Meteorology & Forecasting

Rainfall analysis

image of rainfall and lightning

The process of planning a water storage facility requires that several issues be addressed. Typically, this will require the design to account for the specific conditions at the chosen site. Issues to consider include the rainfall statistics for the catchment; the geography, geology and topography of the area where the dam is planned; any impacts…

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AMOS conference update 2015

AMOS Logo

With a conference theme of ‘Research to Community: Communicating our science’, the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society (AMOS) held their National Conference in Brisbane on July 15-17 2015. As Chair of Brisbane Regional Centre of AMOS and chief organiser it was my responsibility to make sure the event went smoothly. The conference spanned three days and covered…

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Katestone to present on proactive heat stress management

Katestone presenting on Proactive Heat Stress Management at SIA Brisbane Conference April 2015

Katestone is pleased to announce that Managing Director Christine Killip will be presenting on Proactive Heat Stress Management at the upcoming the SIA Brisbane Safety Conference 2015. Taking place on 22nd and 23rd April at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, the SIA Brisbane Safety Conference is proudly presented by the Safety Institute of Australia.…

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High heat stress risk for Queensland

HEATX Forecast for Milton on March 18

The Outlook Temperatures in many parts of SEQ are predicted to exceed 35°C by midday on Thursday and remain above average until Saturday. But temperature is not the whole story when assessing the risk of heat stress. Although the temperatures are probably going to be hotter on Thursday, the risk of heat stress is higher…

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One for the statisticians

A statistician looking at her computer screen full of numbers

Temperatures may be predicted to peak over the long weekend in some parts of Australia, but if you believe in numbers, statistically the most lethal day is 27 January. This was the finding of a recent study (Coates et al 2014) that analysed 167 years of extreme heat events. Whether it’s because we are dehydrated from Australia Day parties…

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Are you ready to handle the heat?

Man looking into camera, sweat beading on his face

Now that the weather is heating up is it time to rethink your potential risk of heat stress? Anyone with workers in the outdoor environment could potentially be putting workers at risk of heat stress and/or heat related illnesses, such as heat rash, headache, nausea, fainting, and in extreme cases heat stroke. It is important…

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‘Managing summer heat’ road trip

I think I have finally recovered from my mega road trip which covered over 7,500 km of travel, starting in Adelaide on August 24 and ending in Brisbane last week. Why you may well ask? Well, for over 10 years we have been working with the Australian Lot Feeders’ Association (ALFA) and Meat and Livestock…

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Examining safety risk management at the NSWMC H&S Conference 2014

Safety Risk Management at Mining conference

Christine‘s musings from the 2014 NSW Mineral Council Health & Safety Conference. Theme: “Learning from the Past” What have we learnt? The sky won’t fall in so why are we wearing hard hats in an open field? Has safety gone too far and are we now missing the point? These questions posed by Sidney Dekker – an amazing speaker who gave…

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The forecaster who cried wolf?

We are constantly reminded in summer that heat stress is an issue. Drink more fluids, keep out of the sun where possible and take a break when needed. But is the message really getting through? Are current warnings reliable for workers or is it a case of “crying wolf”? Is Heat Stress Costing you? WorkCover…

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Where’s that Cyclone going?

Katestone’s forecasting system K-NWS did a great job forecasting Tropical Cyclone Dylan recently. K-NWS accurately predicted its path, intensity and timing three days in advance, as shown in the animation below. The significant rain associated with most cyclones, and the tropical lows that follow, can actually cause more concern to industry (such as open cut…

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