War History of the Australian Meteorological Service
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1: D.Met.S.—Australia's Wartime Weather Service
Chapter 2: The Weather Factor in Warfare
Chapter 3: Met in the Retreat
Chapter 4: Met in the Advance
Chapter 5: Meteorology in Aviation
Chapter 6: Central Forecasting Services
Chapter 7: Met With the Army
Chapter 8: Research and Personnel Training
Chapter 9: Instrumental Development and Maintenance
Chapter 10: Scientific Developments in the RAAF Meteorological Service
Chapter 11: Divisional Bureaux and Their Work
Organisation of State Bureaux on War Basis/ Additional Functions Undertaken
Communication and Censorship Problems
Operations at Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart
Appendix 1: List of Reports Provided by D.Met.S. for Advances Operational Planning and Other Purposes
Appendix 2: List of Service Personnel RAAF Meteorological Service
Appendix 3: List of Civilian Personnel Who Worked Together with Service Personnel of the RAAF Meteorological Service
Appendix 4: List of Locations at which RAAF Meteorological Service Personnel Served
Index
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Organisation of State Bureaux on War Basis/ Additional Functions Undertaken
In common with the central headquarters of D.Met.S. in Melbourne, the divisional weather bureaux in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart maintained normal services to the public during the war years, with the exception of those curtailed or forbidden by security regulations. To this work was added, after the general transfer of the meteorological organisation to the RAAF, the additional task of preparing special advices for the three armed services—such as ballistic computations for gun-laying at garrison batteries and training units in the environs of each capital, intelligence reports on fordability of rivers and state of roads and various types of special information for the Navy. As in Melbourne, the great majority of civilian employees at each State bureau was commissioned or enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force, with the Divisional Meteorologist in each case as commanding officer, and in consequence frequent staff alterations became the order, due to rotation of personnel throughout the meteorological organisation.Communication and Censorship Problems
Limitation or curtailment of the various means of communicating weather information, both within the network of meteorological stations and outwards to the public, presented many problems. For instance, censorship restrictions on the press and radio stations made it necessary to establish direct lines of information for the provision of flood, fire and storm warnings, while the needs of rural industries resulted in country postmasters being charged with the release to approved persons of regional and other special forecasts sent to them from capital city bureaux. Similarly, special arrangements were made for provision of weather services to manufacturing and commercial interests, such as predictions of temperatures supplied to gas companies to enable them to estimate likely demands on their product from time to time, and to fruit growers as a guide in picking crops to reach market in prime condition.So far as the transmission of observations and other weather information between the bureaux and all reporting stations in the respective states was concerned, full use was made of the RAAF radio communication channels, while Postmaster-General's Department services were employed as far as possible for such normal services as distribution of periodical bulletins of rainfall and other weather conditions.
Organisations in Australian Science at Work - Directorate of Meteorological Services (D.Met.S)
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Bureau of Meteorology |  |
© Online Edition Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre and Bureau of Meteorology 2001
Published by Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre, using the Web Academic Resource Publisher
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