Marine Radio Services

Enquiries 

Mail: National Marine Services Manager
         Bureau of Meteorology
         PO Box 1289K 
         Melbourne VIC 3001 

Phone  03 9669 4574

Fax       03 9669 4695

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Why has the Bureau changed the HF radio services?

From the 1st of July 2002 Telstra will cease transmitting weather forecasts and warnings via HF radio and the Royal Australian Navy will cease transmitting Australian radio fax services.  The Bureau of Meteorology will then commence broadcasting Australian coastal weather forecasts and warnings and high seas forecasts and warnings and weather and ocean charts. 

Will I be affected by the changes to the HF radio (voice) service?

The new marine HF radio (voice) service will transmit weather forecasts more frequently than the Telstra service, utilising transmitters, one in Queensland (VMC) and one in Western Australia (VMW).  This has required major changes to voice broadcast schedules. All users of this service will need to check the new scheduled transmission times. There will also be some changes to transmission frequencies. As a result reception characteristics will change and some users may need to retune their receivers to get better reception. Charts of the reception frequencies recommended by the Ionospheric Prediction Service (IPS) are available from the Bureau's website. It should be noted that voice broadcasts use four frequencies during the daylight hours and a different set of four frequencies at night.

Will I be affected by the changes to the HF radio fax service?

There are no changes to the HF radio fax frequencies or program.  The only difference to the service will be possible changes to reception characteristics. Information about these changes can be obtained by checking the IPS recommended frequency charts that are broadcast on a daily basis and are available from the Bureau's website.

Why can't I use the same frequencies that I used before?

To enable simultaneous transmissions from both VMC and VMW and more frequent broadcasts of warnings, forecasts and updates, a different set of frequencies was allocated to the each of the transmitters. For transmissions from VMC the Bureau has been able to maintain the existing broadcast frequencies that have been used by the Telstra network. An additional frequency in the 16MHz band has been added for use by VMC to improve reception during the day. This has required allocation of a new set of frequencies for VMW. It should be noted that voice broadcasts use four frequencies during the daylight hours and a different set of four frequencies at night.In view of these changes we recommend that you should check that your receiver can be tuned to the correct frequencies for location and time of day.

Where can I get information about the changes to reception?

The Bureau of Meteorology has provided a link to the IPS which provides an indication of general reception characteristics. Charts of the IPS recommended frequencies for your area are available from the Bureau's website and are broadcast daily by the Bureau's HF radio fax service (special receiving equipment required).

Why can't I get good reception in my area even though the transmission frequency hasn't changed?

The Bureau's new transmitters are in different locations (Wiluna, WA and Charleville, Qld) to those operated as part of Telstra's coast radio station network or by the Navy. Even if you are anticipating that you will continue to receive broadcasts on frequencies that are to be maintained by the Bureau, it is likely that reception characteristics in your area will have probably changed.  To overcome this you may need to retune your receiver to a different frequency to the one your have been used to using at a particular time of day or year. Charts of the IPS recommended frequencies for your area are available on the Bureau's website and are also broadcast daily by the Bureau's HF radio fax service (special receiving equipment required). It should be noted that four frequencies are used to transmit voice and radio fax broadcasts during the daylight hours. A different set of four frequencies is used at night.

How do I find out which broadcast I should listen to?

The Bureau has a schedule of forecasts and broadcasts times for each transmitter. In voice, warnings will be broadcast every hour (30 minutes past the hour CST) and coastal waters forecasts, including observations, and high seas forecasts will be broadcast in a program that is repeated every 4 hours. The program contains up-to-date forecasts, warnings and coastal observations.

There will not be any changes to the radio fax broadcast schedules.

Will I still be able to use my HF radio fax equipment?

Yes.  The frequencies for the HF radio fax service and the schedules have not changed.  There may be a change to reception characteristics which may require you to retune to another frequency. Charts of the IPS recommended frequencies for your area are available on the Bureau's website and are also broadcast daily by the Bureau's HF radio fax service.

How can I pick up the weather forecast on my radio?

Weather forecasts are broadcast on different frequencies and at different times in different parts of the country. You need to go to IPS to find out the frequency appropriate for your area.