About

Patrick and his wife Kay own and operate the Maleny Weather Station supplying data to the local community, This website is provided totally free. However, donations are most welcome in order  to provide financial support towards replacement equipment thus ensuring the station's operation in the future

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The Maleny Weather Station is situated at Maleny, Queensland, Australia

LAT -26° 45' 10" LONG 152° 51' 07". Located 450m above MSL

A Bureau of Meteorology Synoptic Observation Station is also located on site.

You can email us using the 'Contact us' link on the bar above this page......

The following is a schedule of data available at the Maleny Weather Station:

Please Note. Data shown on the 'Current Data' page are wireless transmissions and errors can occur. Data shown on 'This Month' page are subject to quality checks and should be used for all record purposes.

TEMPERATURES

Electronic sensors take readings at 8-second intervals and then average those readings over a 15-minute interval. Data is collated over a twenty-four hour period from midnight to midnight and then down loaded at 9am and 3.pm daily. Other useful features include ' high' and 'low' temperatures readings and times they occur in each 24-hour period. The electronic sensors are checked daily by wet and dry thermometers calibrated to International Meteorological Standards; and located in a Stevenson Screen at the Maleny Weather Station in accordance with World Meteorological Organisation guidelines

BAROMETRIC PRESSURE

Since Atmospheric Pressure varies with altitude it is often difficult to reconcile the readings with weather maps on tv or those published in the newspapers, which are pressure readings, taken at sea level. Accordingly, the instrument located at the Maleny Weather Station is adjusted to give equivalent mean sea level pressure and referred to as 'barometric pressure'. Readings are plotted in hectopascals, at 15-minute intervals.

RAINFALL

Two measurements of rainfall are taken daily. The first is fully automated and records both time and rainfall in a twenty-four hour period from midnight to midnight. The Second system is manual and records rainfall at 9am and 3pm for transmission, with other data, to the Bureau of Meteorology.. Maleny monthly rainfall records have been kept since 1893.

HUMIDITY

Much of the air surrounding us consists of water vapour, as those of us living on the Range well know! Consequently, water vapour plays an important role in determining weather conditions. When it condenses, the result is dew, fog, rain, frost, and other forms of precipitation. The amount of water vapour in the air also influences how we perceive temperature; humid days feel hotter because water vapour slows down the natural cooling process of the human body. A measurement of the amount of water vapour in the surrounding air is dependant upon the temperature since warmer air is capable of holding much more water than cooler air. Thus, Relative Humidity is defined as the amount of water vapour that the air could hold at the current temperature. The result is expressed as a percentage and is plotted as the average of readings taken during each 15-minute period, with 'high' and 'low' readings recorded daily.

WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION

360° Anemometer readings, at the Maleny Weather Station, are taken from one or other of two locations, depending on direction of wind.

WIND CHILL

Wind chill is a measure of the effect of wind on our perception of temperature. Through a process known as convection, wind cools off the body by transferring heat more quickly into the surrounding air. As a result, when the wind is blowing, we perceive the temperature to be cooler than it actually is. The station records the wind chill factor in degrees Celsius.

UV INDEX

Energy from the sun reaches the earth as visible, infrared and ultraviolet (UV) rays. Exposure to UV rays can cause numerous health problems, such as sunburn, skin cancer, skin aging and cataracts, and can also suppress the imune system. The World Meteorological Organisation has adopted a UV Index using a scale of 0 to 16 to rate the current intensity of UV.  The UV Index and Exposure Category

SOLAR RADIATION  What we call 'current solar radiation' is technically known as Global Solar Radiation, a measure of the intensity of the sun's radiation reaching a horizontal surface. The solar radiation readings taken at the MWS is the amount of solar radiation hitting the the solar radiation sensor at a given time, expressed in Watts per square meter(W/m2).

SOLAR ENERGY   The amount of accumulated solar radiation energy over a period of time is measured in Langleys

1 Langley = 11.622 Watt-hours per square meter

=3.687 BTU's per square foot

=41.84 kiloJoules per square meter.

TEMPERATURE / HUMIDITY/SOLAR/WIND INDEX (THSW)

The Temperature / Humidity / SOLAR / WIND Index (THSW) uses the temperature  relative humidity, solar radiation and wind to determine how hot the air actually 'feels'. When humidity is high the apparent temperature will be higher than the air temperature because perspiration cannot readily evaporate into the surrounding air. Technically, THSW is calculable only when the air temperature is above 20 degrees Celsius because it is a measure of heat stress.

DEGREE-DAYS

Because temperature plays an important role in the rate of development of plants and many pests (especially insects), a measurement, which takes into account the accumulation of heat with passing time, is necessary to predict maturation. Degree-days provide a measurement for calculating the effect of temperature on the development of plants and/or pests. One degree-day is the amount of heat that accumulates when the temperature remains one degree above the base development threshold for twenty-four hours. One degree-day is also the amount of heat that accumulates when the temperature remains 24 degrees above the threshold for one hour. Degree-day predictions hold true regardless of location or temperature fluctuations. As long as the number of degree-days necessary for plant / pest development is known the degree-days function is an accurate predictor.

DEW POINT

Dew Point is a measure of absolute amount of water vapour in the air expressed as a temperature reading. The reading represents the temperature at which water condenses from the air. If temperature and Dew Point are the same, the result will be fog and/or dew.

TEMPERATURE / HUMIDITY HOURS

Certain pests (in particular, some moulds) develop most aggressively under specific combinations of temperature and humidity. Each pest can be expected to emerge when a specific number of temperature / humidity hours have accumulated. Temperature / humidity hours, therefore, can be used to select optimum time for application of preventative measures.