Rain, wind records set over summer
Despite extreme weather in the form of record-setting wind and rain events over summer, Taranaki is still on top as the sunniest place in Aotearoa in 2022.
Last year, New Plymouth’s weather station clocked up a total of 2592 sunshine hours, beating Napier in the Hawke’s Bay and Richmond in Nelsonto become the country’s sunniest spot.
At the end of February, which marked the conclusion of summer, the region was still on top with 586 sunshine hours, nudging ahead of the Bay of Plenty on 550.
Niwa’s summer climate summary also outlined how the 2021/22 season was New Zealand’s fifth-warmest on record, where 55 locations dotted around the nation enjoyed above average temperatures, including towns around Taranaki.
In New Plymouth, the mean average air temperature was 19.2 degrees Celsius, which was 1.9C above average and the second highest on record since 1944.
In Stratford, the mean average was 17.4C, 1.8C above average, while Hāwera was slightly warmer, recording 17.8C, which was 1.6C above average.
The highest temperature over summer in New Zealand was recorded in Lake Karapiro on January 4, when the mercury hit 34.7C.
The lowest temperature, 0C, was recorded in Manapouri on February 27.
Despite the nation’s heat, Hāwera set a record of a different kind in terms of rainfall over the three months of summer, registering a total of 600mm, which is the highest amount recorded since 1977.
Of the total, 153mm fell on one day – February 5 – in the South Taranaki town – the most in any 24-hour period in the past 45 years.
February saw two extreme weather events hit Taranaki back to back, causing towns along State Highway 45 between Okato and Opunake to flood over Waitangi weekend.
This was followed by the weather chaos wrought a week later with the arrival of extropical cyclone Dovi in the region, bringing heavy rain and gale-force winds that toppled trees and left hundreds of homes without power.
It was during this time that New Plymouth notched up a weather record of its own when 128kmh wind gusts hit the city on February 13, the highest in 50 years.
Niwa said the summer heat had been fuelled by warmer than usual coastal waters.
Marine heatwave conditions were first detected in November 2021, and were still active at the end of summer in the western and northern North Island, and the west of the South Island.
On Monday, Niwa released new research outlining how climate change could translate into longer and ‘‘very severe’’ marine heat waves by the end of the century, impacting on fishing and aquaculture.