New Zealand Climate Update 237 - March 2019

What happened in February, how our climate outlook for the previous three months turned out, global and local sea temperatures, and our outlook for March-May.

In this issue

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    Current climate: February 2019

    Mean atmospheric pressure during February was near normal over much of New Zealand with lower than normal pressures to the north and south
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    Global setting: February 2019

    The Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) decreased substantially from near 0.0 in January to a value of -1.3 in February.
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    Outlook: March-May 2019

    March – May 2019 temperatures are forecast to be above average (50-60% chance) for all regions of New Zealand.
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    Retrospective: December-February 2019 Outlook

    The atmospheric circulation around New Zealand was forecast to be characterised by higher pressure than normal extending from the Chatham Islands to the Australian Bight.