The year 2024 brought its fair share of weather to Aotearoa New Zealand. From record-breaking temperatures to heavy rain events, the humid heat of January, or October's Red Warning for eastern Otago, each month added its chapter to the story of our weather. Dive into this 2024 weather recap to uncover the highs, lows, and everything in between.
Accurate weather forecasting requires three key ingredients – trustworthy observations, reliable computer models and experienced meteorologists.
Before the computer age and the satellite era, forecasters were reliant on weather observations from land stations, ships, and balloon soundings from which they could predict the movement of high and low-pressure systems and fronts.
We all look out the window to see what the weather is up to. In a similar way, MetService meteorologists are always checking to make sure what they have predicted is actually happening.
Some may think it’s one of those jobs which anyone might turn their hand to, but the difficulties of weather forecasting are hugely underrated.
After all, there aren’t many jobs where you’re expected to predict the future. Economists are also required to make forecasts, but at least they have some control over the system they are foretelling. When it comes to weather, meteorologists have no such influence.
The best weather forecasting is a mixture of science, geography, and experience.
What do Irene, Osai, Tam and Xavier all have in common?
How do I understand a tropical cyclone track map?
What is swell period and why does it matter?
If you are trying to entertain the kids at home or are just looking for a meteorological experiment then you've come to the right place!
First up we have the Cloud in a Bottle experiment:
Equipment:
• 1 large clear-plastic bottle with a screw-on top (e.g. a 3-litre juice bottle)
• 1 match
• 1 cup of water
Instructions:
Step 1. Pour the water into the bottle, put the top on and shake it around. Leave it for a few hours so that the air in the bottle gets very humid. (You can do the word find below while you wait)
While the weather conditions that lead to the formation of fog are usually quite benign, fog itself can be very disruptive. In particular the aviation and marine industries are often interested in how fog or mist will affect the visibility for their journeys, though fog also affects road-users.