Willis Island facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Willis Island

Aerial view of Willis Island in 2006
Geography
Location	Coral Sea
Coordinates	16°17′15″S 149°57′52″E / 16.28750°S 149.96444°E / -16.28750; 149.96444 (Willis Island)
Total islands	1
Area	7.7 ha (19 acres)
Length	500 m (1,600 ft)
Width	150 m (490 ft)
Highest elevation	9 m (30 ft)
Administration
Australia
Demographics
Population	4 (2018)

Willis Island is a special place in the Coral Sea. It's the only island in the Coral Sea Islands Territory where people live all the time. This territory is an outer part of Australia. The island is located far out in the Coral Sea, about 450 kilometers (280 miles) east of Cairns, Queensland.

Willis Island is the most southern of three small islands called the Willis Islets. These islands stretch for about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles). Willis Island itself is about 500 meters (1,640 feet) long and 150 meters (490 feet) wide. It covers an area of 7.7 hectares (19 acres) and rises about 9 meters (30 feet) above the sea.

Weather Monitoring Station

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has a very important weather station on Willis Island. This station helps forecast weather for Australia. Usually, four weather observers and one technical officer live on the island. One of the observers is the Officer-in-Charge, like a team leader.

History of the Station

The weather station on Willis Island started in 1921. It was set up with a radio to give early warnings about cyclones heading towards Queensland. The first person in charge of the station was John King Davis.

Cyclones and the Station

Willis Island is in a part of the world where strong storms called cyclones can happen. On February 2, 2011, a very powerful storm called Cyclone Yasi passed right over Willis Island. It was a Category 5 cyclone, which is the strongest kind.

The four staff members on the island were moved to safety the day before. The weather station recorded wind gusts of 185 kilometers per hour (115 mph) before its wind measuring tool broke. The air pressure dropped very low, showing how strong the cyclone was. The storm was so powerful it changed the shape of the island and destroyed most of its plants.

The station was partly fixed by February 17, 2011. The main building had only small damage, but the dome protecting the radar was completely destroyed. The radar itself was also damaged and needed to be replaced. The storm surge, which is a rise in sea level caused by the storm, also damaged the power, sewage, and water-making systems. The weather station was fully working again by December 12, 2011.

In 2023, staff were again moved off the island by a Royal Australian Navy ship before Cyclone Jasper arrived. Luckily, this cyclone caused little damage, and the staff returned eleven days later.

Station Buildings and Equipment

Older Buildings

Before 2004, many of the buildings on Willis Island were quite old, built in 1950 or 1968. Keeping them in good shape was a lot of work. The small island had eight buildings, including:

• A main building for living, cooking, and working.
• A main storage building.
• A laundry building.
• A strong bunker or cyclone shelter.
• A building for generators.
• A fire pump building.
• A storage area for flammable liquids.
• An old building for filling weather balloons with hydrogen (this one was no longer safe to use).

The staff lived in a barracks-style area connected to the office and kitchen. The weather equipment included a 7-meter (23-foot) tall radar tower with a dome. There was also a machine to turn seawater into fresh water (a desalination plant) and a system to treat sewage.

Newer Buildings

Since 2005, many new and improved facilities have been built on the island:

• A new office, dining area, living quarters, and recreation space.
• A new building for making hydrogen gas and storing it.
• Fuel tanks were moved to a safer area.
• New underground pipes for communication, power, water, and sewage.
• Satellite dishes and the radar tower were moved.
• The saltwater pump building was updated.

The new living areas can house four permanent staff and up to 10 visitors. The weather equipment still includes a 7-meter (23-foot) radar tower. The island also has a desalination plant and a sewage treatment system. For power, they use a mix of diesel generators, a wind generator, and solar power. They don't collect rainwater because of the many marine birds and their droppings.

Fun and Hobbies

The station has a recreation room where staff can play pool, darts, and table tennis. There's also an outdoor sports area and a gym. Staff can also enjoy fishing.

The island has a large library with many books. Two satellite TV systems let them watch Australian channels like Network 10 and ABC. They can also watch free TV from countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. This includes channels like CNN and MTV. There's also a big collection of movies for entertainment.

Sometimes, amateur radio operators visit the Willis Islets. For amateur radio awards, Willis Island is considered a separate "entity," like a country. Big amateur radio trips happened in October 2008 and November 2015. Another operator was there from October 2022 to April 2023.

Keeping the Island Clean and Safe

In the past, trash was buried on the island. Sometimes, strong winds and big waves from cyclones would uncover this waste. A big clean-up effort was done in 2004 and 2005 to protect the delicate coral and sand dunes.

Today, all trash from the island, and any rubbish that washes ashore, is put into bins. It's then shipped back to the mainland for proper disposal.

When Cyclone Yasi hit, it uncovered an old buried trash site that included some materials containing asbestos. This area was cleaned up, and all the waste was removed from the island. Experts have checked Willis Island several times and found no major risk of asbestos exposure for the staff.

Sometimes, old asbestos cement sheets wash up on the island. These are collected, bagged, and sent back to the mainland for safe disposal. Staff use full safety gear when handling these materials.

The staff make their own hydrogen gas for weather balloons. Before 1994, they used a chemical process that left behind a toxic waste. This waste was dangerous for the local birds. To protect the birds, a safer "electrolytic converter" is now used. This machine uses electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

Amazing Birdlife

Willis Island is home to many birds. The most common ones are wedge-tailed shearwaters, sooty terns, and two types of noddies: common and black noddies. There are usually lots of them, and their calls can be heard day and night.

Several kinds of booby birds also visit the island, including masked, brown, and red-footed boobies. The lesser frigatebird also migrates through the area. Crested terns are seen sometimes too. Other birds that have been spotted include the buff-banded rail, wood sandpiper, sacred kingfisher, and red-tailed tropicbird.

Island Climate

Willis Island has a tropical savanna climate. This means it has a hot and humid wet season from November to April. It also has a warm, muggy dry season from May to October. This weather is typical for most of Far North Queensland.

Even in winter, the weather is warm, windy, and humid. The average temperature is about 26.6 °C (79.9 °F). However, the long dry season means the island gets less rain overall, about 1073.4 mm (42.3 inches) per year.

The warm Coral Sea helps keep temperatures steady all year round. This prevents extreme hot or cold weather. The temperature range is very small, from a high of 35.2 °C (95.4 °F) to a low of 18.4 °C (65.1 °F). Daily temperature changes are also smaller compared to Cairns on the mainland.

Rainfall on Willis Island comes from thunderstorms during the wet season. These storms are often hit-or-miss, so the amount of rain can vary a lot. For example, in November 1992, only 1.0 mm (0.04 inches) of rain was recorded. But in March 1997, a huge 1484.8 mm (58.46 inches) fell, which is more than the average for a whole year! Winters are much drier, with very little rain in September. Cyclones can also happen in the summer and are more common here than on the mainland.

See also

In Spanish: Isla Willis para niños