'Is that all?' Kiwis mocked over 25-degree heatwave
New Zealand’s South Island is currently in the middle of a heatwave but it doesn’t seem like the world is taking the hot weather too seriously with the conditions widely mocked.
Christchurch has reached its first heatwave status since 2015, however to reach this definition the city just had to reach 24 degrees or higher on Tuesday. The maximum temperature recorded was 25.
Five days of five degrees above the average qualifies as a heatwave, MetService New Zealand said.
Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology defines a heatwave as “when the maximum and the minimum temperatures are unusually hot over a three-day period at a location”.
MetService NZ Meteorologist Angus Hines explained Christchurch and surrounding areas including Ashburton, Alexandra and Blenheim reach an average of 19C around this time of the year. He clarified not all these areas are experiencing heatwaves.
“Not only are we looking at some pretty uncomfortable heat for some areas but perhaps more significantly this could be a sign of those extended hot and extended dry periods which are going to affect Canterbury and more of the eastern South Island more frequently and with more intensity through the coming summers,” he said.
While the top temperature fits the definition of a heatwave, the fact it’s reached just 25 has raised a few eyebrows on Facebook.
“Is that all?” one woman wrote.
One man suggested the heatwave’s conditions were “a bit cold” for his Melbourne mate, while another questioned how the mid-20s was even considered a heatwave.
On Twitter one person jokingly tweeted “no human can live at that temperature” while a Queensland man said 25 degrees is “an overnight minimum”.
“25 degrees in Christchurch and it's a heatwave. 35 degrees in Sydney and it's called glorious!” another man tweeted.
☀Is It A Heatwave?☀
Heatwaves (5 days of 5 degrees or more above average) seldom affect the entirety of a country.
However if Christchurch can hit at least 24C tomorrow (forecast 26) it will have had a 5-day heatwave, before it cools off again on Weds ^TA pic.twitter.com/Nq3iiIfYpH— MetService (@MetService) November 16, 2020
It’s possible some people might not understand what the MetService’s definition of a heatwave is prompting one man to suggest “nobody here understands”.
To put it into perspective, Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory are currently in the grips of a heatwave with some areas receiving several back-to-back days of temperatures topping 39-40.
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