The weather map is one of the most familiar images in the community. It is seen dally on television and in the newspapers. It incorporates the effects of atmospheric processes at higher levels. Television and newspapers also often carry forecast weather maps which indicate how the weather patterns are expected to develop.
Meteorologists use a wide range of information and techniques to formulate weather forecasts.
The weather map does not and cannot show all of these factors. Nevertheless it provides a useful guide to the weather. The Bureau of Meteorology, like all the world's weather services, operates a network of its own stations to gather surface and upper air observations. More than 440 paid and volunteer part-time observers also make daily surface observations essential to the national picture. Their information is formatted in an international code and transmitted nationally, often globally.