R.Manasseh Fluid Dyn Papers
R.Manasseh Fluid Dyn Home
All times quoted here are in Australian Eastern Standard Time, which is 10
hours in advance of Universal Time. The synoptic meteorological conditions at
1000 on 16 March 1994 included a high-pressure system centred well south of the
Australian continent and a low centred near the South Island of New Zealand.
The result was was very wide spacing of isobars in the Sydney region with local
winds dominating over the synoptic situation. Atmospheric pressure was about
1015-1016 hPa during the morning. Ground-level anemometer data from Sydney
Airport show calm conditions or very light northerly winds during the early
morning. A rawinsonde sounding at Sydney Airport at 0314 indicated
north-westerly winds of 
in the bottom 2000 m of the atmosphere
gradually changing to upper-level westerlies of about 
by
4500 m. Data from a radiosonde sounding at Sydney Airport at 0600 show that the
lower atmosphere was unsaturated and unstable relative to the dry adiabat, with
a ground-level temperature of 
. At Bankstown at 0600 the
temperature was 
. Maximum recorded temperatures were
at Bankstown at 1200 and about 
at Sydney Airport at
the same time.
Yacht observations from a point about 15 km offshore record the commencement of
an irregular onshore flow at about 0925, following the first indications of a
sea breeze at 0920. Ground-level anemometer data show a clear sea breeze front
arriving at Fort Denison at 1015, and more complex sea breeze fronts arriving
at Sydney Airport at about 1200-1220 and at Bankstown between 1300 and 1400.
The sea-breeze flows were weak, with maximum wind speeds of about 
and temperature drops of about 
.