With Tropical Cyclone Tomas now well out to sea and Tropical Cyclone Ului still figuring out where to go, WeatherWatch.co.nz forecasters thought it was time to check back on our own country!

The Autumn weather pattern continues with a front and low pressure system approaching from the south west.  This means wet weather for the West Coast – but a high over the north means more dry weather is on the way.  But for how long?

WeatherWatch.co.nz believes northern regions which desperately need rain may see dry weather continuing right into April.  The 10 day forecast for Northland, Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty shows little in the way of rain, as computer models continue to suggest Ului will now hit Australia and spare New Zealand.

Meanwhile the hot cold switch will continue over the South Island, which is normal for this time of year as nor’westers change to southerlies then back to nor’westers again.

The weekend should be mainly dry for most main centres, but we’ll have full details tomorrow on the outlook for the weekend.

Tropical Cyclone Ului – full coverage right here

Keep up with WeatherWatch.co.nz this weekend as we track Severe Tropical Cyclone Ului.  Current predictions suggest Ului will strike the Queensland coast either late Saturday night or during Sunday.  WeatherWatch will have extensive coverage as this storm moves in.