Disappointing Storm Season for NZ 2008

[Tornado Tim]

What a disappointing year for storms. Hardly any where I am and I think the rest of NZ will be below usual.
I wish these fronts came from more southerly direction rather than westerly, then we would have unstable air!
Jan 2009 isn't looking good either with cape levels most of the time hovering at 0 around the Waikato Area.
I would like to know what the rest of NZ has got in terms of storms, below average/ above average.
Oh well hopefully Autumn might give us some....

[David]

Not a rumble from the sky here for Jan, Feb, Mar, Nov or Dec. Apr had 1 day, May 3 days, Jun 6 days, Jul 5 days, Aug 4 days, Sep 1 day, Oct 2 days. So 22 days this year with thunder (above average I think). On the downside, over east Auckland there have been little if any 'proper' thunderstorms this year.

[spwill]

Not sure why the weather has been so stable this spring and summer so far. Hopefully we dont have to wait until winter to hear thunder again.

[NZstorm]

West coast Auckland certainly caught a lot of thunderstorms last winter. Its been a stable summer due to a lack of upper cold troughs. Also, we have not had any particularly humid weather yet which can also be another cause of tstorms. Chances are the current stable trend will continue through January.

The front passing through here on the 3rd looks slightly interesting and could be thundery although the warm upper air will make it difficult to get the instability going but we'll see.

A little bit of thunder over east Otago this afternoon.

[tgsnoopy]

If it's any consolation, even Sydney has failed to impress this year.

Might have to be Brisbane or even Darwin next year I feel.

Looking forward to the cooler temperatures of NZ when I return in about a week.

[Manukau heads obs]

the electrical storms we got here in the winter (june/july) were some of the best I have seen here, with lightning hitting houses left right and center!
(and lots of hail to boot)
but that was it, not much else

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Yes, it has been a disapointing thunderstorm season this year along the east coast of the SI with the majority of thunder related activity occuring in the cooler months, rather than spring or summer.
However, on saying this there has been isolated incidents, ie. Ashburton hailstorm on the 17th of November for example.
The usual scenario of a cold southerly change coming up against an onshore NE didn't really make an impact on whatever thunder we had, this year, sadly
I wonder if 2009 wil be the same?

JohnGaul
NZThS

[Nev]

Some leisurely reading (for those that missed it) of some of the severe-weather highlights in NZ during 2008 (up until Dec 20) from the NZ Herald ... 'The weather over the past four seasons'.

And, although this probably belongs in the 'International Weather' section, here's also a world summary of events for 2008 (up until Dec 16) from the WMO ... '2008 Among 10 Warmest Years' - (since 1850).

[Manukau heads obs]

i see they mix kmh and knots for windspeed in that first article...

[Vertigo]

auckland had it good this year, to be honest. that 8 strait days of lightning active thunderstorms in may i think, that satisfied me! only now am i craving a good thundestorm. or even better, a tropical cyclone! still a good 3 months of potential to go.

[Nev]

At least the Herald only mixed km/h and knots, rather than got them mixed up. I personally prefer knots but, for the sake of most landlubbers, you'd think they'd just stick to km/h.

Vertigo, we've never had an intact TC reach NZ before, so why would you expect one this season

[Manukau heads obs]

would be something to make the summer interesting to get the remains of TC come down our way

[Vertigo]

Vertigo, we've never had an intact TC reach NZ before, so why would you expect one this season

yes, i know. i guess i need to be careful how i word things.. i didnt mean an intact TC like you say, but rather a TC the transitions to ETC before it gets here. when i was a kid, Bola was called a cyclone, and thats the benchmark i set for myself, so something similar to Bola would be nice (for me, at least). Funa didnt turn out to be the monster i was hoping for, i want something bigger!

[Willoughby]

If it's any consolation, even Sydney has failed to impress this year.

Might have to be Brisbane or even Darwin next year I feel.

Darwin has had a shocking, well below par storm season so far, but Brisbane??? Woah!

It was certainly an electrically-active Winter over northern NZ... the springs of 07 and 08 seem pretty similar in terms of the atmospheric stability.

[TokWW]

So Bola was not originated in the tropics and just came across from upper Queensland then? Can't remember back then, was not so much into the weather either. just interested in your statement - "we've never"...

[Manukau heads obs]

TC Bola was a tropics originated one from memory
it was not a TC as such when it affected NZ, it had turned extra tropical, and then mainained its intensity after that transformation and was then slow moving for days

[Nev]

Yes, Bola formed to the north of Fiji and became a TC before reaching Vanuatu (didn't get anywhere near Qld though). It then quickly weakened as it accelerated SW toward NZ and then transitioned into an extratropical cyclone, i.e. completely different structure to a TC.