BMRC is now part of CAWCR: The Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research.
For more information on The Centre please go to http://www.cawcr.gov.au
The surface wind fields in the following slides were
provided by G. Mills, BMRC. These winds were obtained from a high-resolution
(0.05 degrees) atmospheric model. In all figures, a single long wind barb
represents a wind speed of 5 m/s (approximately 10 knots), a double wind
barb represents 10 m/s etc. Wind speeds greater 18m/s are coloured red,
wind speeds between 20 m/s and 25 m/s are purple, and speeds greater than
25 m/s are light-blue.
The general synoptic situation is as follows. A cold front
passed through Victoria during the morning of Dec. 26th, prior to the start
of the yacht race (at 1pm on the 26th). A low pressure system formed within
Bass Strait during the 26th, became cut-off at about midnight on the 26th
and continued to move eastwards. A small-scale secondary low developed
over northern Tasmania in the early morning of the 27th, and rapidly intensified,
with a band of very strong westerly winds on its northern side. It was
these strong winds and the waves forced by these winds that contributed
to major problems for the fleet. More details on the meteorology can be
found in Mills (2000, in prep.)
