NZ Weather Forum

New 3-part series begins TV1 Tuesday 8 November, 9.40pm.

is this a NZ based programme do you know of overseas?

the reason i ask is that i was appoached by Garth Bray of TVNZ who wanted some footage i have (mpeg) of 150 kph winds out at the manukau heads. He said they were doing a programme on extreme weather events in NZ so this footage would be suitable.

just curious (alot like George really!)

NZ

must watch and see wot the programme is like

JohnGaul
NZTS

Some guy from Dunedin rang me and Bob Crowder (and I think Aaron)about some footage/interview for a forth-coming TV One programme about the weather. Never really got back to us.
Bob was a bit critical of him as he sounded a person who might take the micky out of us weather-fanatics/storm-chasers whatever

NHNZ made them for TVNZ ...

http://www.nhnz.co.nz/commissions.html

about half way down the page.

I hope it's more comprehensive and interesting than a previous TV programme about NZ's weather a few years ago, which basically delivering sweeping generalisations that most people know anyway (like when it's wet on the West Coast, it's usuallly dry and warmer in Canterbury). Frontier of Dreams has shown some really interesting insights into our history in a well presented manner; let's hope this new weather programme does the same with NZ's weather.

Steven Graham wrote:NHNZ made them for TVNZ ...

http://www.nhnz.co.nz/commissions.html

about half way down the page.

I believe they were after spwill's images?

Anyway.. looks really good, can't wait!

looks like a typical wish-washy program

were you able to get that movie clip to a .wmv file c-nimbus?

back on the forum, had been deactivated....strange...or maybe it was the zone alarm pro update i did?

Saw the programME on TV tonight and thought it was very good.
However no new stuff that I didn't know about and he never mentioned the ChCh Ne even though sea-breazes were mentioned.
Who is this Guy Roxburgh fellow? Is he a weather person?

JohnGaul
NZTS

Fairly predictable fare. Usual archive collection of Wellington wind moments. Great confusion between mean wind speeds and gust peaks at some points - some nonsensical number was given as Wellington's "average wind speed" (for the old site near the Carter observatory this was about 13-14 kph, but variable vegetation heights in the vicinity gave poor consistency over the years). I would also question the claim for Alexandra being the least windy place - would be very micro-location dependent. A station at Taumaranui (eg) currently shows a year-round average of only about 4kph, but it may be unnaturally sheltered.

Cool program and got to see some of NZ's previous tornado footage. I like the BOP stuff from 2001 I believe. Even though you couldn't see a nice big clear tornado or anything it still looked cool swirling around etc.

Nice to see my name in the credits to!

Cheers

A good program.
Was good to see the BOP Tornado footage.

spwill wrote:A good program.
Was good to see the BOP Tornado footage.

Yes a very cool documentary! And the extensive report they had on the Hamilton tornado

They quoted the average wind speed in Wellington was 56km/h.. what absolute rubbish!!

There will be lots on the Nor'wester next week..

darn, i missed it.,..was at a fire force meeting...

the windiest ranges in the wellington area do average as high as 25 knots ( just north of the city?)...i have seen that figuer quoted before
so thats where the 56kmh comes from

the manukay heads signal station has been worked out to get average speeds of 19 knots...

NZ Thunderstorm Soc wrote:
Some guy from Dunedin rang me and Bob Crowder (and I think Aaron)about some footage/interview for a forth-coming TV One programme about the weather. Never really got back to us.
Bob was a bit critical of him as he sounded a person who might take the micky out of us weather-fanatics/storm-chasers whatever.

The BBC did something like that to a fellow called Hancock over something else but using their flagship science programme. They realy did a job on him. I doubt there are many met men that far out though.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/20 ... _bsc.shtml

His own site paints a slightly different story to the one that appears on their database. It's all a matter of how gormless the average Kiwi is. You can pull a lot of wool over a substantial portion of the UK if your name is BBC.

blow...I missed it as well.

Manukau heads observer wrote:darn, i missed it.,..was at a fire force meeting...

the windiest ranges in the wellington area do average as high as 25 knots ( just north of the city?)...i have seen that figuer quoted before
so thats where the 56kmh comes from

the manukay heads signal station has been worked out to get average speeds of 19 knots...

Of the data NIWA publish in annual summaries (over the last 10 years for which I have copies) the highest avg windspeed I could find was at South West Cape on Stewart Is - worked out to be 37kph (23mph, 10.3 metre/sec or 20 knots). I could imagine higher values at high altitudes like that of Angle Knob in the Rimutakas.

I found it hard to recognise the place I live in, given the increasing infrequency of days like those shown.

Re Wahine/Giselle, there was a (presumably) unofficial reading of about 270kph made at Oteranga Bay (where the cable starts), but it is never quoted in reords.

RWood wrote:I would also question the claim for Alexandra being the least windy place - would be very micro-location dependent. A station at Taumaranui (eg) currently shows a year-round average of only about 4kph, but it may be unnaturally sheltered.

I'm pretty sure that Tekapo has the lowest annual wind run in NZ..
As a city, you know where to go!

I'm pretty sure that Tekapo has the lowest annual wind run in NZ

Are you sure about that. Inland SI gets a whiping from the westerlies/NW.

I would pick somewhere in the BOP like Whakatane as being the least windy. Then perhaps Auckland

Wouldn't be Tekapo - NW can blow quite hard off the lake. (Don't recall there ever being wind stats. for the township). But a number of places with low values that I recall in reports are Waimana (BOP) ,Taumaranui and Arapito (near Karamea). Hanmer has low values in winter but summer NW can be strong.

NZstorm wrote:

I'm pretty sure that Tekapo has the lowest annual wind run in NZ

Are you sure about that. Inland SI gets a whiping from the westerlies/NW.

I would pick somewhere in the BOP like Whakatane as being the least windy. Then perhaps Auckland

Maybe they are right afterall, Alexandra is the winner, by 1km/h
No NIWA climatic wind data from Whakatane or Taumarunui..but Whakatane does get whipped by the gale northeasterly during stormy times.. stronger than Tauranga's NE'ly.

Rotorua is relatively sheltered from the SW, W and NE wind.. but the N'ly can pick up greatly there at the airport coming right of the lake.

Taupo's southwesterly is often strong being quite exposed there, also at elevation.. as is the southeasterly when it blows off the Kaimanawa Ranges.

Rarely would Hamilton have a 10-minute average NE wind speed over 30km/h. The southwesterly here never has average wind speeds over 45km/h. Only active squalls cells or lines give Hamilton decent wind gusts. As seen vividly this spring.
Hamilton is the city home to light winds in NZ

Data showing average days gusting over 63km/h

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
A64878:AUCKLAND CITY :45:1954:1980:3.3:2.4:3.4:4.2:6.3:6.1:6.4:6:6.6:6.6:5.1:4.8:61.2

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
B76621:TAURANGA AIRPORT :4:1959:1980:1.8:1.1:1.9:2.5:3.3:3.5:3.6:3.3:3.8:4:3.1:2.1:34

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
B76994:WHAKATANE AIRPORT :6:1954:1980:1.7:1.3:1.7:2.2:2.5:2.8:3.5:3.4:3:3.2:2.2:2.1:29.6

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
B86131:ROTORUA AIRPORT :287:1965:1980:1.6:1.4:1.4:3.3:3.4:2.9:3.3:2.7:3.3:3.1:2.1:1.7:30.2

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
E14387:WELLINGTON AIRPORT :6:1959:1980:14.2:12.8:12.9:12.8:14.5:14.3:13.5:14.3:16:17.7:16.3:13.7:173

Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
I58074:QUEENSTOWN AIRPORT :349:1972:1980:4.8:3.6:3.8:3.1:4:2.8:2.8:2.9:3.8:4.1:4:4:43.7

Mean hourly wind speed..?
Index:Name:Alt.:SoR:EoR:Jan:Feb:Mar:Apr:May:Jun:Jul:Aug:Sep:Oct:Nov:Dec:Year
I59234:ALEXANDRA :141:1942:1980:157:144:113:79:63:58:52:65:105:132:148:159:106

Cheers

Ok program so far, but needs correcting about Cook Strait storms. As far as I know, westerly flows over NZ are diverted into northwesterly as they flow through Cook Strait (when has Wellington ever had a direct westerly wind?), and although Strait northwesterlies and northerlies can reach very high speeds, it's the southerlies that bring the high swells. Cook Strait waters are more exposed to swells coming from the latter direction than the former. I haven't heard of ferry sailings being cancelled during severe northwesterly storms, but plenty of times they get disrupted during big southerlies.

I agree. During strong "westerly" flows which are close to true W Wellington gets little wind, due to SI sheltering. In these situations parts of Hawkes Bay and Wairarapa can get very high winds while we escape.
This has happened many times in the last 3-4 years.

NW or N gales in the strait are merely a nuisance - particularly off Karori Rock, where there is a big convergence in NW flows and ferry passengers often notice the "local maximum" for the trip. Local yachties and others know this effect well.