Examination of Tall-Tower Wind Observations in MesoWest

MesoWest is an ongoing collaborative project that provides access to observations from over 30,000 stations across the United States via web interface products. Recently, MesoWest has purchased communications equipment for a set of 20-50 m tall towers in Utah that are part of the Utah Anemometer Loan Program administered by Salt Lake Community College. MesoWest also received permission to access and disseminate observations from tall towers installed by the Bonneville Power Administration in Washington and Oregon.

In order to display wind observations from multiple heights at a station, a dynamic database schema for observations and new display products had to be designed and created. Examples of these new tabular and graphical displays are shown in the context of wind energy nowcasting, where real-time observations from these tall towers could be utilized to aid in identifying potential “ramp-up” and “ramp-down” periods.