Every day, almost 2 million Australians visit the Bureau of Meteorology website for weather information. The data gathered and processed by the government agency’s radars, weather stations and supercomputers are converted into short and medium-term forecasts essential for farmers, rural residents, professional and recreational fishers, pilots, emergency services and more. Farmers make decisions on whether to plant crops based on forecasts, while emergency services may boost response capacity ahead of wild weather.
Unfortunately, a controversial website redesign has brought this essential service under scrutiny. Last Wednesday, the bureau’s website switched to a fresh, modern look as part of a $A4 million program – the first major update since 2013. The former website – which is still accessible – had served Australia well, but was looking dated. Bureau staff, government agencies and key user groups had been calling for improvements for some time.
