Mosgiel’s November scorcher

School pupils Rosa Smith and Ted Cottle (both 17) cool down at Outram Glen yesterday. Photos: Peter McIntosh

If you have ever talked to someone from Mosgiel you have probably heard about the microclimate.

Sheltered from ocean winds, the area frequently records warmer temperatures than Dunedin, but yesterday a combination of two fronts left those in the city wearing a second layer while those in Mosgiel enjoyed a scorcher.

At 4pm Mosgiel reached 29degC, while Dunedin sat at 16.7degC.

MetService forecaster William Nepe said the difference was down to a warm northwesterly inland from Dunedin.

The temperature clock at Mosgiel shows the sweltering heat yesterday. The MetService recorded a high of 29.5degC between 3pm and 4pm.

However, when mixed with a cool sea breeze being channelled through the Otago Peninsula it brought cooler temperatures to the city.

Sea breezes were often shallow and cool air would struggle to reach over the hills to Mosgiel.

The Dunedin weather station was based at Otago Harbour, near Portsmouth Dr, almost exactly east of Mosgiel.

Between 3pm and 4pm, Dunedin Airport, southwest of Mosgiel, recorded its fifth-highest November temperature at 29.5degC. The highest was 31.1degC in 2009.

The sea breeze finally surmounted the hills and cooled Mosgiel to 25.5degC about 5pm, Mr Nepe said.