Christchurch Sea Temperature

Looking to find out what the sea water temperature in Christchurch is for today and the next few days? Below are data and charts that will give you information about sea temperatures in Christchurch and nearby locations.

Water temperature in Christchurch right now

Below is the current sea temperature for Christchurch, United Kingdom on 19th April 2024.

9.66° C

(49.4° F)

  • yesterday: 11.37° C (52.47° F)
  • a week ago: 10.34° C (50.61° F)

This water is very cold and can cause pain. We don't recommend you swim in this temperature for anything other than very short swims of 5 to 10 minutes unless you are a very experienced cold water swimmer.

The average sea temperature for Christchurch on April 19th over the last 10 years is 9.91° C (49.84° F), with a low temperature of 7.89° C (46.2° F) and a high of 10.88° C (51.58° F).

Analysis and forecast for Christchurch water temperatures

The water temperature in Christchurch today is lower than the average temperature of 9.91° C (49.84° F) and the temperature on this day last year, 19th April 2023, was 9.58° C (49.24° F).

The chart and table below shows the change in water temperature in Christchurch over the last 30 days:

Date Temperature (Celsius) Temperature (Fahrenheit)
April 19 9.66° C 49.4° F
April 18 11.37° C 52.47° F
April 18 11.37° C 52.47° F
April 17 11.33° C 52.39° F
April 16 11.29° C 52.32° F
April 15 11.18° C 52.12° F
April 14 10.99° C 51.78° F
April 13 10.44° C 50.79° F
April 12 10.34° C 50.61° F
April 11 10.79° C 51.42° F
April 10 10.55° C 50.99° F
April 9 10.85° C 51.53° F
April 8 10.66° C 51.19° F
April 7 10.81° C 51.46° F
April 6 10.6° C 51.08° F
April 5 10.56° C 51.01° F
April 4 10.33° C 50.59° F
April 3 10.35° C 50.63° F
April 2 10.36° C 50.65° F
April 1 10.35° C 50.63° F
March 31 10.42° C 50.76° F
March 30 10.23° C 50.41° F
March 29 10.18° C 50.32° F
March 28 10.18° C 50.32° F
March 27 10.17° C 50.31° F
March 26 10.13° C 50.23° F
March 25 10.1° C 50.18° F
March 24 10.09° C 50.16° F
March 23 10.07° C 50.13° F
March 22 10.09° C 50.16° F

The actual nearshore temperatures may vary by several degrees and this can also be heavily affected by weather. Strong winds can cause cold, deep waters to replace the surface waters that had been warmed by the sun, and heavy rain can also reduce the temperature of the sea surface temperature as well.

Water temperature in Christchurch by month

The chart below shows the monthly average water temperature in Christchurch.

For more detailed information on how the sea temperature in Christchurch changes for each month of the year, choose from the months below.

Christchurch map and nearby water temperatures

Locations near Christchurch

The highest temperature in United Kingdom today is 10.59° C (51.07° F) in Portscatho. The lowest is in Aberdeen, where the temperature of the water is 7.29° C (45.13° F).

Why measure sea surface temperatures (SST) in Christchurch?

The ocean covers about 71% of the Earth's surface, and scientists record the sea surface temperature (SST) of locations such as Christchurch because they want to understand and learn how the ocean communicates with the atomosphere of Earth.

SST is one measure that provides information on the global climate, and it can be used to predict the weather in Christchurch as well as atmospheric model simulations and to study marine ecosystems in the area.

Data source and citation

Raw data for the calculations made to find the sea surface temperature in Christchurch comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and their 1/4° daily Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature.

The water temperature data is constructed by combining observations from different platforms (satellites, ships, buoys, and Argo floats) on a regular global grid. A spatially complete sea surface temperature map is then built by interpolating to fill in gaps in the data.

If you'd like to use any of the information above in the format it is presented, please use the citation tool below.

  • "Christchurch Sea Temperature". SeaTemperatures.net. Accessed on April 19, 2024. http://seatemperatures.net/europe/united-kingdom/christchurch/.

  • "Christchurch Sea Temperature". SeaTemperatures.net, http://seatemperatures.net/europe/united-kingdom/christchurch/. Accessed 19 April, 2024

  • Christchurch Sea Temperature. SeaTemperatures.net. Retrieved from http://seatemperatures.net/europe/united-kingdom/christchurch/.