A slightly warmer westerly change has already moved in across New Zealand and it’s about to ramp up further with stronger winds, higher temperatures – but also mixed in with some colder changes, heavy rain and snow.

The weather pattern for the next several days, if not two weeks, is for westerlies to surge across the country with calmer days mixed in with strong to even gale force days. The blustery westerly pattern in the Southern Ocean is common all year round but when it surges like this up and over New Zealand it brings in spring and autumn-like weather conditions which encourages dry and windy in the east, wet in the west and snowy in the mountains. There will be several fronts crossing NZ too over the next week alone.

The winds aren’t perfect westerlies, they will surge warmer nor’west and colder sou’west at times too and maybe a few other brief variations – but the general theme is for westerlies. 

Temperatures in southern NZ this week are above average with frost free weather basically kicking in and double digit daytime highs. In the north it’s definitely frost free with daytime highs a few degrees above normal, especially inland and to the east. The nighs are, however, still a bit colder than average especially inland for the next night or two – but by Thursday even overnight lows will be above normal in most places.

WeatherWatch.co.nz says high pressure is now anchored/stuck over Australia and that means New Zealand won’t be getting nice clean big highs coming our way for possibly the rest of July. Instead the high pressure will be drifting north of NZ encouraging the windier westerly flow over us.

Even looking 10 days out from now there is no change in this set up, which means July’s temperatures will be pushed upwards, rainfall totals in western NZ will be pushed upwards and eastern areas will become drier, sunny, milder and windier too.

– WeatherWatch.co.nz