Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Masterton New Zealand

In Masterton, the summers are comfortable, the winters are cold and wet, and it is windy and partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 41°F to 72°F and is rarely below 33°F or above 79°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Masterton for warm-weather activities is from late December to early March.

The warm season lasts for 3.0 months, from December 17 to March 19, with an average daily high temperature above 68°F. The hottest month of the year in Masterton is January, with an average high of 72°F and low of 55°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.2 months, from May 29 to September 5, with an average daily high temperature below 56°F. The coldest month of the year in Masterton is July, with an average low of 41°F and high of 53°F.

In Masterton, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Masterton begins around December 27 and lasts for 4.3 months, ending around May 5.

The clearest month of the year in Masterton is March, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 62% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around May 5 and lasts for 7.7 months, ending around December 27.

The cloudiest month of the year in Masterton is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 51% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Masterton varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 7.1 months, from May 6 to December 8, with a greater than 26% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Masterton is June, with an average of 10.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 4.9 months, from December 8 to May 6. The month with the fewest wet days in Masterton is February, with an average of 5.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Masterton is June, with an average of 10.0 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 35% on June 23.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Masterton experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Masterton. The month with the most rain in Masterton is June, with an average rainfall of 3.0 inches.

The month with the least rain in Masterton is January, with an average rainfall of 1.9 inches.

The length of the day in Masterton varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 21, with 9 hours, 14 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 15 hours, 8 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:38 AM on December 9, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 4 minutes later at 7:43 AM on June 28. The earliest sunset is at 4:55 PM on June 14, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 58 minutes later at 8:52 PM on January 4.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Masterton during 2024, starting in the spring on September 29 and ending in the fall on April 7.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

The perceived humidity level in Masterton, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, staying within 1% of 1% throughout.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Masterton experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.5 months, from September 9 to January 24, with average wind speeds of more than 13.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Masterton is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 14.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.5 months, from January 24 to September 9. The calmest month of the year in Masterton is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 11.9 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Masterton varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the north for 1.5 months, from February 4 to March 21 and for 4.0 weeks, from March 31 to April 28, with a peak percentage of 32% on February 23. The wind is most often from the west for 1.4 weeks, from March 21 to March 31 and for 9.1 months, from April 28 to February 4, with a peak percentage of 31% on March 27.

Masterton is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 2.7 months, from January 7 to March 29, with an average temperature above 62°F. The month of the year in Masterton with the warmest water is February, with an average temperature of 64°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.0 months, from June 19 to October 19, with an average temperature below 56°F. The month of the year in Masterton with the coolest water is August, with an average temperature of 54°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Masterton throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Masterton for general outdoor tourist activities is from late December to early March, with a peak score in the last week of January.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Masterton for hot-weather activities is from mid January to mid February, with a peak score in the first week of February.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

The growing season in Masterton typically lasts for 10 months (318 days), from around August 9 to around June 23, rarely starting after September 24, or ending before May 16.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

Based on growing degree days alone, the first spring blooms in Masterton should appear around September 16, only rarely appearing before September 4 or after October 1.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.4 months, from November 3 to February 15, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Masterton is January, with an average of 7.4 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.7 months, from April 29 to August 20, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.8 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Masterton is June, with an average of 1.6 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Masterton are -40.960 deg latitude, 175.658 deg longitude, and 338 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Masterton contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 217 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 357 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (2,185 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (5,085 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Masterton is covered by grassland (62%), cropland (23%), and trees (13%), within 10 miles by cropland (69%) and trees (19%), and within 50 miles by water (48%) and trees (26%).