Bureau of Meteorology - Services for Agriculture Brochure

SERVICES FOR AGRICULTURE IN VICTORIA

Access weather and climate information by:

Internet -

http://www.bom.gov.au for the web home page
http://www.bom.gov.au/silo for meteorological information for rural industries
http://www.bom.gov.au/silo/products/Meteograms.shtml for computer weather guidance for a specific location (by subscription)

Telephone Weather Services -

Online Directory
National Telephone Weather Services Directory 1900 926 113
VIC Full State Service 1900 955 363
VIC Country Service 1900 926 111

Telephone Weather Services Call Charges:
1900 numbers: 77c per minute incl. GST; 1300 numbers: Low call cost - around 27.5c incl. GST.
(More from international, satellite, mobile or public phones)

Other telephone weather services are listed under "Bureau of Meteorology" in the telephone directory.

The information for agriculture provided in Victoria by the Bureau of Meteorology can be divided into the following categories:

General forecasts and warnings which can be used by all sectors of the community.
Forecasts, warnings and services specifically for agricultural purposes.
General information on recent weather.
Other products, services and information.

You may also like to check out:

Additional information on access and delivery methods.
Map of Victorian forecast districts.
An overview of the climate of Victoria.
Hydrological Services in Victoria.

1. GENERAL FORECASTS AND WARNINGS

These are provided to radio, television and the newspapers and can be accessed electronically (see Section 5 for details).
Products include:

State forecasts - summary forecasts for Victoria for about the next 24 hours, issued twice daily with outlooks for an additional 3 days.

District forecasts and outlooks - more detailed forecasts for about 24 hours ahead and outlooks for three more days for each forecast district, issued twice daily. District boundaries are shown on the map.

Provincial city forecasts - twice daily forecasts for selected towns and cities for about 24 hours, including maximum and minimum temperatures as well as precis forecasts and temperatures for an additional three days. These towns and cities are shown on the map.

Warnings - forecasts of hazardous weather, up to one hour ahead and out to 12 to 24 hours, including:
*	fire weather(conditions favourable for the generation and rapid spread of bush fires)
*	land wind (wind greater than 63 km/h)
*	severe thunderstorms (damaging wind gusts, large hail, very heavy rain or tornadoes), for capital city and immediate surrounds
*	floods (warnings of minor, moderate or major flooding for most river basins)

Advices - severe thunderstorms for all rural areas

2. AGRICULTURAL FORECASTS, WARNINGS AND SERVICES

Direct radio broadcasts
*	on weekdays at 8:55am, 12:35pm (Country Hour), 2:05pm and 9:40pm over ABC regional networks
*	Saturday mornings at 6:30am and 7:30am, and Sunday mornings at 10:25am over ABC regional networks
*	a number of country commercial radio stations also carry direct broadcasts, either early morning or around the middle of the day
*	check your local airwaves

The Seasonal Climate Outlook.
*	provides monthly detailed updates on El Niño indicators (including a six month El Niño outlook)
*	gives an outlook on rainfall and temperatures for the next three months for all regions in Australia
*	can be obtained through subscription - Phone (03) 9669 4603 for details OR
*	through WeatherCall (Voice) Services on 1900 926 162 OR
*	on the Internet at http://www.bom.gov.au/silo/products/SClimate.html

Warnings for farmers and graziers.
*	a warning of unseasonable cold, wet and windy conditions when vulnerable stock will be at risk
*	based on results from field experiments relating chill factor to wind speed, rainfall and temperature values
*	issued September to April inclusive

Frost warnings.
*	issued on a district basis whenever:
	- overnight minimum temperatures of minus 2°C or lower over a significant area are expected (June and July) - overnight minimum temperatures of 0°C or lower over a significant area are expected(remainder of year)

Advisory service for fruit drying.
*	special forecasts and advices for the Sunraysia district for the fruit drying period;
*	recorded information service including up-to-date radar information
*	issued February to April

Warnings of weather conducive to the spread of plant disease.
*	Brown Rot warnings issued to fruit growers
*	issued January to March

New services.
*	the Bureau is happy to discuss enhancing its weather and climate services to meet the needs of agricultural industries
Contact: Supervising Meteorologist, Phone (03) 9669 4902

3. GENERAL INFORMATION ON RECENT WEATHER

Bulletins - Daily weather bulletin (observations from about 90 weather stations). Contents:
*	maximum and minimum temperatures
*	rainfall amount over the previous 24 hours
*	9 a.m. temperature, dewpoint, cloud amount, winds speed and direction, and sea state
Daily, weekly, monthly and annual rainfall bulletins are also available
River Height Bulletin also available (see Section 8 for details)

Monthly Weather Review - Available by about the end of the following month. Contents:
*	rainfall - district averages, monthly totals at selected stations, daily totals at selected stations
*	temperature data at daily reporting stations
*	evaporation and sunshine data
*	Melbourne - observations summary, historical comparisons, temperature and rainfall graphs
*	maps - daily weather, monthly rainfall (both isohyets and decile ranges), departures from normal temperatures (maximum and minimum)
*	summary of normal conditions for the current month (e.g. January MWR contains February summary)

Melbourne Weather Conditions - Available on the first working day of the following month. It provides a summary of the month's weather in Melbourne

Daily Synoptic Weather Chart (Australia)

Monthly Rainfall Review and Drought Review (Australia)
*	focus on recent rainfall

(For details of current subscription rates, Phone (03) 9669 4943 or Fax (03) 9669 4977)

4. OTHER PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND INFORMATION

Bureau Publications
*	a catalogue of ALL Bureau of Meteorology publications is available free of charge.
Contact: The Publications Section of the Bureau of Meteorology on (03) 9669 4312

National Benchmark Network for Agrometeorology
*	a project of the National Committee for Agrometeorology
*	a network of about 190 observing stations, many of which are automatic weather stations, chosen to provide data in areas important to agriculture
*	a subset of the Bureau's observational network
*	instrumented with sensors specific to the requirements of agriculture
*	being progressively implemented
Contact: Services Policy Branch, Phone (03) 9669 4705

The following products and services will incur a charge:

*	FARMWEATHER
	- detailed forecasts directed to the agricultural sector for four days and beyond for key locations - a fax service for more effective farm planning
		- Northwest	1902 935 362
		- Northeast	1902 935 363
		- Southeast	1902 935 364
		- Southwest	1902 935 365
	- Freepoll 1800 061 404 for further details
Contact: Special Services Unit, Phone (03) 9669 4994


*	RAINMAN
	- RAinfall INformation for better MANagement - a software package developed by the Queensland Department of Primary Industry (QDPI) using data supplied by the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) - designed as a management tool where activities are significantly affected by rainfall - provides information about the probability of a certain amount of rain occurring at a particular time, thus making it easier to plan such operations as planting and harvesting - based upon the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), linked to the broadscale weather pattern over Australia - contains rainfall records for almost 4,000 locations Australia-wide from the beginning of recorded observations - has the facility for users to enter their own rainfall data to allow examination of the effects of the SOI on rainfall probabilities at their own location - accompanying booklet Will It Rain provides explanations of the El Niño phenomenon and other aspects of Australia's climate - regular updates available
Contact: Special Services Unit, Phone (03) 9669 4994

Climate and Consultative Services
*	real-time Victorian rain and weather data and climatological data, including secondary data (means, medians etc) and tertiary data (deciles, cumulative frequencies, length of growing period, wind-frequency analyses etc) - available in various formats
*	climate surveys and other consultative services including professional analysis of complex data for Victoria
*	weather charts and the latest satellite imagery over fax
Contact: The Victorian Climate and Consultative Services Section, Phone (03) 9669 4949

*	Farming a Sunburnt Country
	- an award winning, 35 minute video and manual on El Niño and drought - 'Managing Australia's variable climate' is just one of the topics - compered by Neil Inall - contains interviews with farmers and scientists - $21.95 inc GST (2000 price)
Available from: Bureau of Meteorology, Climate Analysis, Phone (03) 9669 4072.

5. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON ACCESS AND DELIVERY METHODS

Internet
*	the Bureau of Meteorology Internet home page is http://www.bom.gov.au - many different products available including forecasts, charts, satellite pictures, climatic information - included in this suite of products is:
*	SILO - a specialised Internet web site jointly administered by the Bureau of Meteorology and QDPI - accessible from BoM home page viz. http://www.bom.gov.au/silo - provides a large selection of meteorological and agricultural information (much of which is cost free) relevant to anyone in the agricultural arena

Telephone Weather Services

provides up-to-date recorded forecasts by telephone using Telstra's 1900 system. (1900 numbers are mainly collectives, that is, the state numbers allow access to the metropolitan, marine, country and capital city temperature services for that state through a single entry number

National Telephone Weather Services Directory (1900 926 113) gives 1900 services for all states through a single number OR

key WeatherCall numbers:
- a three month rainfall outlook (a seasonal rainfall forecast comparing expected rainfall with average rainfall). Phone 1900 926 162
- forecasts for country Victoria which includes provincial city forecasts.
Phone 1900 955 363 (other services are also accessed via this number)

6. MAP OF VICTORIAN FORECAST DISTRICTS

7. AN OVERVIEW OF THE CLIMATE OF VICTORIA

The State of Victoria experiences a wide range of climatic conditions. These range from the hot summer of the Mallee to the winter blizzards of the snow-covered alps, and from the relatively dry wheat belt to the wet eastern elevated areas from which so many of our permanent streams spring.

The average pattern is complicated by the vagaries of the season. In exceptionally wet years, the Mallee may suffer from surplus rains with normally dry water-courses two kilometres wide, and all farming operations brought to a stand-still. In other years, stream flow from the eastern highlands can be drastically reduced.

Annual Average Rainfall Map for Victoria

An example of a graph of monthly temperatures for a Bureau observing station (accessible via the Bureau's web page). Climate data is available in a range of formats to suit particular needs. Contact the Bureau in your State if you require further information.

Rainchart - Here is a rainchart to keep a record of your local rainfall.

Rainfall Chart - Year____________

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Monthly Average
Previous Year
	Total For Year									Yearly Average

8. HYDROLOGICAL SERVICES IN VICTORIA.

Flood Warning Service
*	warnings contain information about the likelihood and magnitude of flooding and are designed to protect life and reduce the damaging impacts of floods
*	this service is provided by the Bureau working in close cooperation with the Victorian State Emergency Service, police and local authorities
*	these warnings can assist those in the agricultural industry by providing time to allow stock to be moved to higher ground, for the removal of irrigation pumps from rivers or for temporary floodproofing measures
*	flood warnings are available through the media as well the Bureau's Internet home page
*	flood warnings are issued for most rivers in Victoria
Contact (for further details of services provided for your area): The Hydrology Section, Victorian Regional Office, Phone (03) 9669 4945

River Height Bulletins
*	part of the flood warning service
*	river heights are updated hourly with the latest data for over 120 locations on Victorian rivers, plus information on: - the current trend - an indication on whether flooding is current
*	available on the Internet

For information about:
*	rainfall Intensity-Frequency-Duration (IFD) information for any Australian location. - useful in many applications including the design of drainage systems, small dams, etc.
Contact: Either the Hydrology Section, Victorian Regional Office, Phone (03) 9669 4945 or the Head Office Hydrometeorological Advisory Service, Phone (03) 9669 4609 or Fax *(03) 9669 4725*

BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY OFFICES IN VICTORIA

For further information on the products and services outlined in this brochure write to:
	Regional Director, Bureau of Meteorology, GPO Box 1636M Melbourne VIC 3001

Alternatively you may phone, fax or e-mail the office
	Phone (03) 9669 4900 Fax (03) 9669 4934 E-mail Climate.vic@bom.gov.au

Limited advice and services are also available from:
	Meteorological Office, Mildura Phone (03) 5023 3404 Fax (03) 5021 4017

	Meteorological Office, East Sale Phone (03) 5146 6700 Fax (03) 5144 1845

HEAD OFFICE OF THE BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY

	The Director Bureau of Meteorology GPO Box 1289K Melbourne, VIC 3001

	Phone (03) 9669 4000

Last Altered: 1July 2002