Spring is all about ups and downs, from temperatures to wind, rain to sun every day feels like we have a different menu of weather to choose from.

This week is a classic spring set up where we kick off with high pressure and warmth, mid week have a sub-tropical low with rain, then late week get the colder tail end with winds out of the Southern Ocean area.

Make the most of the mild days this week because by Friday and the weekend the South Island in particular will be colder. At this stage it’s not a major cold event but daytime highs around Queenstown drop to just 6 degrees on Friday and Saturday. Single digit daytime highs will also spread across parts of Southland, Otago and Canterbury. 

Christchurch goes from being fairly sunny and mild next couple days to being bleak and more wintry mid to late week and into this weekend with daytime highs potentially as low as 9 degrees in some areas.

There are still no major polar blasts in the forecast but the Southern Ocean is fairly chaotic in September so expect some colder, wetter, windier shots in the mix too. Northern NZ isn’t so affected but does have some of this cooler change this weekend or early next week. Even Gisborne is affected early next week with a current high of just 12 degrees forecast for next Monday but it’s not expected to linger with a large high pressure system returning next week – or encouraging milder westerlies to return.

For newborn livestock the overnight lows will be lower later this week and coupled with some rain and wind it may make for bleak conditions. Nothing too brutal at this stage but worth mentioning colder air is coming in for a time.

TEMPERATURES 12 NOON THIS TUESDAY:

12 NOON THIS FRIDAY:

12 NOON NEXT MONDAY:

– Maps thanks to MetOcean

– WeatherWatch.co.nz