MetService is forecasting a ridge of high pressure to gradually build over the country as we move into the weekend, followed by more rain from the north next week.

MetService meteorologist Rob Kerr says, “The ridge is slowly pushing on to the country, but the axis of the ridge lies to the west, meaning we are still on the cold, showery southerly side until midway through the weekend.

“As we go into Saturday, the flow will tip from southerly to more southwest, shifting the showers away from the east of the country, but bringing them onto western parts. Then on Sunday, as the ridge properly arrives, we’ll see even more sunshine around and the showers all but gone,” says Kerr.

“There have been some very cold starts already this week, especially southern South Island (-5°C at Invercargill Airport – their coldest of the year), and when night skies are clear and winds lighter, as predicted in the coming days, we can expect a few more places across the country to see their coldest night of the year. This will include Auckland which could be frosty on Friday and Saturday morning,“ Kerr adds.

Early next week we will see a significant change in the weather as the narrow ridge leaves us, followed by warmer northerlies on Monday, and more rain from Tuesday, especially in northern and western parts of New Zealand.

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