Extracting engineering-relevant wind information from research radar measurements

Abstract

Historically, engineering-oriented characterization of low-level atmospheric winds has been dependent upon obtaining relevant measurements from anemometry, but recent research has shown promise in extracting relevant scales using radar measurements. Central to the success of these new analysis concepts was the proper correction of the acquired data fields to account for momentum advection and the implementation of a robust space-to-time conversion methodology. Combined, these facets allowed researchers to interpolate high resolution “tower-like” time histories from across the entire radar analysis domain, resulting in a more comprehensive evaluation of flow field evolution. However, the previous methodologies failed to properly characterize highly complex wind flows that contain wind speed and direction gradients. This study built upon these previous methodologies to better characterize complex wind flows, while also preserving engineering-relevant scales of motion. The new methodology was implemented on a wind record collected from a passing thunderstorm and included several sharp wind speed and direction changes. Validation of the resulting dual-Doppler-derived second-by-second projections was completed through comparison with available anemometry. The results highlight the significant advantages of using research radar information to bolster engineering perspectives, while also documenting the current limitations of the method.