Summery weather to continue as autumn sets in

Summer weather may continue some time into March. File photo/Greg Bowker

Autumn officially begins on Wednesday, but that doesn't mean the summer weather will be stopping.

The first day of March kicks off with a large high, centred both to the east and west of the country, putting it firmly in control of New Zealand's weather, WeatherWatch said.

This means light winds, sea and lake breezes and daytime cloud build-ups, producing the odd heavy downpour for the inland upper North Island, mostly Waikato and the Bay of Plenty ranges.

The nights are getting longer so the light winds overnight will make for heavy dew in the mornings and slightly cooler mornings.

Over the remainder of this working week, the high will combine to have one centre over the North Island allowing a slightly breezier westerly flow into the lower South Island and clouds into Southland, WeatherWatch said.

By this weekend high pressure will be centred more over the Tasman Sea, allowing a slightly cooler, breezier and less humid sou'west flow across the nation. This flow will produce breezy winds from the south, south-west and west, for the most part, across New Zealand.

By Monday next week, a cold front is set to move into the South Island while high pressure remains over the North Island and winds pick up in Wellington.

The second week of March may see the next big weather pattern shift. High pressure remains centred over the South Island while the wet, humid, sub-tropics sink southwards over the North Island.

The sub-tropics are getting more active in the coming week or two, with Sydney and New South Wales facing day after to day of rain or heavy downpours with humid easterlies, the same easterlies expected to clip northern NZ.

In the second week of March there's a chance for the North Island to be drenched by humid sub-tropical airflows slowed down by high pressure in the South Island.

This week's weather:

AUCKLAND: Highs of 25C for Monday to Wednesday.
WELLINGTON: Highs of 21, 22, and 21 until Wednesday.
TAURANGA: Highs of 24, 24, and 23 until Wednesday.
NAPIER: Highs of 23, 23, 24.
CHRISTCHURCH: Highs of 22, 24, 26.
DUNEDIN: Highs of 19, 20, and 21.