Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “wind data”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 217 records · Page 12

5-minute Wind Power Data based on WFIP2 WRF Simulation

The second Wind Forecast Improvement Project (WFIP2) was a public-private partnership funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and NOAA, aimed at enhancing the forecast skill of numerical weather prediction models for turbine-height winds in regions with complex terrain. An 18-month Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model simulation was conducted over the Pacific Northwest, with model outputs validated against observational data collected during WFIP2. Simulated wind speeds were used to estimate wind power generation using reV (the Renewable Energy Potential Model developed by NREL) at ten wind project sites. Two sets of results were produced: one using wind speeds extracted from the model grid cell at the project centroid, and another using wind speeds from the actual turbine locations. For each dataset, power output was calculated using both actual turbine-specific power curves and nine generic power curves to convert wind speed into power.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Analyses of mean and turbulent motion in the tropics with the use of unequally spaced data

Wind velocities from 25 km to 60 km over Ascension Island, Fort Sherman and Kwajalein for the period January 1970 to December 1971 are analyzed in order to achieve a better understanding of the mean flow, the eddy kinetic energy and the Eulerian time spectra of the eddy kinetic energy. Since the data are unequally spaced in time, techniques of one-dimensional covariance theory were utilized and an unequally spaced time series analysis was accomplished. The theoretical equations for two-dimensional analysis or wavenumber frequency analysis of unequally spaced data were developed. Analysis of the turbulent winds and the average seasonal variance and eddy kinetic energy of the turbulent winds indicated that maximum total variance and energy is associated with the east-west velocity component. This is particularly true for long period seasonal waves which dominate the total energy spectrum. Additionally, there is an energy shift for the east-west component into the longer period waves with altitude increasing from 30 km to 50 km.

Kao, S. K.↗

Remote optical wind detection and aerodynamic control system for ground vehicle

An aerodynamic control system for a ground vehicle comprises a LiDAR module including at least one LiDAR sensor configured to obtain wind data upstream of the ground vehicle; a computing device; an aerodynamic device controller; and an aerodynamic device including a control surface. The computing device is configured to receive the wind data from the LiDAR module and generate output signals based on the wind data. The aerodynamic device controller is configured to receive the output signals from the computing device and generate control signals to control the aerodynamic device to adjust aerodynamic properties of the ground vehicle based at least in part the wind data. Changes to the configuration of the control surface may include increasing or decreasing a deflection angle of the at least one aerodynamic device. The aerodynamic device may include, e.g., a pneumatically actuated aerodynamic device or an electro-mechanically actuated aerodynamic device.

Damon, Kenneth H.↗

ACARS wind measurements - An intercomparison with radiosonde, cloud motion and VAS thermally derived winds

Statistical comparisons between winds measured by ACARS and winds obtained from radiosondes, geostationary satellite image cloud motions, and VAS are presented. Observations from three separate comparisons reveal over 60 percent of wind vector magnitude differences are within 9 m/s, and 70 percent of the directional differences are within 15 deg. The comparisons indicate that the ACARS system provides an independent source of wind data that complements other sources of wind data for constructing composite wind field analyses.

Lord, R. J.↗

Forecasting tropical cyclone recurvature with upper tropospheric winds

Data from 17 tropical cyclones during the 1974 through 1979 hurricane seasons are used to investigate whether the high level winds far to the northwest, north and northeast of the hurricane center can be used to predict hurricane track recurvature. When the man 200-mb winds 1500 to 2000 km northwest and north of the storm center equal or exceed 20 m/s, 80 per cent of the storms recurved before traveling as much as 12 degrees of longitude farther west. The high winds were also used to predict change in direction of forward motion during the next 72 hours. The regression equations developed explain up to 41 per cent of the variance in future direction. In addition to the geostrophic winds used, winds were also obtained by tracking clouds with successive satellite imagery. The u-components of the satellite winds are highly correlated with the geostrophic winds at 200-mb and could probably be used instead of them when available. The v-components are less highly correlated.

Gentry, R. C.↗

Evaluation of two January - June 1992 ERS-1 AMI wind vector data sets

A Jan. - Jun. 1992 10 m height wind vector field was computed with the CMOD2 model function. Freilich and Dunbar used ESA measurements of AMI (Active Microwave Instrument) sigma-naught to derive a refined model function and to produce an alternate Jan. - Jun. 1992 10 m height wind vector field, named FD data. The ESA and FD model functions and algorithms were substantially different. The FD wind vectors were in better agreement with the climatological mean wind field and with moored buoy wind measurements. The average correlation coefficients between monthly mean and daily averaged FD and moored buoy matchups of the Cartesian wind components were 0.84 and 0.74, respectively. The average root mean square differences between the monthly mean and daily averaged FD and moored buoy matchups of the Cartesian wind components were 1.25 and 3.0 m/s, respectively.

Halpern, D.↗

Wind Resource Data for Southeast Asia Using a Hybrid Numerical Weather Prediction with Machine Learning Super Resolution Approach

In this work we develop and present a machine learning based downscaling approach using generative adversarial networks (GANs). GANs learn to distinguish the relationships between low-resolution and high-resolution simulations and generate accurate high-resolution output from low-resolution input (Stengel, Glaws, Hettinger, & King, 2020). Low-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) simulations at 9-km spatial and 60-minute temporal resolution were executed over Southeast Asia to provide input to the GANs model. GANs for wind, temperature, and pressure were trained on coarsened WIND Toolkit data with a diverse sampling of terrain and meteorological conditions. After training, the NWP simulations over Southeast Asia were enhanced by 3x along each horizontal spatial dimension and 4x along the temporal dimension. This novel downscaling approach generated 15-year high-resolution wind, temperature, and pressure data from January 2007 through December 2021 at multiple hub heights over Southeast Asia at 3-km spatial and 15-minute temporal resolution with a 16x reduction in compute time over standard dynamical downscaling.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Correaltion of full-scale drag predictions with flight measurements on the C-141A aircraft. Phase 2: Wind tunnel test, analysis, and prediction techniques. Volume 1: Drag predictions, wind tunnel data analysis and correlation

The degree of cruise drag correlation on the C-141A aircraft is determined between predictions based on wind tunnel test data, and flight test results. An analysis of wind tunnel tests on a 0.0275 scale model at Reynolds number up to 3.05 x 1 million/MAC is reported. Model support interference corrections are evaluated through a series of tests, and fully corrected model data are analyzed to provide details on model component interference factors. It is shown that predicted minimum profile drag for the complete configuration agrees within 0.75% of flight test data, using a wind tunnel extrapolation method based on flat plate skin friction and component shape factors. An alternative method of extrapolation, based on computed profile drag from a subsonic viscous theory, results in a prediction four percent lower than flight test data.

Macwilkinson, D. G.↗

Foreshock Langmuir Waves for Unusually Constant Solar Wind Conditions: Data and Implications for Foreshock Structure

Plasma wave data are compared with ISEE 1's position in the electron foreshock for an interval with unusually constant (but otherwise typical) solar wind magnetic field and plasma characteristics. For this period, temporal variations in the wave characteristics can be confidently separated from sweeping of the spatially varying foreshock back and forth across the spacecraft. The spacecraft's location, particularly the coordinate D(sub f) downstream from the foreshock boundary (often termed DIFF), is calculated by using three shock models and the observed solar wind magnetometer and plasma data. Scatterplots of the wave field versus D(sub f) are used to constrain viable shock models, to investigate the observed scatter in the wave fields at constant D(sub f), and to test the theoretical predictions of linear instability theory. The scatterplots confirm the abrupt onset of the foreshock waves near the upstream boundary, the narrow width in D(sub f) of the region with high fields, and the relatively slow falloff of the fields at large D(sub f), as seen in earlier studies, but with much smaller statistical scatter. The plots also show an offset of the high-field region from the foreshock boundary. It is shown that an adaptive, time-varying shock model with no free parameters, determined by the observed solar wind data and published shock crossings, is viable but that two alternative models are not. Foreshock wave studies can therefore remotely constrain the bow shock's location. The observed scatter in wave field at constant D(sub f) is shown to be real and to correspond to real temporal variations, not to unresolved changes in D(sub f). By comparing the wave data with a linear instability theory based on a published model for the electron beam it is found that the theory can account qualitatively and semiquantitatively for the abrupt onset of the waves near D(sub f) = 0, for the narrow width and offset of the high-field region, and for the decrease in wave intensity with increasing D(sub f). Quantitative differences between observations and theory remain, including large overprediction of the wave fields and the slower than predicted falloff at large D(sub f) of the wave fields. These differences, as well as the unresolved issue of the electron beam speed in the high-field region of the foreshock, are discussed. The intrinsic temporal variability of the wave fields, as well as their overprediction based on homogeneous plasma theory, are indicative of stochastic growth physics, which causes wave growth to be random and varying in sign, rather than secular.

Cairns, Iver H.↗

Prediction of Aerodynamic Coefficient using Genetic Algorithm Optimized Neural Network for Sparse Data

Wind tunnels use scale models to characterize aerodynamic coefficients, Wind tunnel testing can be slow and costly due to high personnel overhead and intensive power utilization. Although manual curve fitting can be done, it is highly efficient to use a neural network to define the complex relationship between variables. Numerical simulation of complex vehicles on the wide range of conditions required for flight simulation requires static and dynamic data. Static data at low Mach numbers and angles of attack may be obtained with simpler Euler codes. Static data of stalled vehicles where zones of flow separation are usually present at higher angles of attack require Navier-Stokes simulations which are costly due to the large processing time required to attain convergence. Preliminary dynamic data may be obtained with simpler methods based on correlations and vortex methods; however, accurate prediction of the dynamic coefficients requires complex and costly numerical simulations. A reliable and fast method of predicting complex aerodynamic coefficients for flight simulation I'S presented using a neural network. The training data for the neural network are derived from numerical simulations and wind-tunnel experiments. The aerodynamic coefficients are modeled as functions of the flow characteristics and the control surfaces of the vehicle. The basic coefficients of lift, drag and pitching moment are expressed as functions of angles of attack and Mach number. The modeled and training aerodynamic coefficients show good agreement. This method shows excellent potential for rapid development of aerodynamic models for flight simulation. Genetic Algorithms (GA) are used to optimize a previously built Artificial Neural Network (ANN) that reliably predicts aerodynamic coefficients. Results indicate that the GA provided an efficient method of optimizing the ANN model to predict aerodynamic coefficients. The reliability of the ANN using the GA includes prediction of aerodynamic coefficients to an accuracy of 110% . In our problem, we would like to get an optimized neural network architecture and minimum data set. This has been accomplished within 500 training cycles of a neural network. After removing training pairs (outliers), the GA has produced much better results. The neural network constructed is a feed forward neural network with a back propagation learning mechanism. The main goal has been to free the network design process from constraints of human biases, and to discover better forms of neural network architectures. The automation of the network architecture search by genetic algorithms seems to have been the best way to achieve this goal.

Rajkumar, T.↗

The role of Coulomb collisions in limiting differential flow and temperature differences in the solar wind

Data obtained by OGO 5 are used to confirm IMP 6 observations of an inverse dependence of the helium-to-hydrogen temperature ratio in the solar wind on the ratio of solar-wind expansion time to the Coulomb-collision equipartition time. The analysis is then extended to determine the relation of the difference between the hydrogen and helium bulk velocities (the differential flow vector) with the ratio between the solar-wind expansion time and the time required for Coulomb collisions to slow down a beam of ions passing through a plasma. It is found that the magnitude of the differential flow vector varies inversely with the time ratio when the latter is small and approaches zero when it is large. These results are shown to suggest a model of continuous preferential heating and acceleration of helium (or cooling and deceleration of hydrogen), which is cancelled or limited by Coulomb collisions by the time the plasma has reached 1 AU. Since the average dependence of the differential flow vector on the time ratio cannot explain all the systematic variations of the vector observed in corotating high-velocity streams, it is concluded that additional helium acceleration probably occurs on the leading edge of such streams.

Neugebauer, M.↗

1Hz Lidar Winds / Reviewed Data

This dataset contains 1Hz, motion-corrected wind profiles from the WindCube lidar during the deployment of the DOE WindSentinel buoy near Oahu, Hawaii. The attached Lidar Buoy Data Dictionary provides further details on the various instruments on the buoy, parameters measured by each instrument, and the frequency of data collection.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Computer program for plotting and fairing wind-tunnel data

A detailed description of the Langley computer program PLOTWD which plots and fairs experimental wind-tunnel data is presented. The program was written for use primarily on the Langley CDC computer and CALCOMP plotters. The fundamental operating features of the program are that the input data are read and written to a random-access file for use during program execution, that the data for a selected run can be sorted and edited to delete duplicate points, and that the data can be plotted and faired using tension splines, least-squares polynomial, or least-squares cubic-spline curves. The most noteworthy feature of the program is the simplicity of the user-supplied input requirements. Several subroutines are also included that can be used to draw grid lines, zero lines, axis scale values and lables, and legends. A detailed description of the program operational features and each sub-program are presented. The general application of the program is also discussed together with the input and output for two typical plot types. A listing of the program code, user-guide, and output description are presented in appendices. The program has been in use at Langley for several years and has proven to be both easy to use and versatile.

Morgan, H. L., Jr.↗

Multispacecraft observations of microscale fluctuations in the solar wind

Data from the Explorer 33 and 35 satellites were used to study Alfvenic fluctuations (i.e., fluctuations with a high correlation between perturbation in velocity and magnetic field) in the solar wind. It was found that the average minimum variance method does not give a good estimate of the phase front direction of these fluctuations. There is a distinct class of Alfvenic fluctuations with phase planes nearly parallel to the mean field B sub 0. The characteristic length of the phase fronts of the fluctuations is probably significantly greater than 50 R-E. It is concluded that since tangential discontinuities and possibly other types of static structures appear in Alfvenic fluctuations, these fluctuations are not solely Alfven waves.

Denskat, K. U.↗

Method of Correcting Wind Tunnel Data for Omitted Parts of Airplane Models

Wind tunnel models do not have complete similarity to the full scale airplane. Part of the dissimilarity is due to the difference between the stationary model in the artificial wind stream of the tunnel and the moving airplane in still air. There are a number of other reasons for departing from exact geometrical similitude. For reasons of accuracy and economy, all minor parts of the full scale airplane, such as struts, wires, fittings, control horns and other parts whose scale corrections are large are removed from wind tunnel models. By omitting the minor parts of the airplane in the wind tunnel model and adding to the forces and moments of the model those omitted parts measured full scale and properly reduced, the scale effects of such parts disappear from the model data. Scale effects due to major parts of the airplane, particularly the fuselage and wings, can be corrected by omitting the propeller and making the surface of the model as smooth as possible, two further departures from geometrical similitude between model and full scale that add considerably to the accuracy and economy of model tests.

Smith, R H↗

Space shuttle: Pressure investigation of a space shuttle launch configuration consisting of a delta-wing orbiter and a swept-wing booster with canard and tip fans (M equals 0.6 to 1.3). Volume 1, part A: Booster data

Wind tunnel tests to determine the pressure distribution on a space shuttle launch configuration consisting of a delta wing orbiter and a swept wing booster with canard and tip fins were conducted. Pressure data were obtained for the combined orbiter and booster and for the booster alone at Mach numbers from 0.6 to 1.3, angles of attack from minus 8 degrees to plus 10 degrees, and sideslip angles from minus 6 degrees to plus 6 degrees. Pressure data were also obtained for the booster alone without canard at Mach numbers of 0.9 and 1.1. The pressure taps were distributed primarily over the booster upper surface and the orbiter lower surface.

Rampy, J. M.↗