MINISTER Josh Frydenberg was told by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology on, or about, Wednesday 5th July 2017 that limits had been placed on how cold temperatures could be recorded across mainland Australia.
This winter we have experienced record low temperatures. But only the keenest weather observers have noticed, because the Bureau has been changing the actual values measured by the automatic weather stations.
In particular, the Minister was told that while the Goulburn weather station accurately measured the local temperature as minus 10.4 at 6.30 am on Sunday 2 July, a smart card reader prevented this value from being recorded as the daily minimum on the Daily Weather Observations page.
The smart card reader had been pre-programmed to round-up any value below minus 10 degrees Celsius. So, instead of entering minus 10.4 into the CDO dataset, the value of minus 10.0 was entered for 2nd July instead.
On 2nd July the value of -10.0 was entered into the CDO dataset, which is meant to be a record of actual temperature measurements at Goulburn. This value, however, represented the rounding-up of -10.4. The value of -10.0 was never actually recorded as the minimum for that day.
This wrong limit of minus 10.0 was confirmed in an email from the Bureau sent to journalist Graham Lloyd, and also Griffith businessman Paul Salvestrin, on 4th July.
This was the advice from the Bureau on 4th July, then on 28th July the Bureau wrote to the Minister claiming the weather station was faulty, and that it never recorded -10.4 degree Celsius.
No such limits are placed on how hot temperatures can be recorded.
While the Minister has had this advice – about the smart card readers and the limits on cold temperature recordings – for some weeks, he has claimed publicly that he has full confidence in the Bureau and has resisted calls for an independent inquiry. Further, the Minister has supported the Bureau’s faux solution of replacing the automatics weather station initially at Goulburn and Thredbo, and more recently at many more sites across Victoria and Tasmania.
All-the-while, the Minister has known that the problem is limited to the smart card readers.
To be clear, the problem is not with the equipment; all that needs to be done is for the smart card readers to be removed. So, after the automatic weather stations measure the correct temperature, this temperature can be brought forward firstly into the Daily Weather Observation sheet and subsequently into the CDO dataset.
David Jones is the Manager of Climate Monitoring and Prediction services at the Bureau and would probably have overseen the installation of the smart cards. Jones is also on-record stating that: “Truth be known, climate change here is now running so rampant that we don’t need meteorological data to see it.”
Jennifer Marohasy visiting the Goulburn weather station on 31st July
Just the one thing that niggles at me, they are fixing the problem, "where temps below - 10 are possible ". Elsewhere it will not be allowed, whatever the weather.
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COMMENT FOR THIS THREAD ARE NOW CLOSED.
JENNIFER 8TH AUGUST, 2017
Thanks Ian for your comments.
I still think it would be strange , verging on the bizarre, if the data that is sent automatically via telemetry to the central computer system would require the use of any kind of card reader, smart or dumb.
None of the documentation on the BoM site refers to a smart card reader. However looking at the technical documents for commercially available AWS systems, some refer to local storage of data on a SD card . I doubt if someone is physically taking an SD card at 30 minute intervals from the Thredbo AWS and inserting into a card reader at the bureau.
However there is a possibility if the data is backed up on an SD card locally and if there appears to be an issue , say with telemetry, then this data stored could be used as a QC check . Maybe this is the mechanism that allowed the bureau to adjust DOWN the temperature recorded from -10.0 C to -10.4 C . Essentially if this scenario is correct then “smart card reader” is part of the solution not part of the problem and Jennifer has got it , in technical terms “arse about”.
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FROM JENNIFER
Thanks for your comment MikeR,
I have it on good advice that smart card readers are used to control the minimum temperature actually recorded.
The Bureau have had every opportunity to deny, or clarify this, but have refused to comment.
Smart cards could be used to manage and control the network more efficiently. The presence of a smart card doesn't necessarily indicate someone is changing measurements, however, I have been told that this is what they are being used for. In particular, at Goulburn the limit of -10.0 meant that the reading of -10.4 was rounded-up to -10.0 on 2nd July.
Of course, setting limits could also be done using many other techniques (where smart cards would not necessarily be involved). The simplest way to set limits I guess would be to filter the data using a simple automatic computer script in the central database before publishing them. Nevertheless, using - or not using - a certain technology doesn't guarantee the measurements would be (or would not be) a correct reflection of reality.
To really understand why smart cards are used, we will need more detailed information of how the network is set up from the Bureau. This information is being withheld.
Presumably they have something to hide.
MikeR, gidday, yes the terminology is dodgy and could be b/s. BUT , possibly data is collected and recorded, then relayed in real time. A card reader then periodically accesses this data , forwarding it for collation and checking. If the reader is unable, (for reasons you and I may differ on), to read outside certain parameters , then the BoM can claim they were unaware. Being a Govt dept it could be incompetent purchasing, but they seem to have got on to it suspiciously fast,(for a Got dept ) and the BoM has form already on temp manipulation.
Jennifer,
Hopefully you are reading these comments. I have a question which I am hoping you don't ignore.
Do you have a statement from the BoM or in fact anywhere else about the 'smart card reader' which is the source of this fiasco?
I am intrigued . A device like this seems to be a very very strange thing to be involved in 1. altering data even 2 directly involved in the transmission of data.
Smart card readers, as the name implies, are usually used to read smart cards, that is , magnetically coded or RFID information from a card. The kind typically used in transport applications.
Perhaps you misheard , misunderstood or the information was altered along the way as in 'chinese whispers'.
Th only way i can conceive in which such a device ( and it would probably be an SD card reader - and hence the confusion) could be used would be to reprogram the firmware of the data acquisition instrument in which case you have the wrong culprit.
The firmware would most likely have the software algorithm that caused the problem.
Could you please clarify?
Mike, I'm going long on battery landfill futures.
Can't miss.
Will see the grandkids and their kids in clover.
No Mike, I asked Mick to see if he could pick YOU up some shares. Tesla shares should be good for as long as the tax money flows to them.We should be all pretty well off when all the worlds cars are electric, with two and a half times the planet's current generation capacity needed just to charge them, plus all the energy and minerals needed to make them and the wonderwalls, there'll be full employment. Be a shame about the lights though.
Ian, many thanks for the tip about the Sydney Harbour Bridge but I would rather buy it outright . I hope however I don't have to sell all my shares in Tesla that have been going gangbusters.
if you are indeed selling, then I presume you have clear title and If you don't mind me asking, how much did you pay?
I also have a friend in Nigeria who could facilitate the sale process. You just need to send him your Email address, bank details and identity documents and Bob's your uncle. I don't think you should post the details here though.