Even though reliable anemometers have been installed at many key points the interpretation of extreme wind gust data is rendered difficult by the nature and variations of the exposure of the instrument in many cases and by the short period of record which makes reliable statistical treatment doubtful. The app11cability of recorded data to a different site is another uncertainty even within the same climatic zone. Furthermore, doubt is cast on the practice of adjusting extreme wind gust velocities to another height and it is concluded that constancy in exposure, provided it is reasonably good, is of prime importance. Gust structure is also discussed, with an example of a phenomenal wind at Lord howe Island, Whilst a few other exceptional winds are listed, notably some tornadic squalls experienced over southern Australia during the last three or four years.
C. E. Hounam (Sat,) studied this question.