Meteorological and related data are delivered through two individual outputs, which contribute to the achievement of the outcome element. The performance of each of these outputs during 2004-05 is discussed below.

The Bureau operates an efficient, integrated observations program that is designed to meet the data requirements of its research and services outputs, as well as fulfilling other national and international commitments. The observation network extends throughout the Australian region, including territories in Antarctica and the Indian and Pacific Oceans, using observational systems operated by Bureau staff, volunteers and contractors. Observations from this network are supplemented by data from automatic weather stations, drifting buoys, aircraft, ships, meteorological satellites and weather watch radars. In addition to the conventional meteorological variables such as wind, temperature, humidity, rainfall and pressure, specialised data on radiation, ozone and other chemical constituents relating to the enhanced greenhouse effect and depletion of the ozone layer are collected, as are data on ocean temperature, waves and currents.

The Bureau infrastructure includes a substantial inventory of complex technical facilities distributed across the Australian region, including some 60 Meteorological Offices, many in regional Australia and the offshore territories and often in remote and inaccessible areas. Most of these sites contain specialised facilities for meteorological observations, such as for filling and tracking weather balloons, undertaking radiosonde flights and receiving satellite data, and telecommunications for data collection and for the provision of information to users of Bureau services. The Bureau's engineering support function involves the maintenance of this equipment and the installation of new and replacement facilities when required. Engineers and technical officers working from the Bureau's Head Office and Regional Offices, and external contractors when appropriate, provide the specialised skills and knowledge to perform this work. These skills are also used to great effect in support of aid programs to other national meteorological services in the region, particularly in the southwest Pacific and South-East Asia.

Figure 12. Trend in the number of surface synoptic stations (including Bureau staffed stations, automatic weather stations and cooperative stations) illustrating growth largely due to the introduction of automatic weather stations in the 1990s.

Major developments 2004-05

• Modern radars were commissioned at Port Hedland and Gladstone under the Radar Network and Doppler Services Upgrade Project (RNDSUP), funded through the government's 2003-04 radar upgrade budget initiative. Work commenced towards installation of upgraded radars at Mackay and Tennant Creek. Installation of, and commencement of operational trials for, the first of four new capital city Doppler radars, at Adelaide's Buckland Park, is expected to allow full operational implementation by early 2006. The acquisition of a site for the second Doppler radar, at Mt Staplyton near Brisbane, was finalised and site selection and planning for new Doppler radars at Sydney, Melbourne and Tamworth progressed.
• An automated low-level vertical wind profiling system was installed at Launceston Airport as a replacement for the older technology radar wind-finding system. Installation of a similar system at Canberra Airport is well advanced, with completion expected later in 2005.
• Initiatives commenced to rebalance the surface observation network through greater use of technology and automation in the collection of observations. This included a review of the Cooperative Observer network to prioritise observations, identify stations with below average performance and pinpoint areas where there was some redundancy in coverage.
• A comprehensive study was undertaken to determine current and future requirements for meteorological and related data and methods of collection. The study is due to be completed later in 2005 and will provide a robust framework for planning the delivery of observations systems to meet user requirements over the next ten years.
• The roll-out of advanced Vaisala Digicora III processing systems continued with a further 15 installations at Bureau radiosonde-equipped stations. A comprehensive program of user training was developed and documentation was distributed in support of these new systems.
• The surface observations network was enhanced through the implementation of upgraded Metconsole capabilities (to display, record and analyse automatically collected data) and incorporation of sophisticated new sensors and algorithms into the Automatic Weather Station (AWS) network, permitting automatic production of `present weather' observations.
• The Bureau maintained its pre-eminent status as a measurement centre through National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) (ISO 17025) accreditation of the solar and terrestrial radiometer calibration system, and through installation of the WMO Region V Standard Dobson Spectrophotometer and ancillary facilities at the Broadmeadows Annex.
• A new solar and terrestrial irradiance station was installed at Cocos Island. Australian participation in the World Climate Research Program was enhanced with the addition of Darwin and Cocos Island data to the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) Archive.
• The Bureau organised and hosted the Precursors to Aerosol Experiment at Cape Grim Baseline Air Pollution Station in conjunction with scientists from the CSIRO and University of Tasmania.
• Data reception and distribution systems were implemented for two newly launched geostationary meteorological satellites, China's FY-2C (Fengyun) and Japan's MTSAT-1R (Multi-functional Transport Satellite), using the Bureau's automated Crib Point Satellite Earth Station. MTSAT-1R replaces the ageing GMS-5 (Geostationary Meteorological Satellite), which had been supplemented for some time by the repositioned US satellite GOES-9, while FY-2C took over from the experimental FY-2B.
• Upgraded satellite-derived products were implemented, including improved estimates of solar radiation, vertical temperature and moisture profiles and more accurate sea surface temperatures.
• The Bureau became the lead coordinating agency in establishing a new Asia-Pacific Regional Advanced Retransmission System (RARS), which is a collaborative effort amongst a number of countries to globally exchange satellite and other data in real time to better meet the needs of users, especially Numerical Weather Prediction Centres.

Contribution towards outcome

• The radar upgrade will improve the quality of existing radar-derived forecast services such as severe thunderstorm warnings and services to the marine, aviation and bushfire-fighting communities. Improved rainfall estimates and hydrological services will also be achievable.
• Automated boundary-layer wind profiling systems will enhance the frequency of upperwind observations in a cost-effective manner.
• Reviews of the the cooperative observer network, together with the comprehensive study of observations requirements, will establish a robust basis for allocating resources in a cost-effective way that takes best advantage of new measurement technologies and meets the needs of the community.
• Implementation of the Digicora III processing systems represents a significant development in ensuring the continuing reliability, efficiency and quality of the Bureau's upperair observations program into the future, thereby continuing to provide a fundamental component of the basic observing system necessary to support day-to-day weather forecasts and warnings and the long-term climate record.
• Enhancements introduced to the Automatic Weather Station (AWS) network improved the utility of observations and provided upgraded services to sectors such as the agricultural community.
• Accreditation and maintenance of, and additions to Australian and WMO Region V measurement standards contributed to increases in the integrity, traceability and accuracy of observing networks.
• The addition of data from Cocos Island and Darwin to the BSRN Archive represents atwo-fold increase in Australia's contribution to the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) radiation network.
• Investigation of the requirements for aerosol formation helped improve understanding of the direct and indirect impacts of aerosols on weather and climate.
• New satellite data reception and distribution systems, together with the development of upgraded products, contribute to meeting user requirements for continuity of access to critically needed satellite data and products.

The first infrared image received by the Bureau from Japan's MTSAT-1R satellite at 03:33 UTC on 9 May 2005.

PROCESSED DATA 

The Bureau's ability to provide the Australian community with an efficient and effective service is reliant on robust and reliable Information Technology (IT) systems operating continuously, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The IT infrastructure at the Bureau is typical of a modern national meteorological and hydrological service and is required to support the provision of weather, climate, hydrological and oceanographic information, products and services, and associated research.

The Bureau's IT infrastructure includes: central computing systems which are an integral part of the operations of the NMOC and which also support the large-scale numerical modelling research of the Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre (BMRC); distributed computing systems supporting additional specialised facilities and programs; and computing systems supporting the Bureau's regional operations.

A key component of the Bureau's IT infrastructure is the Bureau of Meteorology/CSIRO High Performance Computing and Communications Centre (HPCCC). The HPCCC exists to support the operational and research needs of the Bureau of Meteorology and to facilitate research across many divisions of the CSIRO. During 2004-05, the HPCCC continued to provide reliable and efficient supercomputing and mass data storage services to both organisations.

Major developments 2004-05

• All desktop information technology and telecommunications systems were relocated to the Bureau's new premises at 700 Collins Street, serving some 750 users in the Bureau's Head Office and Victoria Regional Office. The relocation was achieved with no disruption to operational services.
• Timely installation of the final phase of the 2003-2007 supercomputer contract was achieved with an 80-processor upgrade to the NEC SX-6 supercomputer, taking it to a total of 224 processors. The supercomputer now has 1.8 terabytes of memory, more than 26 terabytes of disc storage and a peak performance of 1,792 billion calculations per second.
• As part of a three year modernisation program that commenced in 2003-04, AIFS (Australian Integrated Forecast System) installations were upgraded in Victoria, Tasmania and New South Wales, and an upgrade commenced in Western Australia. The upgrades included replacement of five-year old computer servers with new IBM p650 computers that are more than six times more powerful than the older machines. In addition, the AIFS servers in the Victorian Regional Office, NMOC, BMRC and Bureau of Meteorology Training Centre (BMTC) were consolidated onto new dual IBM p690 computers.
• The Bureau's Communication and Computing Disaster Recovery Site in Brisbane was further upgraded to include a higher capacity uninterruptible power supply, an upgrade of the second internet gateway, and more robust computer room facilities.
• The Bureau's internet gateway access speed was upgraded by 30 per cent, to 40 megabits per second. During tropical cyclone Ingrid, which affected Far North Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, the speed was temporarily increased to 80 megabits per second.
• The continued upgrade of various segments of the Bureau's wide area network resulted in an overall bandwidth increase of about 50 per cent.
• Ongoing support was provided for international projects through implementation of a low cost satellite communications system for the southwest Pacific.
• The Bureau's world wide web communications facility was upgraded.

The Cape Grim Baseline Air Pollution Station Tasmania viewed from the southeast side.

Contribution towards outcome

• The successful relocation of all desktop information technology and telecommunications systems to the Bureau's new Headquarters at 700 Collins Street and the resultant improvements to information technology and communications infrastructure allow improved monitoring and management of systems and have contributed to the overall operational robustness, efficiency and effectiveness of the Bureau's key mission critical systems.
• The upgrade to the NEC SX-6 has effectively increased the Bureau's total processing capacity by a factor of two, allowing the continuation of improvements to the Bureau's strategic modelling research and to products and services.
• The upgrades to the AIFS systems in Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia resulted in more efficient operational response and higher capability. The consolidation of AIFS servers in the Victoria Regional Office and the NMOC with servers from BMRC and BMTC reduced systems administration overheads whilst providing each group with significantly higher capability.
• The Bureau's Disaster Recovery Site (DRS) provides a total backup facility to maintain communications, and therefore key services, among the Bureau's forecasting offices and international and national clients.
• The increase in the Bureau's wide area network bandwidth kept pace with the external demand for improved services and products and the internal requirements for new network accesses, distribution of model data and new technologies, such as video conferencing.
• The Bureau's international activities were supported through the implementation of a low cost satellite-based communications technique to strenghen the capability in and improve the reliability of the dissemination of weather, climate and related information among countries in the southwest Pacific.
• The Bureau operates one of the most heavily accessed Australian Government web sites with more than 7,450 million hits and some 60.9 terabytes of data downloaded in 2004-05 (Figure 13). The use of the site, in terms of the hit rate, is approximately doubling every year and the improved infrastructure will increase the accessibility and availability of data and products to the general public, as well as allowing more cost-effective communications to remote locations.

Figure 13. The number of hits per month on the Bureau of Meteorology website from January 1997.