Tawa’s climate during April 2006 was wetter and warmer than April last year and windier and warmer than the previous three years.
Automatic and manual readings taken at Tawa since 2003 can be summarised as follows:
The lowest April temperatures were 4 °C (2003), 3 °C (2004), 2.9 °C (2005) and 6.2 °C (2006).
The average daily low temperatures were 9 °C (2003), 8 °C (2004), 9 °C (2005) and 12 °C (2006).
The highest April temperatures were 23 °C (2003), 22 °C (2004), 24.2 °C (2005) and 22.3 °C (2006).
The average daily high temperatures were 17 °C (2003), 17 °C (2004), 18 °C (2005) and 19 °C (2006).
Average temperature: 13.3 °C (2005), 15.3 °C(2006).
Average humidity: 84% (2005), 86% (2006)
Days with frost: none (2003), none (2004), none (2005) none (2006).
Days with rain: 11 (2003), 8 (2004), 11 (2005), 16 (2006).
Days with thunderstorms: 1 (2003), none (2004), 1 (2005), 3 (2006).
Days with hail: none (2003), none (2004), 2 (2005), none (2006).
Days with strong winds: 3 (2003), 1 (2004), 4 (2005), 5 (2006).
Flood events: none (2003) none (2004), none (2005), none (2006).
Rainfall: 35 mm (2005), 82 mm (2006).
The manual readings are obviously subjective, and represent the microclimate where the observations were made. The automatic weather station is sheltered from the south owing to local topography.
April 2003 was unremarkable except for cold southerlies which blew on the 5th, 17th, 18th, 24th and 28th. Thunderstorms between 9 p.m. and midnight on the 5th provided entertainment on a night of light winds and intermittent downpours.
April 2004 was also unremarkable with weather conditions alternating between mild sunny days and cloudy misty conditions. Foggy conditions were noted on the 30th.
April 2005 was livelier, starting with low could and still conditions on the 1st. Gusty northerlies arose on the 4th, but yielded to still conditions later in the day, which persisted until gusty northerlies arose for a time on the morning of the 7th. Calm conditions again held sway until squalls brought intermittent downpours on the 21st.
Once again, calm conditions returned until thunderstorms brought hail on the morning of the 24th. That evening, thunderstorms returned in earnest, delivering icy downpours and hail for several hours. Electricity supplies were disrupted and computers and other appliances were tied in knots by numerous power flicks. The evening’s lightning displays were most impressive.
April this year started out with calm, still conditions until gusty northeasterlies chased off the low cloud on the 3rd. Winds swung between north-west and north until the 5th when still conditions and low cloud returned.
Gusty northerly winds arose at times on the 6th and 7th. Just before midnight on the 8th a thunderstorm put on a fine show, attended by intermittent downpours. The thunderstorms continued at times on the 9th and 10th, and were covered by a separate story on this site. Calm conditions prevailed from the 11th until the 26th when gusty northerlies arose briefly.
The many calm days allowed low cloud or fog to be recorded on 7 days during April 2006. They also account for the increased count of “rain days” as damp drizzly conditions with rain rates too low to trigger the weather station’s rain gauge applied on 4 days during the month.
Re April 2006 – notwithstanding some calm and/or drizzly days, sunshine amounts were normal – were running well ahead till after about the 20th. The temp. data above agree with the month being unusually mild (for NZ as a whole, the warmest since 1981 and 8th warmest in the 140+ year record)