glacier survey

Media Release

10 March 2021

Scientists undertaking the annual glacier snowline survey over the South Island later this month are keeping a watchful eye on a lake that has been forming and disappearing at the junction of the Tasman and Hochstetter glaciers.

Our work

Forecasting weather systems

NIWA’s research into forecasting weather systems aims to increase the resilience of New Zealand communities to weather-related hazards.

Our Future Climate New Zealand

Our Future Climate New Zealand is an interactive website that lets you to look at projections for a number of climate variables for New Zealand between now and 2100.

Seabed 2030

NIWA is leading a New Zealand partnership to map the South and West Pacific Ocean's seabed as part of a worldwide initiative to map the entire globe’s seafloor.

The Stormy Seas project

Does climate change affect the position of the Subtropical Front around New Zealand? This has important consequences for New Zealand's climate and biological productivity.

Latest videos

Glacier melt: A Time Capsule

Since 2016 enough ice has melted from the South Island’s Brewster Glacier to meet the drinking water needs of all New Zealanders for three years.

Tropical Cyclone Outlook: November 2020-April 2021

Tropical cyclone outlook Nov 2020 - Apr 2021

The NIWA and MetService assessment of named tropical cyclone (TC) activity indicates 8 to 10 named TCs could occur in the Southwest Pacific basin between November 2020 and April 2021. This seasonal outlook is for normal to below normal activity in terms of overall named cyclone systems in the region.

New Zealand 2019 climate summary

NIWA climate scientist Nava Fedaeff presents the NIWA annual climate summary for New Zealand 2019.

Handwriting recognition casts new light on climate change

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 28 February 2019

Hot spot

28 February 2019

A weekly update describing soil moisture across the country to help assess whether severely to extremely dry conditions are occurring or imminent. Regions experiencing these soil moisture deficits are deemed “hotspots”. Persistent hotspot regions have the potential to develop into drought.

Seasonal climate outlook - March – May 2019

A central Pacific El Niño is now occurring as the ocean and atmosphere have been weakly coupled for a third consecutive month. Traditionally, this occurs farther east toward South America and during the early summer season. Mean temperatures are forecast to be above average for all of New Zealand.

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 13 February 2019

Hot spot

13 February 2019

Across the North Island, soil moisture levels continued to decrease nearly everywhere during the past week. Across the South Island, soil moisture levels decreased nearly everywhere during the past week with little rainfall in the north, south and east.

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 7 February 2019

Hot spot

8 February 2019

Across the North Island, soil moisture levels decreased nearly everywhere during the past week. In the South Island, soil moisture levels decreased during the past week with meagre rainfall in the north and east.

Climate Summary for January 2019

New Zealand’s 3rd warmest January on record.

Seasonal climate outlook - February - April 2019

The atmospheric circulation around New Zealand is forecast to be characterised by slightly higher than normal pressure to the southwest and southeast of New Zealand and lower pressure than normal to the northeast of the country. Weak easterly-quarter air flows are favoured.

The heatwave in numbers

Media Release

1 February 2019

NIWA has crunched the data on this week’s heatwave and come up with the following record breakers

Sea Surface Temperature Update - 30 January 2019

A hot airmass over New Zealand has led to SST warming of 1.0 to 2.0˚C over the last several days. A southerly change is forecast to occur from Friday into Saturday, ending the spell of unusual warmth.

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 16 January 2019

Hot spot

16 January 2019

The previous hotspot in the Far North has expanded in size during the past week, now encompassing much of the eastern Far North and the Aupouri Peninsula. A hotspot remains in place across Nelson and nearby portions of Tasman, but no other South Island hotspots are in effect at this time.

Sea Surface Temperature Update - 16 January 2019

Over the past several weeks, the sea surface temperatures have warmed in the New Zealand region. They are well above average in the Tasman Sea and also above average in New Zealand coastal waters.

Sea Surface Temperature Update

A fortnightly report, updated over summer, covering sea surface temperatures and anomalies (differences from average) around New Zealand.

Storm-tide red-alert days 2019

NIWA's 2019 storm-tide red alerts are the highest high tide (also known as king tides) dates that Emergency Managers and Coastal Hazard Managers should write in their diaries and keep an eye on adverse weather (low barometric pressure, onshore winds), river levels and sea conditions (waves and swell).

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 9 January 2019

Hot spot

10 January 2019

Climate Summary for December 2018

Wet end to the year for the North Island and north-eastern South Island

Annual Climate Summary 2018

New Zealand’s equal-2nd warmest year on record. Annual temperatures were above average across the majority of New Zealand, including much of the North Island as well as the western and southern South Island. See complete 2018 Annual Climate Summary details.

Annual Climate Summary 2018

2018: New Zealand’s equal-2nd warmest year on record

NIWA's Hotspot Watch for 19 December 2018

Hot spot

19 December 2018

Across the North Island, soil moisture levels either decreased slightly or remained the same during the past week. Across the South Island, soil moisture remained near normal or above normal in the central and eastern part of the island during the past week while areas in the west have near normal or below normal soil moisture.

Climate Summary for November 2018

Very wet for eastern and inland parts of the South Island

Spring 2018

Spring 2018: a season of weather swings for New Zealand

Seasonal climate outlook - December 2018 - February 2019

Mean summer temperatures are about equally likely to be near or above average. Near normal summer rainfall is likely for most regions; however, the north of the North Island has about equal chances for below normal or near normal rainfall and the west of the South Island has about equal chances for above normal or near normal rainfall.