Post by Ethereal on Oct 16, 2024 1:20:25 GMT -5
"Sydney Observatory Hill:
The current site is located on Observatory Hill, on the north side of the main Sydney Observatory complex. It has been the primary site since October 2017. The observatory buildings are to the south, with a paling fence and then parklands to the north. A ridge and trees make the site more sheltered from the east and north-east than the previous sites, and hence it tends to have somewhat warmer days under sea-breeze conditions.
History
Originally the site was in the main Observatory grounds on the south side of the Observatory buildings. It moved about 100 m south in 1917. This was in a small grassed enclosure (about 10 by 10 m) about 100 m south of the main Sydney Observatory complex. There is a freeway immediately east of the site but it is in a deep cutting at this point, and its construction was found to have no significant impact on the temperature observations. Observations here continued until August 2020, although it ceased to be the primary ACORN-SAT site in October 2017.
There have been a number of changes in the built environment around this site during its history, most significantly the demolition of some buildings associated with the nearby Fort Street school in about 1938 and their reconstruction in about 1947. A wall was also built on the south edge of the instrument enclosure in the 1970s or early 1980s. The pre-1917 site was a more exposed location on a hilltop and had lower maximum temperatures, especially in winter, than the current location. An automatic weather station was installed at the current site on 8 August 1990.
The area is heavily built-up and has been since at least the late 19th century. An analysis of minimum temperature trends in the ACORN-SAT data showed no evidence of an abnormal warming trend relative to non-urban sites in the region, indicating that any urban influence on the data was already fully developed by the time ACORN-SAT begins in 1910.
SNIP
Ya wanna see a real 'on the water' AWS in Sydney ?
This is in the middle of Sydney Harbour, called Wedding Cake:
Here is another photo angle of the station:
Either way, I'd say the official weather station of Sydney should be the Airport. It's sort of a 'halfway' climate between Sydney CBD/north and the west.
