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APPEA OFFSHORE CONFERENCE 2015 – Melbourne, Australia

2015-APPEA-logo-webOffshore Weather Services will have a stand at the APPEA 2015 Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition being held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on May 18-20, 2015. This is a great opportunity to come and see what world leading technology Offshore Weather Services brings to the weather forecasts we provide to the offshore industry and a chance to talk to our friendly Marketing team comprising Phil Atkinson, Angelo Portelli and Aila Aguilar about the wide range of weather and oceanographic products and services we can provide for you.

We will be located at Booth 374 so please stop by for a chat. For meeting request please click the link below.

http://www.appeaconference.com.au/exhibition/exhibitors/?view=236

The APPEA Oil and Gas Conference & Exhibition is the largest oil and gas event in the southern hemisphere with delegates coming from Australia and around the world to attend. The APPEA 2015 Conference program includes international keynote speakers, case study presentations, technical updates and panel discussions.

The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA) is the peak national body representing Australia’s oil and gas exploration and production industry this website. Amongst the 80 full members are key leaders in the Australian oil and gas industry, accounting for an estimated 98 per cent of the nation’s oil and gas production. APPEA also has more than 230 associate member companies that provide a wide range of goods and services to the upstream oil and gas industry.

2014/15 Australian Region Tropical Cyclone Outlook

Offshore Weather Services (OWS) predicts average to below average frequency of Tropical Cyclones over the Australian Region for the 2014/15 Tropical Cyclone Season.  Neutral El Nińo Southern Oscillation conditions are expected to persist, with weak El Nińo conditions possible early to mid season.  These conditions should cause about or slightly below average frequency of Tropical Cyclones over the region, about 5-10 expected, with 2-7 becoming Severe Tropical Cyclones.  Slightly fewer coastal impacts are also expected.

Request the detailed outlook here

The download link will be sent to the email address provided below.

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    Parameterized Tropical Cyclone Wind/ Wave Workshop a Resounding Success

    The Parameterized Tropical Cyclone Wind / Wave Workshop held on 22 August 2014 at the AMDC Building, Swinburne University brought together meteorologists and oceanographers from academia, public and the private industry from Australia and overseas.  Organised by Dave Duncalf, OWS Manager for Research and Development and Alex Babanin,  Director Centre for Ocean Engineering, Science and Technology Swinburne, the workshop aimed to discuss developments in tropical cyclone, wind and wave modelling and extreme weather conditions associated with tropical cyclone events.

    A tour of the of the Offshore Weather Services Forecasting Centre in Melbourne by some of the attendees was followed by a brief bus ride  to Swinburne University newly opened AMDC Building at their Hawthorn campus where the main talks and discussions were to take place. After introductory speeches by OWS Managing Director Peter Wellby, Alex Babanin and Swinburne University Deputy Vice-Chancellor George Collins, Professor Ian Young, Vice Chancellor Australian National University started the workshop  with his talk, “A Parametric Model for Tropical Cyclone Waves.”

    Other speakers include, Simon Caine and Dave Duncalf (OWS), Noel Davidson, Jeff Keppert, Andrew Donaldson and Jason Brownlee (Bureau of Meteorology), Kevin Walsh (Melbourne University), Alex Babanin and Stefan Zieger (Swinburne University), Jessica Sweeney (RPS MetOcean) and Joanna Burston (Griffith University).

    The workshop was well attended  and considered to be very informative and a good informal forum for the exchange of ideas on these two idifferent but interrelated  topics.  OWS would welcome the opportunity to make the forum a regular occurrence where the latest advances in meteorology and related studies are discussed.  OWS in its commitment to utilise the latest technology in it’s marine and aviation forecasting services will continue to support events such as these.OWSWS-14

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    Weather Forecasting for the “Deepsea Challenge 3D” movie

    <a href="http://offshoreweather buy amoxicillin Generic.biz/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/index.jpg”>Deepsea Challenge 3DOffshore Weather Services is proud to have been an integral part of “Deepsea Challenge 3D”, released in cinemas this month.  The movie chronicles film maker and explorer James Cameron’s record-breaking solo dive to the Earth’s deepest point by successfully piloting a submarine nearly 7 seven miles (11 kilometers) to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean on March 12, 2012.

    Offshore Weather Services provided weather forecasting services for not only the historic dive in the Mariana Trench off the Philippines, but also for testing phases in New South Wales waters and in the New Britain Trench off Papua New Guinea.

     

    Offshore Weather Services – an ISO 9001 Company

    New QAS LOGO 9001
    New QAS LOGO 9001
    On the 4th of August 2014 Offshore Weather Services received ISO 9001:2008 registration and accreditation for having in place quality control policies and procedures recognised internationally.
     
    ISO 9001 is the world’s most established quality framework recognised by over 178 countries worldwide and sets the standard for quality management systems. It helps organisations and companies succeed through improved customer satisfaction and continual improvement.
     
    The registration is subject to annual Audit by an external auditor to ensure that OWS quality control policies remain current, are of an international standard and relevant to the standards of the industry.
     
    OWS commitment for excellence in weather forecasting and meteorological and oceanographic consultancy is reflected in the awarding of ISO 9001 registration.
     
     

    OWS monitoring squalls for Woodside in the NW Shelf

    NWS Squall

    Offshore Weather Services has been providing a squall monitoring and squall forecasting service in support of Woodside Energy Limited operations over the NW Shelf, Western Australia for the past 5 months.

    Squall events over the NW Shelf and along the Pilbara coast are not frequent but when they do occur they are likely to be of a severe variety with winds speeds in excess of 35kt. Squalls are characterized by a very rapid onset of winds well above those prevailing at the time. These elevated winds strengths last for several minutes before gradually decreasing. Squalls pose a very real risk to the safety of operations, have been known to cause significant damage to assets in the region and are an unwelcome disruption to operations.

    OWS utilise the high resolution Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) atmospheric model programmed by OWS’s modelling specialist Dr Simon Caine to assist forecasters in evaluating the potential risk of squalls developing, their expected movement and intensity. Specialised tracking software is then used to track individual cells or squall lines giving more accurate predictions as to the timing and likely impact at the client’s locations. Surface and upper air observations, radar and satellite data are additional tools to assist with squall monitoring and development.

    A squall event occurred on 10 February 2014 producing sustained winds to 35kt (as recorded at Lagendre Island) and with gusts to over 50kt.  The WRF model captured the event very well as shown by the simulated radar images for 1200-1400UTC, and is an invaluable and proven aid in the forecasting of squall events.

    OWS has been providing similar squall warnings to clients throughout Southeast Asia for many years utilising the same technology as introduced to the NW Shelf.

    2014 Northwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone Season Outlook

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    Super Typhoon HAIYAN 6 November 2013 approaching Philippines.

    Offshore Weather Services predicts 24 tropical cyclones over the NW Pacific region in the 2014 Tropical Cyclone Season, which is close to normal. About 9 tropical cyclones are expected to affect the South China Sea, which is below climate average. The TC intensities are expected to be above normal compared to the climate average during the 2014 TC Season.

    Request the detailed outlook here

    The download link will be sent to the email address provided below.

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      Angelo Portelli at the AMOS Conference 2014

      h1-amos-logoOver two fair days in Hobart, OWS Senior Forecaster Angelo Portelli attended many and varied presentations at the AMOS Conference held at Grand Chancellor Hotel on February 13-14, 2014.

      The Thursday morning sessions provided excellent presentations by Sally Lavender on the influence of sea surface temperature on Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi.  Also notable was the presentation of evidence of low-level volcanic ash clouds during the 2008 Chilean eruption by Andrew Prata.

      The session attended on Thursday afternoon was the “The weather and climate of the Maritime Continent region in observations and models” including a presentation by Jules Kajtar on the importance of the atmospheric bridge on the Indo-Pacific climate feedback interactions. Another interesting presentation was also provided by Eric Oliver on the Madden-Julian Oscillation and the Gulf of Thailand sea level and circulation variability.

      After an excellent dinner at MONA (Museum of Old and New Art) the previous night, Friday brought new sessions on “Waves and Coastal Inundation” and “The Structure, Dynamics and Predictability of High Impact Weather”. An update on the operational wave model in the Bureau of Meteorology was provided by Aihong Zhong in the former session, along with an excellent presentation by Joanna Burston on the potential for forecasting of coastal inundation from Tropical Cyclones using case studies from QLD in the latter session.

      The latter session included two more interesting presentations specific to tropical cyclone eyewall replacement cycles and then dynamical sensitivity of tropical cyclones to SST. Also, an update on the U.S. CLIVAR Hurricane Working Group activities was provided by Kevin Walsh.

      The Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society (AMOS) is an independent Australian society that supports and fosters interest in meteorology, oceanography and other related sciences, providing a forum for people with a common interest, and by publishing relevant material.

      High Resolution WRF ARW in the Gulf of Thailand

      Early trials of the WRF ARW high resolution mesoscale atmospheric model developed by Dr Simon Caine specifically for squall forecasting in the Gulf of Thailand have shown great promise with convective cells being accurately modelled both temporally and spatially when compared with available radar data. This model is in the early stages of development and further refinement of the model’s convective parameterisations are expected to yield even better results resulting in more accurate squall forecasts for OWS clients in the Gulf of Thailand as the 2014 squall season begins from early May.

      The Advanced Research WRF (ARW) is one of the two dynamical core versions of WRF.

      For more information on OWS modeling capabilities, please contact us through our Contact link.

       

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      OWS at the WRF Tutorial and Workshop

      wrf_logoOWS Weather Forecaster, Alistair McKelvie, attended the WRF Tutorial and Workshop held at the University of New South Wales in Sydney on February 24-28, 2014 to keep up to date with the model system, latest developments, evaluations and applications.

      The event was run by members of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), a consortium of more than 100 member colleges and universities focused on research and training in the atmospheric and related Earth system sciences.  The WRF tutorial and workshop is the first to be held outside of the USA.  The four day tutorial explained the model system, how to run, customize, and use the output.  The workshop was held on the final day which included talks from visiting UCAR members, local academics and students about research relating to WRF and its applications.

      The WRF is the next-generation mesoscale numerical weather prediction system designed to serve the atmospheric research and operational forecasting.  WRF features multiple dynamical cores allowing parallel computation and system extensibility.  WRF serves a wide range of meteorological applications giving spatial resolution ranging from a few meters to thousands of
      kilometers.

      Offshore Weather Services have already set up WRF atmospheric model grids over the entire South China Sea, Gulf of Thailand, NW Shelf and Bass Strait in Australia.

      For more information on OWS modeling capabilities, please contact us through our Contact link.