Novemeber snow.

[snowstormwatcher]

Just started snowing here, Big Flakes too.
Hard to believe it was 26c here yesterday.

[Orion]

Temp. down to 2.5degrees here now so it mightn't be long away for us too. Still just rain and melting bits at the moment.

[snowstormwatcher]

Starting to Settle here now, Smaller flakes though.
Currently 0.8c

[bpo]

Omarama got around 2 cm on the ground before it stopped, making it possibly the biggest falls this year.

People in Twizel say they got around 1 cm, and Lake Tekapo a little less, so it was a southern event, so to speak.

The sun is breaking through the clouds now, and the snow is going fast.

Winter's last gasp.

[melja]

Winters last gasp, have been thinking that for the last few cold snaps but no they just keep on coming.

[Orion]

Light snow falling here for last half-hour.
Temp. 2.1 degrees.

[Richard]

Only just hit here,no sleet in it.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Starting to Settle here now, Smaller flakes though.
Currently 0.8c

Might be like 1967. I can remember seeing pictures of the old "Fairlie Flyer" train ploughing through the snow in the Wincombe cutting near Cricklewood in November of that year.

[snowstormwatcher]

Might be like 1967. I can remember seeing pictures of the old "Fairlie Flyer" train ploughing through the snow in the Wincombe cutting near Cricklewood in November of that year.

Saw some old photos of the November 1967 dump a few months ago, Looked like Huge dump of snow for the time of year. Apparently there was some big frosts and cold weather after it as well so it took a while to melt.

Ended up with just a dusting of snow on the grass here this morning which was melted within an hour of the snow stopping.

[Thunder]

Snow here at Mount Somers to about 450 metres, perhaps 400m. Went for a drive up there this morning. Can understand it would have fallen a bit lower but due to melt etc dissapeared fairly quickly.

[Orion]

Great picture!

[spwill]

Looks cold given cloud cover/wind even if it were June, Gore currently on 3.1C, Qtwn 3.4C, Invercargill 4.5C, Timaru 4.8C, Cristchurch 5.9C.

I see the current temperature in Moscow is 2C.

[Dean.]

Yes currently 4 degrees here under heavy rain!

[Orion]

Wind has risen again just now to a wintry sound; 3.7 degrees.
There was 19mm precipitation to 9am this morning.

[Simon Culling]

Your November would be equivalent to our May here in the UK, where snow does happen from time to time up until the middle of the month, but it would be unusual for it to settle away from the higher ground. Here in Milton Keynes it would be a 1 in 20 year event for settling snow to occur, but more like 1 in 5 years for a passing sleet or snow shower in a cold and showery northerly airflow.

How rare is this for NZ? There was quite a contrast at the 6am time on Friday, when inland Canterbury (Fairlie and Mayfield) were reorting snow and 1-2*C, but Christchurh Airport had steady rain and 7*C.

[Richard]

We are talking about high ground here as well Simon,Fairlie and Mayfield are well away from the coast also so snow falls are not uncommon in Nov,snow at sea level say for CHCH,thats rare,anyone remember when that last happened ?

[NZstorm]

Canterbury is at a much lower lattitude than the UK but the sea surface temperatures are not too different due to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic.

Currently SST off the Otago coast are a chilly 9C!

[snowstormwatcher]

Your November would be equivalent to our May here in the UK, where snow does happen from time to time up until the middle of the month, but it would be unusual for it to settle away from the higher ground. Here in Milton Keynes it would be a 1 in 20 year event for settling snow to occur, but more like 1 in 5 years for a passing sleet or snow shower in a cold and showery northerly airflow.

How rare is this for NZ? There was quite a contrast at the 6am time on Friday, when inland Canterbury (Fairlie and Mayfield) were reorting snow and 1-2*C, but Christchurh Airport had steady rain and 7*C.

Settling snow here in Fairlie (300m asl) in November is quite rare, I cant comment on any long term data but Ive been here for nearly 6 years and this is the first time Ive seen settling snow in November. Snow falling but not settling happens every 2 or 3 years. As mentioned above in this topic there was a very big snow dump in the middle of November 1967 where around 30cm of snow fell in Fairlie.

[spwill]

Here in Milton Keynes it would be a 1 in 20 year event for settling snow to occur, but more like 1 in 5 years for a passing sleet or snow shower in a cold and showery northerly airflow.

.

Despite lattitude make the comparison with the Scottish Highlands rather than Milton keynes

[Manukau heads obs]

So its fairlie rare for settling snow in november in Farile?
sorry , could not resist

[tich]

Dusting visible on Mt Herbert this morning.
Last year, there was brief snow (mixed with hail) to or near sea-level on Banks Peninsula early November, and in November 2008, Chch had sleet and scattered snow flurries (only settling on Port Hills) one afternoon and then a few days later in the early morning.

[Manukau heads obs]

I do remember that Guy fawkes night was often a cold SW wind....

[Captain Salty]

in November 2008, Chch had sleet and scattered snow flurries (only settling on Port Hills) one afternoon

I remeber running on the hills during that event. Sun, rain, sleet, hail, rain and then back to sun. I have never been so cold in all my life

[Simon Culling]

Thanks for all the answers to my question earlier in this thread. The occurance seems to be in the same ballpark, especially if we consider higher ground. I was considering the more habited parts of the UK below say 150m (or roughly 500ft). The incidence of snow falling in the UK in May will increase as you travel north to Scotland and the far Northern Isles (at 60*N lattitude), but settling snow is much more likely inland and will obviuosly increase with altitude. I suspect as Steven suggest, SST's will have a bearing, as does the Gulf Stream. I will research the average SST's for May.