Australian Antarctic Territory Weather and Climate Measurements

Australian Antarctic program and Bureau of Meteorology records provide meteorological data from the Australian Antarctic Territory. The collection includes automatic weather station data from 7 sites, daily weather from 48 sites, and synoptic data from 53 sites, with some records dating back to the 1950s. Data are gathered via manual observations and automatic weather stations.

Use Cases

• Analyze temperature trends (maximum, minimum, dry bulb) from Casey Station data spanning 1989 onward.
• Model wind patterns using direction and speed measurements from Davis Station records starting in 1957.
• Study soil conditions via terrestrial soil temperature data available from 4 specific sites.
• Correlate air pressure readings with synoptic weather data collected from 53 station sites.
• Validate automatic weather station outputs using high-resolution 1-minute data from 7 key locations.

Strengths

• Data spans multiple decades, with records from Mawson Station starting in 1954.
• Includes measurements from over 100 distinct station sites across various data types.
• Considered authoritative source as data have been quality checked by the Bureau of Meteorology.

Limitations

• Not all listed sites are still operational, limiting current data continuity.
• Data resolution varies, with some automatic weather station data recorded only approximately every 30 minutes.

Provenance

Source

Australian Antarctic program and Bureau of Meteorology.

Collection Method

Manual observations and automatic weather stations.

Time Range

Records from 1954 onward, with specific datasets like Wilkes Station covering 1960-1968.

Freshness

Ongoing collection at current stations like Casey and Davis.

Geography

Australian Antarctic Territory, including specific stations like Casey, Davis, Mawson, and Macquarie Island.