The past week has been a busy one for the North Island with rain falling for a day and a half without a break in some areas, followed by gales that knocked the power out for a few people in the upper North Island on Friday.

We’ve had a focus on planet earth too – with a great video that shows the size of each country may be completely different to what you thought – or have seen in most maps you use, like Google Maps.

We also go into outer space with an earth-like planet found 4.2 light years from our solar system. This is exceptionally close in space terms and is a very exciting development.

And finally the week here in New Zealand ended on a warm, windy note in the north – and people are complaining about pollen already, as temperatures surge into the 20s along with strong winds.

Here are the most read stories from the past 7 days…

• Video: How the world map looks wildly different to what you might think

• Poll Results: Please make Spring normal, or warmer than normal

• Devastation in Louisiana – 26,119,341,309,600 litres of rain in one week

• August to end with September’s weather

• NEW POLL: Are you an ‘outdoors’ kinda person?

• Video: Haboob (Dust storm) engulfs Phoenix, Arizona

• Two more signs of evidence Spring is already here

• Today in Photos (x13) – Gloom, gloom and gorgeous

• Earth-like planet discovered – and it’s a ‘mere’ 4.2 light years away

• (Friday) Next 10 days – Rain stays mostly west, but heads south

• (Friday) Warm nor’westers push temps into low to mid 20s in North Island