Despite a few cold days under the inversion layer of cloud this week, MetService has predicted more clear days as the week progresses.

The inversion is an annual weather event which results from rapid cooling at ground level under clear sky conditions. The cloud is formed at low levels due to the temperature difference of the air just above the surface of the land and the air higher up.

MetService forecaster Gerard Bellam told the Wānaka App the phenomenon is like “being in a fridge set to about four degrees”.

But the good news is this week’s inversion is not likely to be prolonged, he said.

Gerard said a front is expected on Thursday (June 19) which will bring northerly winds to shift the low cloud.

That front is also expected to bring snow on Thursday night to around 1,300m - and possibly down to about 1,000 metres - which is “good news for the skifields”.

“It will be quite an interesting day weather wise for Matariki [on Friday],” Gerard said.

“We expect temperatures to reach about 10 degrees for Matariki [on Friday].”

The weekend should provide two “good skiing days”, with temperatures of around eight degrees on Saturday and Sunday (June 21 and 22), he said.

Gerard said the average maximum temperature expected here in June is about 8.6 degrees, “once we let the fridge door open”.

PHOTO: Wānaka App