AUCKLAND: New Zealand has sweltered through its hottest summer on record and can expect more of the same if climate change continues unabated, the government's scientific agency said Tuesday (Mar 6).

Daily temperatures averaged 18.8 degrees Celsius, 2.1 degree Celsius more than normal, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said.

With the mercury reaching as high as 38.7 degree Celsius in the South Island, NIWA said it was the hottest summer since records began in 1909, surpassing the previous high set in 1934-35.

NIWA's chief forecaster Chris Brandolino said a number of factors were behind the warm weather, including a spike in marine temperatures and warm northerly winds from a La Nina weather pattern.

Brandolino added that global warming due to climate change was also a major contributor because it lifted baseline temperatures over the long term.

He said more records were likely to fall in coming years if the factors behind man-made climate change were not addressed.

"The expectation is that as we work our way through the coming decades, or 10, 20, 30, 100 years from now, if we're on the same trajectory we are now with carbon emissions, this will continue," he told Radio New Zealand.

The high temperatures prompted the government to declare a mid-level drought in some areas of the country and provide assistance to struggling farmers.

Scientists have also linked extreme weather to climate change, including cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

The country's fledgling centre-left government has vowed to help tackle climate change, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern describing it as the defining challenge of her generation.

She has set New Zealand a target of being carbon neutral by 2050.</s>Records that have stood for 84 years have melted away - New Zealand has just had its hottest summer on record.

The average temperature was 18.8C - 2.1C above the 1981-2010 average, Niwa says.

The figure beat the historical record previously held by the 1934-35 summer of 18.5C.

Fifty-four locations - including Whangarei, Auckland (Western Springs), Tauranga, Whakatane, Rotorua, Taupo, Hamilton Airport, New Plymouth, Gisborne, Hastings, Paraparaumu, Upper Hutt, Motueka, Greymouth, Akaroa, Dunedin (Musselburgh) and Invercargill - recorded their own hottest summer ever.

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Thirty-nine enjoyed or endured their second-hottest summer ever and nine their third-hottest.

Niwa says the 2017-18 season was characterised by mean sea level pressures that were higher than normal to the east and southeast of New Zealand, and lower than normal over and to the west of the country.

This pattern delivered more frequent warm northerly and north-easterly winds than normal, consistent with La Nina conditions.

The summer got off to a hot start with nearly the entire country observing well-above average warmth during December, which was the second warmest December on record.

January 2018 was the hottest month on record for New Zealand with a mean of 20.3C.

February was characterised by the passage of ex-tropical cyclones Fehi and Gita, which brought significant amounts of rainfall to parts of the country.

"Temperatures were well above average (>1.2°C above average) in all main centres during summer. Tauranga, Hamilton, and Dunedin observed their hottest summer on record while the remaining centres experienced near-record warmth," said the Niwa climate summary report.

"Rainfall in Christchurch was well above normal rainfall (>149% of normal) during summer. Tauranga, Hamilton, Wellington, and Dunedin observed above normal rainfall (120% to 149% of normal), while Auckland received near normal (80% to 119% of normal) rainfall.

"Of the six main centres in summer, Auckland was the warmest, Dunedin was the coolest and driest, Wellington was the sunniest, and Hamilton was the wettest and least sunny."

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Other highlights:

Alexandra had the highest temperature of 38.7C on January 30 Mt Cook Airport and Tekapo had the lowest temperature of 0.2C on December 20.

Upper Takaka had the highest one-day rainfall of 297mm on January 17 Akitio had the strongest wind gust of 165km/h on December 19.

Of the main centres:

Auckland was warmest Hamilton was wettest and least sunny

Wellington was sunniest Dunedin was coolest and driest.</s>Huge waves lash Lyall Bay in the New Zealand capital Wellington on July 23, 2017. — AFP pic WELLINGTON, March 6 — New Zealand has sweltered through its hottest summer on record and can expect more of the same if climate change continues unabated, the government’s scientific agency said today.

Daily temperatures averaged 18.8°C, 2.1°C more than normal, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said.

With the mercury reaching as high as 38.7°C in the South Island, NIWA said it was the hottest summer since records began in 1909, surpassing the previous high set in 1934-35.

NIWA’s chief forecaster Chris Brandolino said a number of factors were behind the warm weather, including a spike in marine temperatures and warm northerly winds from a La Nina weather pattern.

Brandolino added that global warming due to climate change was also a major contributor because it lifted baseline temperatures over the long term.

He said more records were likely to fall in coming years if the factors behind man-made climate change were not addressed.

“The expectation is that as we work our way through the coming decades, or 10, 20, 30, 100 years from now, if we’re on the same trajectory we are now with carbon emissions, this will continue,” he told Radio New Zealand.

The high temperatures prompted the government to declare a mid-level drought in some areas of the country and provide assistance to struggling farmers.

Scientists have also linked extreme weather to climate change, including cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

The country’s fledgling centre-left government has vowed to help tackle climate change, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern describing it as the defining challenge of her generation.

She has set New Zealand a target of being carbon neutral by 2050. — AFP</s>A file photo of New Zealand's highest mountain Mount Cook. Scientists have linked extreme weather to climate change, including cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

WELLINGTON - New Zealand has sweltered through its hottest summer on record and can expect more of the same if climate change continues unabated, the government's scientific agency said on Tuesday (March 6).

Daily temperatures averaged 18.8 deg C from December to February which was 2.1 deg C more than normal, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said.

With the mercury reaching as high as 38.7 deg C in the South Island, NIWA said it was the hottest summer since records began in 1909, surpassing the previous high set in 1934-35.

NIWA's chief forecaster Chris Brandolino said a number of factors were behind the warm weather, including a spike in marine temperatures and warm northerly winds from a La Nina weather pattern.

Brandolino added that global warming due to climate change was also a major contributor because it lifted baseline temperatures over the long term.

He said more records were likely to fall in coming years if the factors behind man-made climate change were not addressed.

"The expectation is that as we work our way through the coming decades, or 10, 20, 30, 100 years from now, if we're on the same trajectory we are now with carbon emissions, this will continue," he told Radio New Zealand.

The high temperatures prompted the government to declare a mid-level drought in some areas of the country and provide assistance to struggling farmers.

Scientists have also linked extreme weather to climate change, including cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

The country's fledgling centre-left government has vowed to help tackle climate change, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern describing it as the defining challenge of her generation.

She has set New Zealand a target of being carbon neutral by 2050.</s>New Zealand has just had its hottest summer on record.

The average temperature was 18.8C, which was 2.1C above the 1981-2010 average, Niwa says.

The figure beat the historical record previously held by the 1934-35 summer of 18.5C.

Niwa says the 2017-18 season was characterised by mean sea level pressures that were higher than normal to the east and southeast of New Zealand, and lower than normal over and to the west of the country.

This pattern delivered more frequent warm northerly and north-easterly winds than normal, consistent with La Nina conditions.

The summer got off to a hot start with nearly the entire country observing well-above average warmth during December, which was the second warmest December on record.

January 2018 was the hottest month on record for New Zealand with a mean of 20.3C.

February was characterised by the passage of ex-tropical cyclones Fehi and Gita, which brought significant amounts of rainfall to parts of the country.

* Alexandra had the highest temperature of 38.7C on January 30

 * Mt Cook Airport and Tekapo had the lowest temperature of 0.2C on December 20

 * Upper Takaka had the highest one-day rainfall of 297mm on January 17

 * Akitio had the strongest wind gust of 165km/h on December 19.

 Of the main centres:

 * Auckland was warmest

 * Hamilton was wettest and least sunny

 * Wellington was sunniest

 * Dunedin was coolest and driest.</s>New Zealand's scientific agency said on Tuesday that the country went through its hottest summer on record and can expect more of the same if climate change continues unabated.

The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said that the daily temperatures were recorded at an average of 18.8 degrees Celsius, 2.1 degree Celsius more than normal.

According to NIWA, this was the hottest summer since records began in 1909 as the mercury reached as high as 38.7 degree Celsius in the South Island. Reports said that it surpassed the previous high set in 1934-35.

Chris Brandolino, the chief forecaster of NIWA, explained that there were a number of factors that triggered the warm weather. The spike in marine temperatures and warm northerly winds from a La Nina weather pattern were two of the major reasons behind the climate.

In addition, global warming due to climate change is also believed to be a major contributor to the warm weather. Brandolino said that it has lifted baseline temperatures over the long term.

He added that if the factors behind man-made climate change were not addressed, more records were likely to fall in coming years.

"The expectation is that as we work our way through the coming decades, or 10, 20, 30, 100 years from now, if we're on the same trajectory we are now with carbon emissions, this will continue," he told Radio New Zealand.

The government declared a mid-level drought in some areas of the country due to the high temperatures. It also provided assistance to struggling farmers.

Channel NewsAsia reported that scientists have also linked extreme weather to climate change. This includes cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has described the situation as the defining challenge of her generation, while, the New Zealand's fledgling centre-left government has vowed to help tackle climate change. Ardern is all set to make New Zealand carbon free by 2050.</s>Wellington, March 5, 2018 (AFP) - - New Zealand has sweltered through its hottest summer on record and can expect more of the same if climate change continues unabated, the government's scientific agency said Tuesday.

Daily temperatures averaged 18.8 Celsius (65.84 Farenheit), 2.1C more than normal, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said.

With the mercury reaching as high as 38.7C in the South Island, NIWA said it was the hottest summer since records began in 1909, surpassing the previous high set in 1934-35.

NIWA's chief forecaster Chris Brandolino said a number of factors were behind the warm weather, including a spike in marine temperatures and warm northerly winds from a La Nina weather pattern.

Brandolino added that global warming due to climate change was also a major contributor because it lifted baseline temperatures over the long term.

He said more records were likely to fall in coming years if the factors behind man-made climate change were not addressed.

"The expectation is that as we work our way through the coming decades, or 10, 20, 30, 100 years from now, if we're on the same trajectory we are now with carbon emissions, this will continue," he told Radio New Zealand.

The high temperatures prompted the government to declare a mid-level drought in some areas of the country and provide assistance to struggling farmers.

Scientists have also linked extreme weather to climate change, including cyclone systems that have devastated Pacific island nations and caused flooding in New Zealand.

The country's fledgling centre-left government has vowed to help tackle climate change, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern describing it as the defining challenge of her generation.

She has set New Zealand a target of being carbon neutral by 2050.</s>According to NIWA, this summer has been New Zealand's hottest ever, with an average temperature of 18.8C, smashing the previous record set way back in the summer of 1934.

But this could be hard to believe for some because not everyone had their fair share of sun.

TVNZ1's Seven Sharp thought they would give out their Weather Awards:

Hamilton! Although it was its hottest summer on record, the Tron got 330mm worth of rain.

On the other end of the spectrum, down south, Dunedin wins driest, and also coolest city with an average temperature of just 16.7 degrees

Wellington was the best place to sunbathe. The sun beamed down on the capital for 668 long blissful summer hours.

And finally, the city of sails topped the leaderboard with the warmest of the bunch. Auckland's average temperature was 21.3 degrees.</s>New Zealand has officially had the hottest summer on record, according the weather service NIWA.

The highest temperature was 38.7 degrees celsius and was observed in Alexandra on January 30th.

The nationwide average came in at 18.8 degrees- topping the historical record held by the summer of 1934 of 18.5 degrees.

NIWA estimates that 54 locations across the country had their hottest summer on record this year.
NIWA declares that the previous summer, which had an average temperature of 18.8 °C (65.8 °F), was the hottest in New Zealand history.