RIVERLEA

Hawera Star, Volume L, 6 August 1930, Page 7

RIVERLEA

METEOROLOGICAL. (From Our Own Correspondent.) July has been a cold month—the coldest many people say they have ever experienced. It also has been very dry; in fact, the driest July on record. The month was marked by an unusual number of frosts, nine being recorded and some of them fairly sharp. It was also remarkable for two falls of what one might call ‘‘near-

snow.'’ being a mixture of very soft bail ami a. little snow. This fell during the early morning of the 25th and rather heavier, being also very widespread. on the 28th. Heavy snow fell on several occasions during the month on Kgmont. The moth was also remarkable for the fact that both lunar and solar corona and halo were observed. A ilunar corona was seen on no less titan jthree succeeding nights, viz.. the 9th, ! 10th; ad lltli. and a lunar halo on the 19th and lltli. A splendid solar halo | was seen on the 11th; perhaps one of I the finest T have ever observed, being Jverv clear-cut and distinct. | There were no calm days during the 1 month, though winds were generally light to breeze with no gales, hut, rather strong from S.W. on the 16th I and W. on the 18th and 19th. Wind direction was from west on ten days; from south-east on ten days; from east on four; from north, north-west and south on two days each, and from south-west on one day. There was only one absolutely cloudless day during the month, viz., the 23rd. There were, in ail. seven fine days; eleven were fair; nine cl on d v and only four overcast. The thermometer, of course, showed lower readings than usual ranging at 9 a.m.. varying from 38 degrees Fahrenheit on the 28th, to 53 degrees on the 19th. with a 9 a.m. mean temperature of onlv 43.4 degrees 1 , against 48.5 for July. 1929. The actual tnini-j mum temperature was 31 degrees on 1 the 23rd and the actual maximum tern-1 fierature was 58 degrees on the 13tli, whilst the actual mean temperature was only 42.9 degrees against 47 degrees last year. The barometer ranged from 29.00 on the 9th to 29.75 on the 4tlf. sth, 6th and 7th. giving a range of 0.75 of an inch and a mean reading of 29.375. ■Rain to a total of only 4.16 inches fell during the month on 25 days, this Iheing the lowest rainfall ever recorded here for that month. The maximum precipitation was onlv 0.63 of an inch, which fell on the sth. and the minij mum was a trace of rain only on the I 3rd, 13th. 17th and 31st. The previous driest July was that of 1925. when only five points more rain fell than j during the past Julv. the precipitation for that month being 4.21 inches on 17 days, with a maximum of 1.00 fan inch'! "on the 24tli. Last year the July rainfall was no less than 10.44 inches, which fell on 22 da vs. with a maximum of 1.81 inches on the 6th and a further 1.42 inches next dav. In 1928 it was 5.82 inches on 17 days with a maximum of 1.89 inches on the Bth. and in 1927 it was 8.78 inches on 28 days, with a maximum of 2.49 inches on the 25th. The wettest July was in. 1915, j when no less than 10.93 inches were ■ recorded, though only on 12 days, with a maximum of 4.80 inches on the 21st —one of the heaviest rainfalls recorded here. The average for the month is 7.1435 in., so that this July the rainfall lias been not much more than half of the average. The rainfall for the year to the end of July totalled 28.67 inches, which fell on 112 days. Last year to the end of July there had been 44.58 inches, on 117 days; in 1928, 33.22 inches had fallen for the same period on 99 days; and in 1927 it was 41.87 inches on 132 days. The extreme dryness of the past four months is shown bv the fact that only 118.06 inches have" fallen during that| period of time on 82 days, against 38.12 inches on 79 days for the same months last year, and an average for the four particular months of 26.502 indies. The past four months have also been the ' driest between March and August on record in total rainfall, being easily drier than the corresponding months of 1915, who 22.25 inches 1 fell on. strange to say. the same number of days, namely 52. Save for the exceptional, downpour of July 21. 1915, when 4.80 inches were recorded, that year might have still have shown, the driest March to August period, for that downpour lifted July from an average month to the wettest on record, though still the driest in number of rain clays, for with that 4.80 inches deducted from the total of 22.25 inches only 17.45 inches are left and had the 21st been an ordinary dav with a small rainfall this vear would have been wetter. The earlier months of the four were much drier in 1915 than this year, and June almost identical as the following comparison will show : I 1915: April. 3.30 inches on 11 days; Mav. 2.65 incite* on. 10 days; June. 5.37 inches on 19 days: July 10.93 inches on 12 days. 1930: April. 4.27 inches on 13 days:’ Mav. 4.28 inches on 16 days: .Tune.]

5*35 incites on 78 days: .Toly. 4.1 fi incites on 25 clays. t .