BAMOS
Sep 2019
Contents
4
3
President’s report
6 News
8
Vale Penny Whetton—Climate guru,
mentor and friend
10 AMOS–ICTMO 2019: hot topics and
the tropics
14
Data challenges for future services in
the AMOS disciplines
17 Letting the facts speak for themselves
18
Electricity Sector Climate Information
(ESCI) Project
20 Reaching for space—balloons and
rockets led the way
23 Science and Technology Australia—
how it benefits AMOS and its members
24 Charts of the Past with Blair Trewin
26 Seasonal Snaps
28 Calendar and JSHESS contents
ISSN 1035‑6576
Editor: Belinda Campbell
Editors‑in‑Chief: Damien Irving, Linden Ashcroft
Assistant Editors: Diana Greenslade, Melissa Lyne and Blair Trewin
Design: Jeanette Dargaville
Publisher: AMOS, GPO Box 1289, Melbourne VIC 3001, Australia
Submission deadline for next issue: 29 November 2019
Contact and submit pieces: [email protected]. Submission
guidelines are available online and at the end of this issue.
Image: Sunset hues splash the winter sky. Source: Belinda Campbell
Cover image: Sunrise at the eastern‑most point of mainland Australia.
Source: Linden Ashcroft
Other images in this publication: Photographs without a specified
source are obtained via the ‘pexels’ website and hyperlinked to the
original image online.
Belinda Campbell
Editor
Spring has well and truly sprung in southern Australia as we pen
the September issue of the Bulletin for your perusal.
This month we delve a bit deeper into the success of the 2019
AMOS Conference held in Darwin in June, with a full write‐up
courtesy of the conference convenors. Significant preparation
and consideration clearly went into all elements of the event. The
organisers brought together the essence of the tropical north
and the values of AMOS and its community with every selection
made—from the venues to the specially designed lanyards and
the Q&A session for school students. Congratulations again to all
involved on a wonderful event!
Since the last issue of BAMOS, the world noted a special milestone:
50 years since the moon landing. An article in this issue explains
some of the forays into space in the early 20th Century which
helped scientists better understand our planet, its atmosphere
and its weather. It also shows off some very impressive images
taken from space at the time and makes one marvel at the
amount of information we can capture today from satellites.
The past few months have also seen a number of events engaging
young people in science including National Science Week and
the international climate strike. The News section of this issue
provides a summary of a few recent events held around the
country. Speaking of science, we also feature an article on Science
and Technology Australia (STA) and the benefits this organisation
provides to AMOS members. There are several initiatives STA are
leading to promote STEM careers. I recently attended STEMFest,
an event putting the spotlight on the contributions of women
to Australian innovation. The presenters at the event discussed
some of the challenges associated with STEM careers and noted
several organisations (including STA) and initiatives that are
driving change, particularly the Women in STEM Decadal Plan,
Superstars of STEM and the WiSTEM pledge.
This issue climate is certainly a common theme, with an article
profiling a multidisciplinary project bringing climate science
together with the energy sector, and we also hear about the roll-
out of localised climate information in the Leader newspapers
across the state of Victoria.
We hope you enjoy this issue and, as always, we welcome your
feedback, suggestions and of course contributions.