The Captain Cook Memorial Jet is back - bigger and better than ever. The fountain in Lake Burley Griffin will shoot an extra five metres into the sky after a $3 million refurbishment.
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Water has been spouting from the lake periodically since late last year, after almost two years of headaches and hiccups forced the jet to be shut off.
To mark its return, water will be shot 152 metres in the air when both pumps are fired up on Canberra Day next Monday, National Capital Authority chief executive Malcolm Snow said.
Previously, the pumps could only push water to a height of 147 metres.
In addition, the jet can now light up and will run seven days a week, at a height of 114 metres, Mr Snow said.
"The jet was designed to be lit at night and operating at night and those lights weren't as efficient as they could be and with the improvements in lighting technology we now have the ability through computer controls to be able to light up the jet much more effectively, to change the colour and distribution of the light so that at night the jet can be seen," Mr Snow said.
"We can do that on special occasions, events, when we want to mark a special day on Canberra's calendar the jet will be able to operate both at the full height and be lit at night."
Mr Snow said they had negotiated a better rate with ActewAGL so the pump could run for longer on the same budget.
"It'll now operate seven days a week for four hours whereas previously due to the cost of energy of powering it we were only able to operate it for two hours a day, so it will become a more obvious feature for a greater period during the day," Mr Snow said.
The fountain was built to commemorate the bicentenary of Captain James Cook's discovery of the east coast of Australia and was opened by the Queen in 1970.
Lake water is drawn into an underground pump house via a 50-metre intake tunnel. Its two pumps are able to shoot 250 litres of water per second.
However, flooding in the pump room forced the jet to be turned off in February 2015. The jet was fixed but, after a brief period of operation, it failed again in June.
To get the fountain working again required the installation of two, five-metre-high 3.3 kVA pumps, new hydraulic components, new high and low voltage marine cables and an upgrade to the electrical substation, transformers and switchboards.
"It's been 15 years since major work was done on the jet, it has been a long project," Mr Snow said.
"That's because it's a fairly complex piece of equipment, the electrical mechanical and safety systems for the jet have essentially been replaced, it's now fully compliant with all of the codes that apply to those pieces of equipment and we're confident that it will be operating safely and regularly for another 15 years."
The jet isn't the only part of the memorial to be refurbished. The globe on the lake shore that traces Captain Cook's explorations has also had a facelift, Mr Snow said.
You can see the Captain Cook Memorial Jet back in action on Canberra Day, Monday March 13, at its full height of 152 metres from 8-10 am and 3-5 pm.
The jet will also be switched on at a height of 114 metres from 7-9 pm.
It will turn on daily from 11am to 2pm from Tuesday, March 14.
Share your photos with the hashtag #loveourjet
