Science Centres: Climate

The 2007–08 drought: some comparisons of regional moisture deficits

Summer soils in 2007–08 were the driest for many years at Ruakura climate station, following lower than normal rainfall since September.

Napier was unusually dry by late October, although above average rainfall was recorded in December.

Kaikoura recorded 93 DSMD during November 2007 to February 2008. The El Niño years 1982–83 (98 days) and 1997–98 (103 days) were drier.

Total November-February DSMD of 80 or above occurs about once every 5–6 years at Middlemarch.

Most regions of New Zealand apart from Northland and Westland have been coping with very dry soil conditions over the past few months. Right are some example comparisons of total days of soil moisture deficit (DSMD) for the four months November 2007 to February 2008, shaded orange, with the same period for all years since 1972–73. Ruakura recorded the driest 4-month period since 1972, and it was the third driest event for Kaikoura and Middlemarch. At Napier Airport, the conditions were comparatively less extreme.

A day of soil moisture deficit is taken to be a day when more than half of the available moisture in the pasture root zone has been depleted, and hence pasture production is constrained by lack of available moisture.

Carbon Workshop 2008 Global Cycle to Regional Budget

14–15 April 2008 National Library Auditorium, Wellington

Carbon researchers from New Zealand and overseaswill gather to review current understanding of the global carbon cycle and its biogeochemical interactions. We will look ahead to the research challenges associated with mitigation of fossil carbon emissions, and to thedevelopment of policies for carbon constraint.

Keynote speakers:

Dr Pep Canadell, Executive Director, Global Carbon Project
Prof Martin Manning, Victoria University of Wellington

Workshop sessions:

• The global carbon cycle
• New Zealand terrestrial carbon budget
• Mitigation and carbon policy
• Carbon research poster session

For more information, visit: www.confer.co.nz/carbon

We encourage poster submission through the web interface. If you are interested in presenting a paper, contact the conference organiser, Dr Mike Harvey, NIWA m.harvey@niwa.co.nz