Now and Busting: Cold change for NZ

Willoughby · Unread post by **Willoughby** » Sun 24/04/2005 13:16

Cold change has just hit the Central North Island, 2c in Waiouru

10c for Taupo and Napier

Southwesterlies STRENGTHENING now, very windy here, Auckland windier than Chch i see, actual SW gales for Wellington.

As i said before, Snow in Taumarunui is very very rare and likely to happen tonight

!!!!!

Thunder · Unread post by **Thunder** » Sun 24/04/2005 13:50

Watch TV3 news tonight. Some footage from steve and me might be on there, cab just came to pick up the tapes. Still, not sure if it will be on there..but we'll see.

Some hail and strong winds. Hail just starting again but I haven't noticed any thunder...

Cheers.

spwill · Unread post by **spwill** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:07

Have just had a reliable report of Golf Ball size hail stones last night from a friend who lives in Kingsford St, Burwood, Christchurch. The stones smashed a sky light on his home. Some of the Hail stones were still melting on the ground this morning.

GreggWard · Unread post by **GreggWard** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:13

Awesome pictures Stormchaser. Sounds like you guys had an exciting, fun-filled night.

NZstorm · Unread post by **NZstorm** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:15

Cold change has just hit the Central North Island, 2c in Waiouru

yes, looks like Waiouru will get its first snowfall of the winter. Ohakune should also get some snow. I don't expect snow at Taumaranui. Its elevation is only 170m.

I observed sleet falling at Taumaranui on 5th July 2003 when I was doing a snow chase down that way. But that was during an exceptionally cold outbreak. There was snow to sea level at Napier that day.

Breezy 20kts in Auckland with a cold feeling 17C.

Watch TV3 news tonight.

Will be watching.

NZ Thunderstorm Soc · Sun 24/04/2005 14:16

spwill wrote:Have just had a reliable report of Golf Ball size hail stones last night from a friend who lives in Kingsford St, Burwood, Christchurch. The stones smashed a sky light on his home. Some of the Hail stones were still melting on the ground this morning.

Just heard a big rumble of thunder over the Port Hills.

...anyway hail from last night put holes in the novalite roof on the chookhouse and the witchhazel tree was stripped of it's lovely autumn leaves.
Hail is still lying around here from last night up against the garage and along the back fence.
There was a large Cb to the west of us when I went to Mitre 10 to get some new roofing material for the chookhouse. Thta is where the hail may of come from.
Some of my footage may be on TV3 news along with Aaron and Steve's so watch their news tonight.
Another hailswaith going through now as I type, just waiting for the thunder

JohnGaul
NZTS

Arithon · Unread post by **Arithon** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:21

Just registered to share some pics taken from a series of short movies I was shooting last night here in Christchurch with you guys.

I've got about 16 stills in total.

FANTASTIC show.

Jon

Willoughby · Unread post by **Willoughby** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:24

Awesome pics, welcome to the forum!

I'll be watching TV3 tonight

NZ Thunderstorm Soc · Sun 24/04/2005 14:27

Nice one Arithon and welcome to the forum

JohnGaul
NZTS

Skywatcher · Unread post by **Skywatcher** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:32

Welcome to the forum, Arithon. That's a big hailstone !!! Biggest I saw last night was probably 10mm but there was enough on some sections of road to make driving "interesting"

Fujita Phil · Unread post by **Fujita Phil** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:34

Great lightning shot Arithon!!! Still or frame capture?

Another light squall here. Getting further apart but still an 8/8 sky.Mostly hail but the latest one was closer to flurries.

3.5C

Arithon · Unread post by **Arithon** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:36

That was about the biggest that was close enough for me to grab without receiving some sort of damage. At a guess, probably around 2 percent of the ones that fell were around that size.

We're in a 1920's bungalow with corrugated iron roof and BOY was it loud.

Jon

Arithon · Unread post by **Arithon** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:37

I just left my Powershot A75 on movie mode and shot back-to-back 30 second segments of the action (max movie length of this camera), then grabbed individual frames using virtual-dub this morning.

Jon

Thunder · Unread post by **Thunder** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:40

Welcome Arithon!!

Sigh, such amazing blue lightning!! I wish I could've got that on my Digital camera! However, my video camera got some of the blue stuff!

And look at that hail!! We got some nice stuff in Oamaru but not that big!! Wow! Must've been an interesting one in Chch last night. Me and Steve arrived after all the lightning in Chch as it got too far ahead of us just after Timaru. The aftermath when we arrived in chch was white roads covered in hail, may see some of that on the news?

Cheers.

Arithon · Unread post by **Arithon** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:43

Heres a couple more shots.

All shots are taken at night in movie mode, using the lightning as a flash

Jon

Storm Struck · Unread post by **Storm Struck** » Sun 24/04/2005 14:55

Yes very big welcome to you Arithon where abouts in CHCH are you?.
Nice shots something real storm chasers qualify for $\:D/$ .
Some nice lightning in a line on the tracker before with that last shower coming through didn't hear any thunder but got some small hail in a short burst.
Surprised that the wind isn't as severe as MS anticiapted it to be.

cheers
JASON

Arithon · Unread post by **Arithon** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:09

I'm just in North Linwood, and don't follow the weather normally. But last night was just too good not to watch.

Jon

GraemeWi · Unread post by **GraemeWi** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:09

Hi Jon,

great to see you on here - great shot of the falling hail

Cheers,

G

03Stormchaser · Unread post by **03Stormchaser** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:23

just had more thunder, and looking south looks like more on the way!

Skywatcher · Unread post by **Skywatcher** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:30

TS passed overhead going S-N about 10 minutes ago. Some very close strikes and booming thunder then a lot of pea-size hail covering the ground. $\:D/$

Storm Struck · Unread post by **Storm Struck** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:34

yes it's like a cardboard marathon out there lol thunder here and there now TS are looking in favour for this afternoon/evening.
hey if we have sleet and there's thunder cud we call it sleet thunder lol

also some good hail here before too
cheers
JASON

dogmelon · Unread post by **dogmelon** » Sun 24/04/2005 15:47

A Few close strikes with booms nearby and heavy hail. Very interesting.

NZstorm · Unread post by **NZstorm** » Sun 24/04/2005 16:03

Welcome onto the forum Jon. Thanks for posting those pictures. They are all interesting shots.

tich · Unread post by **tich** » Sun 24/04/2005 16:17

Latest MS mountain forecast doesn't predict the freezing level to rise at all in the North Island during Sunday, though with the flow being southerly in the afternoon, the Rotorua area should be fine, so unlikely to see snow there, though small possibility of a dusting on Tarawera.

This sounds like an unusually cold blast for so early in the year, but certainly not unprecedented - snow on Canterbury Plains and Port Hills early April last year, and an icy southerly brought brief snowflakes to Chch city in mid April 1999, the same outbreak also closing the Desert Road to south of Waiouru for a time.

03Stormchaser · Unread post by **03Stormchaser** » Sun 24/04/2005 16:18

just like to add there is snow on the port hills, went up a car park buildimg had a good look when the cloud broke, small hail shower as I type