Tasmania Radar Site Information
West Takone
Location: Loones Hill, West Takone, 35 km WSW of Burnie and 27 km SW of Wynyard
(lat 41.181 deg S, long 145.579 deg E)
Height: 588m above sea level
Type: WSR81 C band radar (5.625GHz); 8 ft dish; Peak Power out 250Kw; Sensitivity -114Dbm; Weather Watch only.
Availability (Typical) : 24 hours per day.
Interpretation Notes: The radar coverage is 360 degrees and encompasses
much of Bass Strait, Tasmania's northwest, central north and to a lesser
extent, the northeast and the west coast as far south as Strahan. The
coverage to the south is limited in range by the Central Plateau. In all
this radar has proven to be an invaluable forecasting and monitoring tool.
False echoes are sometimes viewed close in from the nearby pine plantations
particularly in damp conditions. Anomalous propagation from Bass Strait
cause similar echoes. Permanent echo suppression and swept gain characteristics
take care of the majority of these.
Hobart Airport
Location: Hobart Airport (lat 42.83 deg S, long 147.51 deg E)
Type: WF100 C Band Radar (5.625GHz); 6ft Dish; Peak Power out 250Kw; Sensitivity -114Dbm; Windfinding and Weather Watch radar.
Availability for Weather Watch: Midnight-0300; 0430-0900; 1030-1500; 1630-2100; 2230-midnight.
Interpretation Notes: This installation is primarily a windfinding radar. The coverage in weather watch mode is poor. Surrounded by mountains and hills in most directions, it provides coverage for the immediate area surrounding Hobart Airport, about 40km along the Coal River Valley to the northwest and to the southeast over Frederick Henry Bay to the Tasman Peninsula.