It was colder at Lake Pukaki on Tuesday morning than the summit of Mt Everest.

Mountain-forecast.com forecast a minimum summit temperature of -19C overnight Monday on the world's highest peak - not quite as cold as the -20C recorded at Pukaki Airport.

1 of 3 MIKE BACCHUS Lakestone Lodge at Lake Pukaki, where it was "ridiculously cold" on Tuesday morning. 2 of 3 REBECCA HARNETT Rebecca Harnett took a look about Twizel today, close to Lake Pukaki where temperatures dropped to -20C. 3 of 3 REBECCA HARNETT Overnight temperatures again plunged to well below freezing in many parts of the South Island.

MetService meteorologist Rebekah LaBar said Pukaki, near Mt Cook, recorded the -20C temperature early on Tuesday.

It was also colder than the recommended temperature inside a household freezer: -18C, according to the US Food and Drug Administration.

New Zealand's coldest temperature on record was -25.C in Ranfurly, Central Otago, in 1903.

MONIQUE FORD/FAIRFAX NZ A missing climber on Mt Cook has a personal locator beacon that has not been activated.

"It's a question finding a place in the South Island that didn't go below zero last night," LaBar said.

Dunedin and Blenheim got to -5C, Queenstown to -7C, and Christchurch to -3C.

In the North Island, Taupo got to -3C while Auckland dropped to 3C and Wellington to 6C.

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The cold weather was caused by a clear night allowing heat to escape and another similar day and night were forecast for Tuesday.

But the clear night came with little to no snow.

The cold conditions had spurred the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) to ask drivers to take "extreme care" due to black ice on Canterbury roads.

It warned of ice on highways including State Highway 1 on the Christchurch Northern Motorway, State Highway 8 the Lindis Pass, and State Highway 94 to Te Anau.

Police were also urging drivers across Canterbury to be careful.

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"This morning the condition of our roads across the district are treacherous as the overnight rain has now frozen. Police have attended a couple of minor accidents already today that can be attributed to the black ice which has set on the roads," Senior Sergeant Richard Ryan said.

Drivers should allow extra time for travel, drive to the conditions and be mindful that black ice was often very difficult to see.

Pukaki was still considerably warmer than the South Pole, with the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reporting a temperature at the Amundsen-Scott station of -66C. However, it was much colder than Oymyakon, widely considered the coldest inhabited place on Earth, which showed a relatively balmy 11C. The claim to fame of the Siberian town just below the Arctic circle is a February 1933 temperature of -67.7C.

At the US-operated Thule air base, deep inside the Arctic Circle in Greenland the temperature dropped to around 9C, while at Balmaceda in Chile - one of the chillier inhabited places in the Southern Hemisphere at an elevation of around 500 metres - the temperature droppped to around -5C in the past 24 hours.

Most of the country was in for a sunny but chilly Tuesday.

Flood-hit areas of the lower North Island should be able to continue drying out but strong southerly winds would keep temperatures down in Taranaki and Whanganui.

A high of 10C was expected In New Plymouth as the southerlies peaked.

Was it a chilly night where you live? Send your newstips, photos and video to newstips@stuff.co.nz

Whanganui could have some cloudy periods with an outside chance of a shower, and a high of 11C.

Wellington, Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay were the only parts of the country thought likely to get showers on Tuesday, with the capital expected to reach only 9C - although cold southerlies were expected to ease through the day.

Southerlies were also affecting northern parts of the country, with a sunny Auckland only expected to get to a chilly 11C. Similar conditions were expected in Hamilton and Tauranga.

Across most of the South Island, MetService expected a sunny day with winds to be light and from the north or west.

Nelson was expected to get to 10C, Christchurch to 8C, Dunedin to 7C and Queenstown to 6C.

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