Record daily temperature range in NZ

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Myself
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Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Myself »

We often get some good ranges from morning lows to afternoon highs over Spring. Does anyone know what is the greatest range ever recorded in New Zealand? I would expect somewhere in the region of 25C?
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by centralnz »

Although not Spring, on the 7th Feb 1973, Rangiora dropped from 42.4 degrees to 14 degrees early evening, when a cool weak southerly change moved through Canterbury, after NZ's hottest day on record.

A range of almost 29 degrees isn't bad going :)

I see it's frosty in Chch this morn and yet it's suppose to get up to the low 20s. That's not bad going either for a range in Spring. Almost a 25 degree difference maybe there?
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Nev »

Interesting question. I suspect there'll probably be a greater range from afternoon highs to morning lows, rather than the other way around. So does that count?

Yes, Rangiora actually went from 14.4°C to 42.4°C to 13.2°C the following morn, so a range of 28.0°C and 29.02°C. Perhaps places like Central Otago may be able to better that range?
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Richard »

Again not spring but last summer i recorded a 2C over night low to 38C by 6.00pm,36C difference.

Today has started off here with a -2, so should come close to that 25c Myself
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by centralnz »

Thanks Nev for clarifying but didn't a southerly pop up around 7pm that evening and the temp was 14 degrees by 8pm in Rangiora? Or is my memory playing tricks?
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Nev »

Yes, may have even been earlier than that going by Chch Aero data - gale S'erly there by 4pm with the approaching cold front, then turned more E'erly the next day. The 42.4°C was recorded around 1pm, but not sure exactly when the 13.2°C was recorded.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Michael »

I have a photocopy and it says Christchurch got relief about 2.45pm and temperatures tumbled to 17c at 3.50pm.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by RWood »

On 15 Feb 1982 Ch'ch went from a morning low of 7.4C to 36.9C - a 29.5C range.

To accept a claim of 36C I think there would have to be a very careful check of the instrument exposure.

The (not exhaustive) records I have for Alexandra and Hanmer didn't exceed 29C.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Nev »

Incidentally, Chch Aero went from 21.1°C yesterday to -3.5°C this morn, so a 24.6°C range.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Richard »

RWood wrote:On 15 Feb 1982 Ch'ch went from a morning low of 7.4C to 36.9C - a 29.5C range.

To accept a claim of 36C I think there would have to be a very careful check of the instrument exposure.

The (not exhaustive) records I have for Alexandra and Hanmer didn't exceed 29C.
Ok i dont have a temperature measuring instrument that is nether expensive are would be officially recognised,but its within degree of being accurate,i know this by the fact i have two neighbours,one who's 1/2 km away and has a good quality weather station that is set up correctly, and the other who's late model Mercedes all show similar readings.
As to where i have my temperature gauge situated,its two meters above the ground on the south side of a square post with two lengths of timber protruding out just enough the shade the gauge from the summers rising and setting sun,its set well out in the open,100m from any tall tress,30m from our house,there is no wind flow interference.
I'm confident that my readings are close to accurate at this stage but do plan to in the near further up date to a high quality recording station.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Richard »

centralnz wrote:Thanks Nev for clarifying but didn't a southerly pop up around 7pm that evening and the temp was 14 degrees by 8pm in Rangiora? Or is my memory playing tricks?
I was at primary school in Rangiora on that day,they made sit there,too hot to do any work.The strong southerly hit just as we got out at 3.00pm,it never brought any rain just a semi dust storm
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by centralnz »

Thanks Nev and Richard for the timing of that southerly on that day.

RWood I remember Timaru on that Feb day in 1982 as I biked to and from school. It was 30 degrees by 9am and 37.3 in the city at 3pm and we got let out early from school by 15 minutes!!I lived northwest of the city and almost melted, as the moderate NW wind was like a furnace :(
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Storm Struck »

I would think places like Alexandra,Cromwell etc would have a rather big temperature range considering they are so greatly temperate.
But its the transition time of Spring you are looking for, so unless there had been a very cold outbreak say in October bringing snow to low levels down there with a warm NWer beforehand there might be some good ranges there.
Like from 28C Down to 2C by after dark.
I wasnt born when the big 42C was recorded but hottest ive felt here is 39C and even that was sweltering back in 2000 i think it was.
Never know if this so called El Nino comes into play this summer there could be some record temperatures out east.
If the westerly flow is set to continue more rain in the west of both islands, on the downside drier out east.
But if i am correct normally this means a better storm season out east around Xmas-New Years, i am thinking of our typical southerly busters for October and November this year.
I am still unsure about January's reading this year which apparently recorded 40C in the Christchurch Suburb of Cashmere, i believe the highest it managed that day was around 37-38C.
Canterbury, home of good rugby and severe storms
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by RWood »

centralnz wrote:Thanks Nev and Richard for the timing of that southerly on that day.

RWood I remember Timaru on that Feb day in 1982 as I biked to and from school. It was 30 degrees by 9am and 37.3 in the city at 3pm and we got let out early from school by 15 minutes!!I lived northwest of the city and almost melted, as the moderate NW wind was like a furnace :(
Thanks centralnz - I had also noticed Timaru Gardens going from 9.6C to 36.6C on that day, but checking the Airport site shows it climbed from 6.4C to 37.7C - a range of 31.3C, the highest I've found so far.
Ashburton topped out at 38.5C but its minimum was quite a bit higher at 9.6C, so a smaller range.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Manukau heads obs »

without louvers, your temperature sensor will still be getting reflected radiated heat, Richard
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Nev »

RWood wrote:Thanks centralnz - I had also noticed Timaru Gardens going from 9.6C to 36.6C on that day, but checking the Airport site shows it climbed from 6.4C to 37.7C - a range of 31.3C, the highest I've found so far.
Ashburton topped out at 38.5C but its minimum was quite a bit higher at 9.6C, so a smaller range.
One moot point though, assuming those figures are for the 24 hours to 9am the following day, I suspect that those minima were taken the following morn. Wind and pressure data from both airports also tends to suggest this as more likely and centralnz did say it was 30°C by 9am that day (15/2/82). ;-)
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by RWood »

Nev wrote:
RWood wrote:Thanks centralnz - I had also noticed Timaru Gardens going from 9.6C to 36.6C on that day, but checking the Airport site shows it climbed from 6.4C to 37.7C - a range of 31.3C, the highest I've found so far.
Ashburton topped out at 38.5C but its minimum was quite a bit higher at 9.6C, so a smaller range.
One moot point though, assuming those figures are for the 24 hours to 9am the following day, I suspect that those minima were taken the following morn. Wind and pressure data from both airports also tends to suggest this as more likely and centralnz did say it was 30°C by 9am that day (15/2/82). ;-)
No, for both Christchurch and the 2 Timaru sites the minima were the "same morning", i.e. they were recorded in the 24-hour span to 9am on the same date. Conditions were quite cool just 2 days before with a moderate maximum of 22.9C at Ch'ch Aero the day before, so some scenario with a rapid invasion of warmer air after a cool start to the evening must have occurred. Of course, the minimum might have occurred several hours before dawn, possibly even before midnight. {BTW I have not fallen into the trap of being a day out when accessing the CliFlo data - they have a warning about how the date's Tmax and 24-hour rainfall, etc are stored in the database}.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by Nev »

Hi RWood, Agree with your Chch Aero and Timaru Gardens figures, but I think you'll find Timaru Aero went from 7.5°C to 37.7°C to 6.4°C and Ashburton went from 10.2°C to 38.5°C to 9.6°C.

Also agree with your synopsis. Wind data suggests NW'ers probably kicked-in not long before dawn. NE'ers would've cooled things down again early the following morn.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by RWood »

Oops - had forgotten that I'd rolled in a couple of "after" minima as well as "before" ones. Of course on a 24-hour basis, rather than just the calendar day that would normally cover the timespan of standard "before" cases, "after" cases would normally qualify as valid - and in some (rare) cases the max & min in the "normal" case could be separated by more than 24 hours.
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Re: Record daily temperature range in NZ

Unread post by spwill »

Hi RWood, Agree with your Chch Aero and Timaru Gardens figures, but I think you'll find Timaru Aero went from 7.5°C to 37.7°C to 6.4°C and Ashburton went from 10.2°C to 38.5°C to 9.6°C.

Also agree with your synopsis. Wind data suggests NW'ers probably kicked-in not long before dawn. NE'ers would've cooled things down again early the following morn.
A cold Front would have caused that temperature range, a post frontal southerly bringing in the cooler air and a very warm pre frontal NW flushing out residue cool surface air from the last system. Low dewpoints, night time cooling and day time heating all add to the temp range.
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