Cold snap bringing frosts and clear skies across the country

Cold nights, crisp mornings and sunny days are in store for the first few days of May as a high-pressure system settles over the whole country.

MetService meteorologist Dan Corrigan told the Herald it was going to be a good weekend for spending time outdoors, with the outlook predicting fine conditions nationwide through to next week.

“Across the entire country we’ve got an area of high pressure, which is there today and it just stays there throughout the rest of the week and the weekend, just centred over New Zealand.”

The lack of cloud associated with the system will deliver clear skies – but plunging temperatures, particularly overnight.

“From tonight, we’ll be seeing a few nippy single-digit temperatures as we go into the weekend, but there’s going to be a gradual warming trend.”'

This morning’s conditions were expected to be the coldest, with frost forecast overnight from Canterbury southwards, including Otago and Southland.

In the South Island, Twizel was expected to have the lowest temperature, hitting a “really” chilly -2C, while Waiouru in the north was forecast to reach 0C.

Photo / MetService

Without clouds to trap the sun’s heat overnight “like a blanket”, the mornings will feel significantly brisker.

“Lots of temperatures in the North Island are going to be 4 to 6 degrees below average for the last week of April,” he said. “It’s going to feel notably cold.”

Corrigan said Kiwis can expect to enjoy a “good, cold, crisp morning with gentle sunlight” on the weekend, with fine conditions for most of the motu.

As temperatures climb into the mid-teens in the afternoons, he said “it’ll actually feel close to summery in some places”.

“For people who are wanting to be outdoors this weekend or get some work done around the yard, it’s going to be really good weather conditions for that.”

However, Corrigan warned people to be prepared for the sudden onset of cold when the sun begins to set.

“If you’re out and about into the evening, bring an extra layer because while it may feel warm and sunny in the afternoon, the temperature will drop off quite quickly.”