Chillin' in Summer

Last Thursday was the last day of spring, so it is now officially summer! That should mean the wearing of thick clothes is just a distant memory and that the long days can be spent lazing on the beach slurping ice creams. However, bear in mind that this is New Zealand, and notice I wrote ‘should’, before looking at the photos below.

These photos show how summer arrived for parts of the South Island. Admittedly, they were not taken in any of the major cities or towns but are of inland rural districts. I think they are of the highway somewhere between Twizel and Lake Tekapo, possibly near the Lindis Pass area. The land is higher there but one still does not expect to see snow, at this time of year. Here in Christchurch the temperature was a balmy 9˚C during the afternoon, dropping from 19˚C at midnight, and we were also treated to a thundery hailstorm. Mad!

Another strange and rare event that has been grabbing the headlines is the rogue iceberg that is slowly travelling up the east coast of the South Island. Apparently it broke off an Antarctic ice shelf six years ago, somehow escaped the Antarctic currents and is now somewhere off the Canterbury coast. A couple of weeks ago it was even possible to see it from the Dunedin shore (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2006-11-17-iceberg-new-zealand_x.htm). Of course, people have been quick to exploit the financial potential of it so scenic flights have been put on. A helicopter even landed on it so that people could take a walk. (http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3867543a7693,00.html) Remember Shrek the Sheep? Well he was taken to the berg to be shorn, for his 1oth birthday (See http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/Shrek-the-sheep-has-close-shave-on-ice/2006/11/29/1164476250599.html)

Yes, that is a helicopter in the bottom left corner.

Why are these things happening? Has humankind really affected the weather patterns through the burning of fossil fuels and farming flatulent cattle, or is just part of the normal cycle of varying global temperatures. You decide. One thing is for sure though, we immediately notice any strange weather event and seek an explanation for it.