Development of a Flux-Lidar Buoy for Offshore Wind Monitoring and Prediction

Technological advances are opening new ways to observe the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL) for evaluating and improving model forecasts of offshore wind. Floating lidars can now resolve the wind profile and turbulence at heights between ~20–300 m, sufficient to capture the rotor plane of the next generation of offshore wind turbines. Moreover, the fidelity of continuous 10–20 minute averaged eddy covariance (EC) air-sea momentum and buoyancy flux measurements from moored platforms has been demonstrated. Since 2021, we have been developing an automated EC package to measure momentum, buoyancy, and sensible and latent heat fluxes for integration onto a buoy-based lidar system operated by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). We anticipate the flux-lidar package will enable continuous near real-time characterization of atmospheric surface fluxes, turbulence, and wind profiles that will allow for a more efficient evaluation and improvement of MABL wind resource forecast model performance. We will present results from a test deployment of the flux-lidar buoy system scheduled to occur in Fall 2023.