Hobart residents to benefit from major upgrade to local weather radar

30/11/2022

Residents and industry in Hobart will now have access to more reliable and up-to-date weather information, with the Bureau of Meteorology completing a significant upgrade to the Hobart (Mt Koonya) weather radar in Tasmania.

Hazard and Preparedness Manager-Tasmania Simon Louis said over the past two months a new digital receiver and control system for the Mt Koonya weather radar was installed on schedule.

"Accurate and timely weather information is critical for local residents and industry, including aviation and resources, in and around Hobart," he said.

"The upgrades to the weather radar will assist the community to track rain, wind, storms and severe weather with increased confidence."

Mr Louis said the radar upgrade will also support emergency services to make informed time-critical decisions during severe weather events, to keep the community safe.

"The radar coverage extends to Bicheno on the east coast, Derwent Bridge in the central highlands to the northwest and Strathgordon in the southwest," he said.

"The radar provides very good coverage for the Greater Hobart area and nearby towns and allows view of rain bands and fronts moving in from the west."

"The location of the Mt Koonya radar, close to a myriad of busy water ways, is ideal for Doppler observations which provide wind speed and direction information," he said.

Images from the newly upgraded radar are now live on the Bureau's website and the BOM Weather app.

The Hobart (Mt Koonya) weather radar is one part of a comprehensive weather observation network of more than 11,000 assets including satellites, upper atmosphere monitoring, automatic weather stations, ocean buoys and flood warning networks.

This project is part of the Bureau's ongoing work to enhance and improve the Australian radar and observation network.

ENDS