88th Annual Meeting (20-24 January 2008)

Monday, 21 January 2008
A meteorological system for planning and evaluating glider flights in Pennsylvania USA
Exhibit Hall B (Ernest N. Morial Convention Center)
Edward E. Hindman, The City University of New York, New York, NY; and S. M. Saleeby and O. Liechti
Poster PDF (1.7 MB)
The meteorological system coupled a numerical weather prediction model and a glider flight algorithm. The system was evaluated using meteorological and glider flight data from contests near Fairfield PA (October 2006) and Mifflin PA (May 2007). Evaluated were predictions of the depth of the convective boundary layer, the glider climb rates, the 1000 m AGL winds, the task speeds and the onset of convective clouds. The predictions for contest days with winds less than 20 knots were found to be accurate and, therefore, can help plan and evaluate flights for future PA contests and contests elsewhere on the East Coast USA. The system requires additional development for winds greater than 20 knots.

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