Author Topic: NZ weather summary March 1974  (Read 3691 times)

Offline Rwood

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NZ weather summary March 1974
« on: March 28, 2012, 11:15:47 AM »
March 1974:   A high frequency of south-easterly conditions resulted in most of the country having below average temperatures. Rainfall was inadequate to provide significant drought relief in some North Island areas though Gisborne, Hawkes Bay and parts of Wairarapa and Canterbury did receive above average rainfall. Otherwise the month was a good one for farming.

Rainfall: The rainfall over the country varied from less than 1/4 of the monthly average in Nelson and North Taranaki, to over twice the normal in parts of central and southern Hawkes Bay. In the west of Northland and in Bay of Plenty, Waikato, parts of Taranaki and most of Manawatu conditions were very dry. Most eastern areas from central Canterbury to Gisborne had above normal rainfall; generally up to 50% above normal.

Some totals: Gisborne 148mm, Napier 140mm; New Plymouth Aero 14mm, Nelson Aero 16mm, Ophir 12mm.

Temperatures:  March was a cold month in most parts of the country. Over the eastern half the mean temperature was 1C-2C below normal. Over the western half it was about 1C below normal. The predominant southeast winds were reflected in eastern areas being those with the lowest mean temperatures. Napier, Masterton and Wellington had their lowest March mean temperatures since 1936. The cold spell from the 18th to the 22nd was largely responsible for the low monthly mean. During this period the mean temperature was 6C-7C below average in many eastern areas north of Christchurch.

30.8C maximum at Rangiora on the 15th, -4.0C minimum at Waimihia Forest on the 21st.

Sunshine:  Sunshine strongly reflected the general weather pattern over the country as did rainfall and temperature. In eastern districts, especially in the North Island, sunshine was below average by up to 15% while in western districts it was above average by up to 40%. Greymouth’s 233 hours was its highest March total since 1948.

[Some totals: Kaitaia 185, Leigh 207, Auckland 220, Tauranga 233, Whakatane 232, Taupo 199, Hamilton 224, Taumarunui 204, New Plymouth 246, Woodville 201, Masterton 184, Gisborne 162, Napier 181, Ohakea 245, Palmerston North 229, Wellington 227, Stratford 201, Wanganui 233, Takaka 215, Westport 243, Hokitika 221, Greymouth 233, Haast 198, Riwaka 254, Nelson 233, Blenheim 257, Kaikoura 199, Mt Cook 168, Mt John 238, Christchurch 175, Timaru 159, Waimate 134, Dunedin 149, Queenstown 198, Alexandra 210, Invercargill 144, Raoul Is 254 {highest}].

Sources: NZ Met. Misc. pub. 107 (Climatological table, NZ Gazette) and NZ Met. Misc. pub. 109 (Meteorological Observations).





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