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For New Zealand weather watchers, 2007 was a year notable for the high number of severe events and weather extremes.
It was marked by too little rain in many places, but also by disastrous flooding in Northland, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research said in its
national climate summary released today.
There were record low rainfalls in some locations, and it was 60 per cent less than normal in parts of Marlborough, Canterbury and Central Otago, Niwa principal scientist Jim Salinger said.
There were drought conditions in the east of the North Island, an unprecedented swarm of tornadoes in Taranaki, destructive windstorms in Northland and in eastern New Zealand, and hot spells.
Dr Salinger said the year saw a swing from an El Nino to La Nina climate pattern and overall more anticyclones, or "highs", occurred.
The year's national average temperature was 12.7 deg C, with the highest annual mean being the 16.0 deg C at Whangarei Airport.
The highest temperature recorded was 33.5 deg C at Napier Airport on January 22, while the lowest was minus 15.4 deg C at Lauder in Central Otago on July 18.
Dr Salinger said rainfall was below normal throughout much of New Zealand, with Northland being the only region where it was above average.
The driest recording location was Alexandra with just 272mm of rain, while the Cropp River in Westland was the wettest with 8940mm.
Blenheim was the sunniest spot in the country with 2567 sunshine hours.
Of the five main centres, Auckland was the warmest and wettest, Christchurch the driest, Wellington the sunniest and Dunedin the coldest.
Dr Salinger said the most significant extreme event was the extraordinary swarm of damaging tornadoes that swept through Taranaki on July 4 and 5.
Damage in the central business district was severe, while at least 7000 homes in the region were without electricity after lightning strikes and damage to power lines.
The heaviest snowfall event happened between June 20 and 25, with Southland, Otago, the South Island high country and the central North Island affected.
The worst flooding was on March 28 and 29, and July 10 and 11.
In the first, historical daily records were swept aside in eastern parts of Northland as between 250mm to more than 400mm of rain fell.
The town of Kaeo was worst hit, with 254 mm of rainfall in 12 hours, and at least 23 houses flooded, the water being 1m high in places.
Windstorms (not including tornadoes) occurred on numerous occasions, with particularly severe instances in July and October.
A state of emergency was declared over July 9 to 11 in the Far North as easterlies struck, the winds leaving more than 140,000 people without electricity in Northland, Auckland and the Coromandel.
- NZPA
