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Table of Contents

Memories of the Bureau, 1946 to 1962

Foreword

Terminology

Prologue

Preface

Chapter 1: The Warren Years, 1946 to 1950

Chapter 2: International Meteorology

Chapter 3: The Timcke Years, 1950 to 1955

Chapter 4: A Year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Chapter 5: The Dwyer Years, 1955 to 1962
Leonard Joseph Dwyer—A Complex Character
Reorganising the Bureau
Public Weather Services
Forecasts for the General Public
Importance of Radio Stations
The Advent of Television
Automatic Telephone Forecast Service
Beacons
Wording and Verification of Forecasts
Warnings
Services for Aviation
Atomic Weapons Tests
Atomic Weapons Tests—Mosaic G1 and G2
Atomic Weapons Tests—Buffalo 1, 2, 3 and 4
Atomic Weapons Tests—Operations Antler, 2 and 3
Atomic Weapons Tests—Minor Trials
Instruments and Observations
Radiosondes
Radar/Radio Winds and Radar Weather Watch
Automatic Weather Stations
Sferics
Meteorological Satellites
Telecommunications
Tropical Cyclones
Bureau Conference on Tropical Cyclones
International Symposium on Tropical Cyclones, Brisbane
Hydrometeorology
Design of Water Storages, Etc
Flood Forecasting
Cloud Seeding
Reduction of Evaporation
Rain Seminar
Cloud Physics
Fire Weather
Research and Special Investigations
International Activities
The International Geophysical Year
The Antarctic and Southern Ocean
International Symposium on Antarctic Meteorology
International Antarctic Analysis Centre
ADP, EDP and Computers
Training
Publications
Management Conference
Services Conference
CSIRO and the Universities
Achievements of the Dwyer Years

Chapter 6: A Springboard for the Future

Appendix 1: References

Appendix 2: Reports, Papers, Manuscripts

Appendix 3: Milestones

Appendix 4: Acknowledgements

Appendix 5: Summary by H. N. Warren of the Operation of the Meteorological Section of Allied Air Headquarters, Brisbane, 1942–45

Endnotes

Index
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Fire Weather (continued)

Sugar cane farmers found another application for fire weather forecasts. Farmers on the north coast of NSW and those in Queensland conducted controlled burning of cane fields to eliminate undergrowth before harvesting. They requested special forecasts of weather conditions (particularly wind speed and direction) in planning their controlled burns and these forecasts were broadcast by regional radio stations during the harvest season.

All of the above fire weather activities were reported in various issues of Weather News from August 1957 to June 1962 when issue No 71 reported a conference on fire-control research at Launceston in May 1962 followed later in the same month by the seventh biennial conference of fire control officers at Scottsdale. The research conference was chaired by Dr A. R. King of the CSIRO Division of Physical Chemistry and the operations conference by Harry Luke of the NSW Forestry Department.

The Bureau was represented at both conferences by Steve Lloyd from Central Office, Herbie Whittingham from the Brisbane Divisional Office and Ray Wyatt from the Hobart Divisional Office. Herbie Whittingham had carried out important fire weather investigations in Brisbane. Gwynne Wilson had been transferred from the Fire Weather Section of Central Office to the Defence Investigation Section and was involved in providing meteorological advice for minor trials of atomic weapons at Maralinga and high level flights of Hibal balloons at Mildura.

The fire weather services provided by the Bureau had made steady progress from 1956 to 1962 as the result of the work of the fire weather meteorologists in Central and Divisional Offices which, in addition to the routine provision of fire weather forecasts and warnings, saw some valuable contributions to the knowledge of meteorological aspects of the outbreak and spread of bushfires.


People in Bright Sparcs - Dwyer, Leonard Joseph; Lloyd, Stephen Henry (Steve); Whittingham, Herbert E. (Herb)

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Gibbs, W. J. 1999 'A Very Special Family: Memories of the Bureau of Meteorology 1946 to 1962', Metarch Papers, No. 13 May 1999, Bureau of Meteorology

© Online Edition Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre and Bureau of Meteorology 2001
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