Wet November in store for Rotorua

Summer is coming but don't put your umbrellas away just yet, it looks like Rotorua is in for a wet November.

With October having been wet for 18 out of 31 days, this month looks set to follow suit.

MetService meteorologist Georgina Griffiths said most of New Zealand had a mild October but it was not dry.

"The North Island copped a beating for the first half of the month and Rotorua saw 18 wet days in October.

"The first half was pretty wet - there were only two dry days."

She said it had been a bit drier towards the end but the temperature dropped.

"But overall the temperature was slightly above average at 12.4C."

The average temperature for Rotorua in October is 12C.

"Unfortunately for Rotorua November is looking fairly unsettled, typically the weather settles in November but we are expecting a wetter November than normal.

"But, don't worry, there will still be opportunities for barbecues, you will just have to watch the forecast to plan for it," Mrs Griffiths said.

Overall, she said, Rotorua had had the second warmest year on record with only one month below the average temperature and all others slightly above.

The warmest year to date was 1998 when the average temperature over the 10 months to October was 13.22C. For 2016 the 10-month average to October was 13.2C.

The average temperature in the first half of 2016, recorded at Rotorua Airport, was 15.4C, which is 1.4C above average. That was the warmest first half of a year since Rotorua Airport observations began in 1964.

Rotorua monthly mean temperatures 2016:
January: 18.5C - 0.8C above normal
February: 19.6C - 1.7C above normal
March: 17.4C - 1.4C above normal
April: 14.2C - 0.9C above normal
May: 13.2C - 2.5C above normal (warmest May on record)
June: 9.5C - 1C above normal
July: 8C - 0.2C above normal
August: 8C - 0.4 below normal
September: 11.2C - 1C above normal
October: 12.4C - 0.4C above normal