Help for Himawari

Select one of the options below, or use our feedback form above if your question is not represented. To return to the Himawari Satellite Viewer, select the website logo in the top navigation bar.

Himawari usage guide
Issues with the viewer

Satellite viewer elements

The Himawari Satellite viewer has three main sections. These are a top information bar, a middle map panel, and a bottom interaction bar. Users can view satellite imagery for the last four hours, open satellite notes, or go to the warnings page.

The top information bar shows the selected map and time. It has links to the fullscreen button ( on devices that support this option) and more information button ().
The middle content map shows the current selected satellite imagery and layers. It can also display animation.
The bottom interaction barshows the Layers button and displays animation controls. It can display a timeline scrubber on devices that support this option. Users can view Satellite Notes () or go to the Warnings Page().

The default image is the Day-Night view, views are changed through the Layers button.

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Layers and how to change them

Layers in the Himawari Satellite viewer are both satellite images, and map elements. Map elements can be cities or borders. Users can only view one satellite image at a time, but many map elements can be displayed. Change items under the Layers button () by selecting them.

Available satellite layers:

NB: These links will take you to the about page.

Available map overlays:

Cities - All major cities in Australia.
Roads - All major roads in Australia.
Boundaries -The political boundaries of Australia, showing States and Territories.
Coastal - The physical boundaries of Australia, showing the coastline.

Available map options:

Show legend - Shows the legend for a particular satellite layer. Not all layers have legends. Temperatures on legends are given in celsius.
Show coordinates - Reports the latitude and longitude at the mouse pointer.

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Animation

The last four hours of imagery are available as an animation.

The animation load speed depends on the speed of the viewer's internet connection. The number of users accessing the site also can affect load speed.

The bar with the white dot is the timeline scrubber. Scrubbing lets the user drag the playhead back and forth over the timeline to examine the animation.

Slow down

Speed up

Play the animation

Pause the animation

Go to the previous image

Go to the next image

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Satellite Notes

A satellite note () is a text description of the current conditions over Australia. The Bureau National Operations Centre generates a satellite note once per day.

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Why aren't all the options available?

In limited width displays, some options are hidden. Viewers can use their devices in landscape mode, or view the site on a PC.

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How can I get animation to work in IE8?

Due to display limitations in IE8, animation is not available for this browser.

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Why are some images missing?

Satellite images can go missing for many reasons. Eclipses, hardware difficulties, or problems with Internet connections can all cause problems.

Solar circumstances can cause technicians to shut down satellites to avoid damage. These shut downs are temporary. During this period, images are not available.

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