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This thread at another weather forum compiled a list of the wettest and driest places for various latitude ranges on earth.
Scroll up slightly to get the figure for wettness.
Viewing a thread - The Latitude Rainfall Challenge (http://www.ukweatherworld.co.uk/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=38270&DisplayType=nested&setCookie=1# bottom - broken link)
This thread at another weather forum compiled a list of the wettest and driest places for various latitude ranges on earth.
Scroll up slightly to get the figure for wettness.
Viewing a thread - The Latitude Rainfall Challenge (http://www.ukweatherworld.co.uk/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=38270&DisplayType=nested&setCookie=1# bottom - broken link)
So Mawsynram doesn't have the record then? Great name for a wettest place on Earth record holder, "Lloro", "it cried" I don't know if any of you saw the "Going to Extremes" TV series where the presenter went to the wettest/driest/coldest/hottest places on Earth, though he went to Mawsynram in the wet season.
That Vancouver Island 6655mm one looks as unbelievable as Milford Sound for a place at sea level, though I don't doubt it's true.
Maybe I should join that site, there seem to be a lot of good discussions going on there.
So Mawsynram doesn't have the record then? Great name for a wettest place on Earth record holder, "Lloro", "it cried" I don't know if any of you saw the "Going to Extremes" TV series where the presenter went to the wettest/driest/coldest/hottest places on Earth, though he went to Mawsynram in the wet season.
That Vancouver Island 6655mm one looks as unbelievable as Milford Sound for a place at sea level, though I don't doubt it's true.
Maybe I should join that site, there seem to be a lot of good discussions going on there.
Mawsynram feels far wetter because its rainfall is concentrated in a monsoon season (roughly 3 months) while Lloro is far more equiable. The monthly rain totals must be horrific. I think the locals have lots of hardship during the rainy season, much more than Lloro.
The Vancouver Island precipitation is high, but still much lower than New Zealand. I would have expected higher considering the topography. Perhaps New Zealand's is higher because the mountains rise more directly from the sea? The other difference is the west coast has a distinct dry season while it seems New Zealand has no dry season. Driest month:
Is above 400 mm! And it's the site isn't the wettest spot either. The photo on the wikipedia page looks so dry and sunny. I wanna visit! Anyhow, in contrast to a wet spot on Vancouver Island:
The NZ mountains do rise pretty sharply from the sea. Nowhere, even in the broadest part of the South Island, is more than 120km from the sea, and the southern Alps chain runs about parallel to the coastlines, at about 1/4 of the distance from the western coastline.
Then it's even more amazing if it's at sea level; I looked it up and thought the rain gauge must be at the top of the 1200m cliffs. How is it so wet then in parts of New Zealand, I wonder? I understand orographic uplift and winds bringing in moist air, but how is it that much wetter than similar places in the UK like Snowdonia/Lake District/Scottish Highlands which rise to similar heights as Cropp River and have longer sea track on the prevailing wind yet only get 1/3 as much rain?
Milford Sound would make an interesting "Rate the Climate"!
Milford's tally of 180 rain days >=1.0mm (or only a few more >= 0.2mm) is not high for such a wet place. Its driest ever month had 30mm, the wettest 1917mm. Sunshine % of average would actually be a little higher than on the much drier southern and south-eastern coasts of the island. Even at Cropp, rainless spells of up to about 14 days have occurred. It should also be noted that quite a large area of the South Island in the east and hinterland has 800mm or less annual rainfall, the driest parts about 350mm.
Wettest place in New Zealand (that are inhabitated)? With that precipitation, what is the snowfall higher up? And on the mountains?
NZ does a poor job of collecting snowfall stats. Ski areas are east of the divide and have much lower totals. I've never seen anything other than conjecture for totals on the divide and these suggest annual falls of between 20-50m per annum. The glaciers in this region are bigger and descend far lower(300m/1000ft) than anywhere else in the world at these latitudes.(Lat 43-44 )
There are not many towns in NZ with more than 3000 mm of yearly rainfall. I certainly wouldn't want to live anywhere that wet.
NZ does a poor job of collecting snowfall stats. Ski areas are east of the divide and have much lower totals. I've never seen anything other than conjecture for totals on the divide and these suggest annual falls of between 20-50m per annum. The glaciers in this region are bigger and descend far lower(300m/1000ft) than anywhere else in the world at these latitudes.(Lat 43-44 )
There are not many towns in NZ with more than 3000 mm of yearly rainfall. I certainly wouldn't want to live anywhere that wet.
That's really low. In the Pacific NW, the glacier line is at about 7000-8000 ft. There might be a few that go down to 6000 ft. I don't see glaciers in the photos of the Milford sound, though.
NZ does a poor job of collecting snowfall stats. Ski areas are east of the divide and have much lower totals. I've never seen anything other than conjecture for totals on the divide and these suggest annual falls of between 20-50m per annum. The glaciers in this region are bigger and descend far lower(300m/1000ft) than anywhere else in the world at these latitudes.(Lat 43-44 )
There are not many towns in NZ with more than 3000 mm of yearly rainfall. I certainly wouldn't want to live anywhere that wet.
Is skiing big in NZ then in terms of participation/tourism? Apart from Queenstown I can't think of a single well-known ski resort down there, yet I've heard all New Zealanders live within day-trip range of ski facilities, which must be excellent for much of the year with snowfall levels like that.
That's really low. In the Pacific NW, the glacier line is at about 7000-8000 ft. There might be a few that go down to 6000 ft. I don't see glaciers in the photos of the Milford sound, though.
The majority of glaciers are further north with the higher mountains and bigger snowfall. Still plenty of smaller ones in that area though, although they don't descend far below 1000m/3000ft. Milford is known more for it's avalanches, I've seen some good ones in that area at different times.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ben86
Is skiing big in NZ then in terms of participation/tourism? Apart from Queenstown I can't think of a single well-known ski resort down there, yet I've heard all New Zealanders live within day-trip range of ski facilities, which must be excellent for much of the year with snowfall levels like that.
Big bucks for the tourist industry, Australians and Japanese in particular. Biggest most developed areas are in the North Island, on the volcanoes. The south has more areas (and tourists), and generally better weather and snow. Ski areas here are sited more for easy access rather than the best snow quality or terrain. My local area goes up to 1700m,with the highest peaks in the region at 2800m. The local ski area is 70 minutes drive away and isn't big, but is still fun. Most of my friends and family would ski one or two days a season.
High (°F) / Low (°F) / Precipitation (inches); obviously
In case anyone's wondering, I'd rate this climate an "F", for the horribly long (and rather cold) winters.
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I don't know if any of you saw the "Going to Extremes" TV series where the presenter went to the wettest/driest/coldest/hottest places on Earth, though he went to Mawsynram in the wet season.
