Tropical Cyclone Boundary Layer Wind Profile Variability
Principle Investigator: Mark Powell
Co-Investigators:
Dr. Richard Marshall, WindResearch Services, Poolesville,
MD
Dr. Tim Reinhold, Clemson University, Clemson, SC
Sponsor: HRD
The design of buildings and other structures in tropical cyclone
prone areas must consider fundamental estimates of design wind
speeds, the variation of wind loads with height, and local
effects due to accelerated flow. Until recently, very few wind
profile observations were available to provide the basis for
vertical wind load variation in tropical cyclones. Major
considerations that require investigation include:
- What is the mean wind profile in the lowest 500 m of a
tropical cyclone and how much does it vary as the mean wind
speed changes?
- Are observed multiple low-level wind maxima in hurricanes
localized effects which are already adequately covered by the
safety factors used in design?
- Are these features common to all hurricanes or only the most
intense?
- Are gust factors in tropical cyclones similar to
those found in mid-latitude systems with similar exposures?
The past 3 years of GPS sonde field measurements have provided a
preliminary statistical basis to help answer these questions.
While exploring these questions we also assess the ability of
similarity theory based models to estimate surface winds and
fluxes from mean boundary layer quantities.
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