December was marked by easterlies, dragging in cloud, slightly lowering temps and bring in that rain – yes, most of you remember that rain.  January saw those easterlies die out and instead conditions shifted to more spring/autumn like patterns.

We had southerlies and south westerlies day after day.  We saw cold snaps, less humidity, snow and that chill in the air that reminds you of winter being just around the corner.  But winter is not just around the corner.

The humid easterlies have returned to the country – some will have nor’easters, others sou’easters…some regions may locally buck the trend altogether.  But the overall theme for the next week or so will be east to north east winds for many areas – especially the North Island.

For the upper North Island the easterly flow may well last two weeks, due to the location of the highs – which will be again tracking further south, as they did back in December.

But a few areas of concern remain in the tropics – there are numerous tropical storms at play, either already formed or are forming. 

No models show a direct hit with New Zealand – but they are forming close to us, some less than the length of NZ away from us.  So we’re watching it closely – but for now, no immediate concerns, just easterlies, cloud and humidity for the north, and more settled summer weather for central and southern areas over the next week or so.

– Blog by Head Weather Analyst Philip Duncan

– Homepage image / Noelle Bennett

– WeatherWatch.co.nz