General September Weather

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Looks like a fine sunny start for the Meteorological Spring. A few intense anticyclones hanging around, maybe?
I remember last year, it snowed here on the first of September whereas we had no snow over the official winter months?

[tich]

Some models suggest a significant cold outbreak over NZ in about a weeks time.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Some models suggest a significant cold outbreak over NZ in about a weeks time.

Looks likely Ben. See how this pans out. Could be thunderstorm risk as well ?

[Dean.]

A stunning start to spring in my local high country today...much warmer than the plains

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

After a good frost this morning, a blue dome day eventuated. 15.1C for today.
Cool NE though.

[Chris W]

Active little southerly change this morning, gusty with a heavy shower.

[tich]

Active little southerly change this morning, gusty with a heavy shower.

Shower in Akaroa recently.

[David]

Here's how this year's rain is tracking for me compared to last year. Looking likely to the be the 3rd consecutive below-average year.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Active little southerly change this morning, gusty with a heavy shower.

Nothing much here, must of been coastal.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Cloudy this morning with a southerly change but nothing much happening here.
Today's maximum was 14.4C this afternoon when the sun came out.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

After a frost, a warm blue dome day eventuated. Today's maxim was 21.4C.

[Simon Culling]

According to this MetService tweet, Dunedin Airport recorded it's largest ever diurnal range today (3rd Sept) in a record dating back to 1972.

Max was 22.5°C and the Min was -3.0°C to give a daily range of 25.5°C. This is comparable to the larger daily ranges seen here in the UK.

https://twitter.com/MetService/status/1 ... 6398798857

[spwill]

According to this MetService tweet, Dunedin Airport recorded it's largest ever diurnal range today (3rd Sept) in a record dating back to 1972.

Max was 22.5°C and the Min was -3.0°C to give a daily range of 25.5°C. This is comparable to the larger daily ranges seen here in the UK.

https://twitter.com/MetService/status/1 ... 6398798857

The equivalent time of year for the UK would be the 3rd of March, I'm picking for the UK that temperature range would be a May-June occurrence

[Razor]

GFS and metservice seem to be at loggerheads as to how the upcoming front sequence will play out. Seems a chance of storMs through chch at times

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

A lovely fine and warm day here with not much wind.
Today's maximum was 24C, probably the warmest spot in the country?

[Awhituobs]

looks like equinox gales coming ...

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Fine day but with considerable amounts of cirrus stratus hindering sunlight resulting it only getting to 18C today with a light south to SE blowing this afternoon.

[mikestormchaser]

GFS and metservice seem to be at loggerheads as to how the upcoming front sequence will play out. Seems a chance of storMs through chch at times

Quite a changeable couple of weeks coming by looks. Interesting spring like pattern, fri end of this coming week might be one to watch

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

Amazing NW Arch today. Signs of inclement weather coming?

[spwill]

The cold system coming into the west of the North Island Wednesday morning will bring a thunder/hail risk with it. We have had very little in the way of thunderstorm activity coming off the Tasman Sea this year.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

High cloud gradually thickening today with a solid NW Arch forming and remaining place for the rest of the day.
Some virga forms along the edge showing up on the rain radar.
Today's maximum was 16.3C.
Light NW winds.

[jhaylock]

In Taranaki tornados are a relatively frequent occurrence - normally in the passage of a front coming off the Tasman Sea. Over the years I've seen 6-7 funnel clouds during daylight hours - normally short-lived and only one that touched the ground. New Plymouth has had many tornado incidents over the years - occasionally lifting roofs and knocking trees and lines down. We missed the August 2018 event in our previous house by about 400m. That one damaged about 40 houses.

On Friday night, 10 September, I had the scary experience of a probable close encounter with a tornado at night. Around 9pm a front crossed Taranaki with a vigorous thunderstorm. I was downstairs in our house - just in behind New Plymouth's Fitzroy Beach. There were a few flashes and rumbles of thunder. It wasn't raining and there was a moderate wind blowing but there was no wind noise. We're only 150m or so from the beach and the sea was making its usual background low pitched roaring noise.

I became aware that there was another roaring noise gradually getting louder. It was higher pitched and louder than the sea. About ten seconds after I first thought "I wonder what that is", I had another thought "that could be a tornado". About 3-4 seconds after that thought the house was hit by very strong winds that last about ten seconds and then went as suddenly as they arrived. During the winds I could hear stuff being blown about on our upstairs deck. While it only lasted a matter of seconds it was very scary - I was certainly wondering about serious damage to the house and the danger to my wife and me.

She was upstairs at the time. After the winds stopped her first words to me as we met at the top of the stairs were "was that a tornado?" to which I replied "I think so". She texted our neighbour who had also experienced the sudden winds and had exactly the same thought that it was a tornado.
I went outside and found very minimal damage. On our deck two reasonably heavy plants in pots were blown over and two chairs were blown over. We've had similar things occur in 100km/h winds before.

I thought we were lucky and had likely just missed the worst of it. I kept expecting to hear sirens as a result of roofs being blown off other house or lines down - but nothing. No other reports came in. The next morning I drove around the corner expecting to see some debris on the road from wind damaged trees as I've seen with previous tornados in New Plymouth - but again nothing. The streets were clean.

I think we dodged a bullet. The combination of the roaring noise (which matches what I have read other people describe with confirmed tornados) and the vicious but very shortlived winds occurring in conjunction with the passage of a front and thunderstorms makes me confident it was a tornado. I think it must have come off the sea just touched our neighbourhood and then lifted before dissipating.

We also get squalls of wind in the passage of fronts and I have seen many of those too. They last longer and almost always also arrive with very heavy rain. This was different. We'll never know for sure if it was a tornado - nobody saw it. But I never want to hear that noise again - especially in the dark.

[Awhituobs]

there was reports of water spouts off the north shore auckland in the gulf with that front too

[darcyplumb]

Goodness me! Flash flood problems under this I would think.

[wembley]

Really loud thunder down in Cromwell. Would be interesting to know the polarity of the lightning causing that.