- There must be a responsible person monitoring the operation of the array at all times, and must be a responsible person at close call who is able to stow the array, if necessary.
- In good weather conditions it is permissible to leave the telescope unattended for short periods (e.g., for an hour or so over lunch or dinner). Under no circumstances should the instrument be left unattended if winds exceed 10km/h or if there is visible storm activity.
- The array should be stowed when not in use.
Safe Wind Speeds
| Operating with less than 8" wind tracking errors: | less than 30km/hr |
| Safe travel along rail tracks: | less than 30km/hr |
| Normal safe stowing: | less than 40km/hr |
| Emergency stowing: | less than 100km/hr |
| Maximum safe wind in stowed position: | less than 160km/hr |
Antennas should be stowed when:
- wind speeds exceed 40km/hr, or
- there are severe thunderstorms in the vicinity.
Storms and Using the Generators
At Narrabri, each antenna, as well as the Control Building, has a dedicated electricity generator. At Mopra, there is a single generator. These generators are there as a backup to council mains. Although the generators will start automatically if the power fails, the generators should be started when there is imminent likelihood of:-
-
Storms, as indicated by one of:
- The lightning monitor in Monica
- The Moree weather radar
- The country energy stormtracker
- Going outside and assessing the approaching weather!
- A scheduled outage has been announced by the electricity supply authorities.
Generally, generators should be started after one power 'glitch', especially if it's obvious that a storm is approaching (or in any situation where it is likely that power failure will happen.)
Starting the GENSETs before actual power failure is useful for several reasons:
- It lessens the chance of failure to stow at a critical time (e.g., when the antennas are in the process of being windstowed),
- It isolates antennas and the control building from power surges that might be associated with the storm,
- It means that if there is any problem starting a GENSET, there is time to fix it before it is really needed.
