Research and Special Investigations (continued)

These issues of the AMM also summarised contributions by Ashton, Karelsky, Kell, McRae, to the regular Friday afternoon Analysis Section discussion groups and the papers read by Bond, Brunt, Foley, Gibbs, McRae, Mizon and Whittingham at meetings of ANZAAS in Sydney, Melbourne, Dunedin (NZ), Perth and Brisbane.

It is interesting to note that the names of authors of papers in the AMM or those reported as contributing to the joint colloquia or the meetings of ANZAAS include luminaries from CSIRO, universities and other authorities such as Ball, Berson, Bowen, Deacon, Forster, Gabites, Gentilli, Haigh, Hutchins, Jaeger, Jennsen, Jones, Kraus, Law, Loewe, MacArthur, Mansfield, Moran, Munro, Priestley, Radok, Rayner, Swinbank and Thornthwaite. Many of these names will not be familiar to younger readers. They include those of eminent Australian and overseas academics of the Dwyer years. The joint colloquia and the ANZAAS meetings in which the Bureau participated provided the opportunity for discussion with a broad range of well-informed scientists distinguished in their fields.

The Bureau had provided the initiative and facilities for the regular joint colloquia of members of the CSIRO, the University of Melbourne and the Bureau at which papers were presented by members of those institutions and other organisations.

In addition to Len Dwyer's focus on the fields of tropical cyclones, hydrometeorology and fire weather and his preoccupation with meteorological services for atomic weapons tests he formed a Cooperative Studies Group headed by Harry Ashton in which Colin Hounam specialised in agricultural meteorology. Len also was fully supportive of the Central Analysis Office. As we shall see in later paragraphs, he had visions of the development of NWP and arranged for Gerry O'Mahony and other Bureau staff making overseas visits to observe the progress being made in the US, UK and Europe in this field.

As was the case after I succeeded Len Dwyer as Director of Meteorology I found the administrative and supervisory duties associated with the positions of Supervising Meteorologist (Research) and Assistant Director (Research and Development) did not satisfy my desire to be actively involved in personal research in meteorology. During the Dwyer years I made time to carry out individual research (much in my private off-duty hours) which saw the publication of 22 papers most of which were of scientific significance.

Bureau of Meteorology