After sustaining damage during Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle, the Learmonth radar is back in service.
The Learmonth radar and radome were impacted by Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle in March 2026, after the cyclone made landfall in the Exmouth and Learmonth region as a category 4 system.
After technicians restored power to the site, repairs and replacements of damaged radar components were completed and the radar returned to service in late August.
Bureau of Meteorology Western Australia Manager James Ashley said that having the radar return to service ahead of severe weather season is an important milestone.
"We know how important the Learmonth radar is for communities in the north-west, especially during severe weather season when there is an increased risk of tropical cyclones."
"Radars give communities a real-time view of developing weather, helping them stay informed and prepared."
While the Learmonth radar was offline, customers were able to view overlapping radar coverage for the north-west region through the Carnarvon and Karratha radars.
While radars are an important part of the bureau's observation network, they are one part of a composite observing network, which includes radars, satellites, lightning detection and upper air and surface observations.
Customers were also able to access other bureau services, including:
- Warnings and alerts about significant weather events.
- Rain radar and weather map images showing rain, wind, thunderstorm and other weather information.
- MetEye images showing temperature, rain and wind information.
- Himawari satellite images showing cloud cover and lightning strikes.
Stay up to date with the latest forecasts and warnings on bom.gov.au and the BOM Weather app.