NZ Weather Forum

We had some drizzle today.

JohnGaul
NZ Drizzle Society

Looks like low cloud and drizzle will be around for a while in Canterbury.

Drizzle is very rare in Auckland. Its the fine precip that drifts in the wind. I'm not sure I've ever seen it here before. It comes from stratus.

i must admit too its pretty rare here....
usualy when it rains here, it rains proper, LOL
we can get it like in a real humid NE flow where there is low cloud, etc

Manukau heads observer wrote:i must admit too its pretty rare here....
usualy when it rains here, it rains proper, LOL

Thats why I wonder why people want too live there with all the rain?? doesnt make much sense too me, quite enjoy the drizzle', its sort of peacefull,

crickey im sounding like a greenie or some thing, i had better shut up lol

was a beautiful day up this way today, very clear blue skies....makes you want to live here

We get it on occassion when the high centre is directly "just" north of Auckland say off Cape Reianga from a WSW.Also seen it in NE showers sometimes

NZstorm wrote:Looks like low cloud and drizzle will be around for a while in Canterbury.

Drizzle is very rare in Auckland. Its the fine precip that drifts in the wind. I'm not sure I've ever seen it here before. It comes from stratus.

I think there is too much convective turbulence in Auckland for drizzle.
Drizzle likes cool, very stable conditions to form. Both Christchurch and Dunedin get classic drizzle. It can be very soaking if your out in it but rarely adds anything to the rain guage.

NZstorm wrote: It can be very soaking

or if you accidentally leave your car window open

03 Stormchaser wrote:

NZstorm wrote: It can be very soaking

or if you accidentally leave your car window open

Hahahahaha! It's so easy to get caught out anywhere. One time on the mountain, a small storm blew through on an otherwise fine day...after it passed I cursed and had to race back to the Land Cruiser and scrape about 6" of snow off the driver's seat before it melted because I'd left the door wide open!

NZstorm wrote:I think there is too much convective turbulence in Auckland for drizzle.
Drizzle likes cool, very stable conditions to form. Both Christchurch and Dunedin get classic drizzle. It can be very soaking if your out in it but rarely adds anything to the rain guage.

In the Atacama and coastal Peru deserts it is virtually the only precipitation they ever get (plus extremely rare showers). Antofagasta had a short sharp shower in 1991 which caused a minor flash flood, messing up a few steep streets (they're not exactly prepared for that sort of thing) - it was the first in decades. In Lima they supposedly have a saying "In Lima, Senor, the rain is not wet". I holidayed in these areas once and spent a few days in Arica (far northern Chile), a coastal city whose longterm average rainfall is less than 1.0mm. Strange to see greenery and lawns courtesy of water piped from the Andes.

NZstorm wrote:I think there is too much convective turbulence in Auckland for drizzle.
Drizzle likes cool, very stable conditions to form. Both Christchurch and Dunedin get classic drizzle. It can be very soaking if your out in it but rarely adds anything to the rain guage.

In the Atacama and coastal Peru deserts it is virtually the only precipitation they ever get (plus extremely rare showers). Antofagasta had a short sharp shower in 1991 which caused a minor flash flood, messing up a few steep streets (they're not exactly prepared for that sort of thing) - it was the first in decades. In Lima they supposedly have a saying "In Lima, Senor, the rain is not wet". I holidayed in these areas once and spent a few days in Arica (far northern Chile), a coastal city whose longterm average rainfall is less than 1.0mm. Strange to see greenery and lawns courtesy of water piped from the Andes.

Looks like low cloud and drizzle will be around for a while in Canterbury.

I haven't noticed any drizzle in Chch today (at least in the central city plus Burwood where I was for greater part of afternoon), though plenty of low cloud at times.

Another day here in Chch with drizzle forecast, but not eventuating. Just partly cloudy - often with quite low cloud, but alot better than what Wellington's been getting.

Driving back home from my brothers place in TaiTapu around 3:30pm along the Old TaiTapu Road we came through quite a substantial shower around 3:15pm. Substantial but weak convergence was going on in that area at the time. In Halswell everything was dry plus ChCh but looking back it was rather bleak in that direction. Some instability occuring judging by cloud forms.

JohnGaul
NZTS

Driving back home from my brothers place in TaiTapu around 3:30pm along the Old TaiTapu Road we came through quite a substantial shower around 3:15pm. Substantial but weak convergence was going on in that area at the time. In Halswell everything was dry plus ChCh but looking back it was rather bleak in that direction. Some instability occuring judging by cloud forms.

I did wonder about some of that cumulus to the south, but I thought it was just typical northeasterly cloud.
BTW, coming back from Sumner late afternoon, I noticed what must've been a cb over the mountains. (about Porter's Pass I guess)

Yeah I was in Okains Bay from Monday-Thursday and it was fine till Wednesday when we got some drizzle patches and even light rain showers.
They seemed to come through in quick dolops off and on throughout Wednesday and Thursday morning which wasn't unsual I guess.
I ntersting today as you mentioned John I did notice some CU to the SW of me that was when I took this pic below of a fire which I believe was just south of Kaiapoi near Woodfordglen at around 3pm it's intersting how the smoke cloud developed into a Cumulus cloud afterwards.
Just to note as well on those Waterspouts in Akaroa A Farmer from Okains bay said he was over in Akaroa when he seen what looked like watersoouts further out past the heads but he didn't think much of it until the town was talking about it the next day. He also said to take a look at the sea around Akaroa when I head back to CHCH he told me to look for a scared pathway through the water further out in a wiggly line kinda like a big boat had recently been through there but he said if it was a boat the water line would only stay around for atleast 6 hours and he was righ there was a scared pathway through the water.
I thought to myself maybe it's just a raised coral or sumthing surly how could something like this do such a small thing is it possable??? .
Cheers
JASON TIPPET.

When smoke plumes form clouds they are called pyro-cumulus. There is a research facility in France with has an array of gas burners specificially designed to generate enough heat to make clouds using this technique.

The pathways through the water are very common all around the NZ coast in certain wind conditions. I have seen them a lot in Sumner and in Nelson. I think its to do with "rivers of wind", small narrow wind currents which are channelled or reflected off hills and coasts under certain wind conditions and which are remarkably consistent.

Here's one I saw last year in Rotorua, (posted before)

I haven't noticed any drizzle in Chch today (at least in the central city plus Burwood where I was for greater part of afternoon), though plenty of low cloud at times.

A fine afternoon in Chch, with only some thin high cloud. Yet the forecast still hasn't changed. (yes there was a bit of light rain or drizzle overnight)

Low cloud or sea fog moved into Chch about midafternoon with some slight (ie not dampening the ground) drizzle. Probably like the cloud that again disrupted Wellington Airport this morning, though I don't know whether the Chch low cloud reached our Airport.

tich wrote:Low cloud or sea fog moved into Chch about midafternoon

definitly wasnt sea fog?
Interesting to hear about the earthquake in Japan 155 injured, but tsunami warnings issued by the japanese meteorological agency were lifted.

dammit! I did it again and left my window in my car open, if only an inch, but drizzle will always find a away in!!

Keep you fingers crossed for some drizzle here tonight

JohnGaul
NZ Drizzle Society

cant stand drizzle it so annoying not that we get it much up here it usualy rains and that is that drizzle is almost as bad as a boring cloudy day with the gale south westerlys opps i am sounding liek some one here

cant stand drizzle it so annoying not that we get it much up here it usualy rains and that is that drizzle is almost as bad as a boring cloudy day with the gale south westerlys opps i am sounding like some one here