Currently, the wind on site is southwesterly with wind speeds averaging around 4-5m/s and fairly high turbulence intensities; currently 50% at the surface and 30% at 120m.

SREF still showing westerly winds with a southerly component around 11am becoming more westerly by around 2pm. Friday shows southwesterly winds shifting southerly in the afternoon.

The EURO is showing westerly winds by around 11am with southerly winds much of Friday.

The NAM shows westerly winds this morning and into the afternoon. Wind speeds look around 6-9m/s for much of the afternoon. Southerly winds on Friday.

Southwesterly winds today.

Westerly winds on Thursday with a slight southerly component in the morning. Wind speeds tomorrow afternoon may increase a little from today, so maybe around 5-8m/s.  Note that the NWS meteogram is showing gusts on Thursday afternoon, though in the past the meteogram has been not so useful…

Southwesterly flow on Friday morning becoming more southerly in the afternoon and southeasterly by evening. 

Fast, southwesterly winds today. Northwesterly flow late this afternoon will quickly become upslope. Southwesterly winds on Wednesday. High wind speeds will persist into through Wednesday into Thursday morning. Southwesterly winds on Thursday morning becoming more westerly on Thursday afternoon with a slight southerly component at times. Thursday afternoon should bring much slower wind speeds; probably ranging somewhere around 3-5m/s. Southerly flow on Friday into Saturday.  

Light, east-northeasterly winds today. Southerly winds on Friday with upslope flow in the afternoon. Possibility for northwesterly winds on Saturday morning shifting southwesterly in the afternoon.  Light, northwesterly flow on Sunday morning possibly becoming more southwesterly in the afternoon. Monday and Tuesday of next week we will see northwesterly winds becoming more westerly on Wednesday. 

Northwesterly winds this morning becoming more northerly this afternoon. Southwesterly winds on Wednesday becoming more southerly in the afternoon with upslope winds in the late afternoon. We may see some northwesterly winds in the early morning on Thursday, but winds will shift southeasterly by around noon. Southeasterly winds on Friday. Southerly winds on Saturday. We may see northwesterly winds on Sunday and Monday of next week.

SREF shows westerly winds on Tuesday becoming more northwesterly around 2pm. Slower wind speeds on Tuesday, probably around 3-6m/s. Southwesterly winds on Wednesday shifting more southerly around noon and then upslope winds in the afternoon. By Thursday we should see a more northeasterly flow and this will continue into Friday.  Winds will shift more westerly on Saturday and northwesterly on Sunday.

Synoptics:

Winds aloft will be northwesterly early Monday morning shifting northerly by midday and northwesterly flow again on Tuesday. A small trough will pass through the area overnight tonight which will increase turbulence that will decrease on Monday morning.

Models:

SREF: 15Z SREF run shows westerly hub height winds in the early morning becoming more southerly by 11am and into much of Tuesday.  It is important to note that models have previously been a few hours late in direction shifts for the wind site.

NAM: NAM via Bufkit is suggesting high surface westerly wind speeds on Monday morning, decreasing and becoming more southwesterly around noon. Wind speeds should look similar tomorrow morning to what we are seeing today; averaging around 8-9m/s. Bufkit is also showing westerly winds at about 5-7m/s on Tuesday morning becoming more northwesterly in the afternoon and slowing down to around 3-5m/s.

ECMWF: European model showing southwesterly winds on Monday morning continuing into early Tuesday morning. Northwesterly flow will return around 12z on Tuesday and continue for much of the day.

Remainder of the week:

Southwesterly flow on Wednesday. On Thursday we should see northeasterly flow continuing into Friday. We may see northwesterly flow again next Saturday.

Southeasterly winds this afternoon continuing into tomorrow. By tomorrow around noon, wind speeds will increase and become more northerly. Winds will become more northwesterly on Saturday night. Chance for a few inches of snow Saturday night into Sunday as a strong cold front moves through.  By Sunday, high pressure will make its way back into the area, and we should see north-northwesterly flow.  Northwesterly flow on Monday and Tuesday. Northerly winds on Wednesday and Thursday.

Easterly flow much of the afternoon today continuing into Friday morning. Around noon of Friday, winds will shift more southeasterly and will continue to become more southerly in the late afternoon and evening. Southwesterly flow on Saturday morning becoming more west-southwesterly and stronger by Saturday afternoon.  Chance of snow in Saturday night into Sunday morning. On Sunday we will see a more northerly flow.  Northwesterly winds should return on Monday morning possibly becoming more westerly by noon and into the afternoon. Tuesday will be similar with northwesterly flow in the morning becoming more westerly in the afternoon.  We may see a more southerly flow on Wednesday.

Northerly flow on Thursday morning shifting more easterly by midday.  Flow will remain upslope for most  of Thursday afternoon and evening.  Southeasterly flow on Friday morning which may become more southerly by the afternoon and overnight. We will see a more southwesterly flow on Saturday with an increase in wind speeds around noon.  There will be a more northeasterly flow on Sunday continuing into early Monday morning of next week.  Chance for snow Saturday night into Sunday. By late Monday morning we may see a more northwesterly flow again which may continue into Tuesday. 

Northwesterly flow on Monday morning. May become more westerly in the afternoon as there will be an area of converging air directly to our east, however the chance for more wave clouds in the afternoon could mean a more northeasterly flow. Light winds on Monday ranging somewhere around 3-6m/s; increasing slightly in the afternoon.

Westerly flow on Tuesday morning becoming more northwesterly on Tuesday afternoon, though there is a chance for upslope flow on Tuesday afternoon as well. Light winds forecasted for most of Tuesday and NWS predicting some turbulence. Winds will become more west-southwesterly on Wednesday and more northwesterly again on Thursday. Southwesterly flow on Friday.

Light southerly winds on Saturday becoming stronger and more northwesterly on Sunday.  Light northerly winds on Monday continuing into Tuesday. A cold front will pass through overnight Monday into Tuesday bringing cooler temperatures. Winds will become more northwesterly on Wednesday.  North-northeasterly flow on Thursday becoming more easterly Thursday afternoon.

Northwesterly winds on Wednesday with predicted wind speeds similar to those predicted for today ; so most likely will be somewhere between 3-5m/s.  Winds may shift more southwesterly late Wednesday afternoon. Winds will become more north-northwesterly on Thursday morning. Winds will shift more west-southwesterly on Thursday afternoon.  On Friday we will see a more northerly flow becoming more north-northeasterly overnight into Saturday.

Data Directory

LIDAR data for the WLS7-68 (CU windcube) is in this directory:
/data/fielddata/TODS/WC68

LIDAR data for the 100S system is in this directory:
/data/fielddata/TODS/100S/Data

There is also more general information in the /data/fielddata/TODS directory.

Easterly winds throughout much of the day today. Another chance for snow showers tonight into early Friday morning.  East-northeasterly flow on Friday as high pressure dominates much of the U.S. More southerly flow on Saturday morning becoming more easterly on Saturday afternoon and east-northeasterly by Sunday morning.  Flow will become southerly again by Sunday afternoon into Monday. We should see northwesterly flow on Tuesday and Wednesday.   

Northeasterly flow much of today.  Wind speeds aloft will increase overnight and become more north-north-northwesterly on Thursday morning as the cold front passes through the area. Following the front, wind speeds aloft will decrease again and winds will become more northerly. Expect precip Wednesday night into Thursday; most likely be in the form of snow.  Northeasterly flow on Friday shifting more southerly in the afternoon. There is a chance for more snow in Friday morning. Southerly flow on Saturday and Sunday becoming more northwesterly on Monday.  

Light southwesterly winds this afternoon.  Winds will become more westerly on Wednesday morning shifting northerly and increasing in speed on Wednesday afternoon.  Cold front to pass through the area early Thursday morning bringing strong northwesterly winds and snow.  High pressure will dominate aloft throughout much of the U.S. on Friday causing a more pronounced meridional flow and light northeasterly  winds in the area.  Winds will shift more southerly on Saturday morning continuing into Sunday. 

Southeasterly flow much of the day today. Northwesterly flow on Tuesday morning becoming more southwesterly in the afternoon. Westerly wind on Wednesday becoming more northwesterly as the day goes on. Strong cold front to move through early on Thursday bringing a chance for snow (especially around noon) and strong north-northwesterly flow.  Strong meridional flow over much of the U.S. on Friday which should bring southerly winds for the area and these winds will continue into Saturday. 

Northwesterly flow this afternoon. Northwesterly flow much of Saturday becoming more southwesterly into Sunday. Southwesterly flow on Monday becoming more westerly on Tuesday. Low pressure will dominate much of the U.S. on Tuesday into Wednesday. The low pressure will strengthen on Wednesday morning bringing strong northwesterly flow on Wednesday afternoon. On Thursday, high pressure will move back into the area bringing more northerly flow.

Westerly flow throughout today. Winds expected to continue to be fast until this evening. Expect gusts as well. Note to self: biking uphill against a westerly wind blowing at 10-12m/s is a workout.

Thursday will bring northwesterly flow shifting more westerly on Friday and into Saturday as high pressure makes its way into the western half of the U.S.  On Sunday the winds will start out northwesterly and then will shift more southerly in the afternoon as strong low pressure sits to our north. Cold front will pass through early Monday morning and northwesterly flow may follow. 

Northeasterly flow throughout much of today shifting northwesterly and light on Wednesday as high pressure moves in from our north. Zonal flow aloft on Thursday, though low pressure will begin to build off the California coast which may bring a more easterly flow on Thursday becoming more southeasterly on Friday. On Saturday a surface low will move in from Canada bringing a northerly wind with some colder air. On Sunday that low pressure will move towards the upper mid-west, which leaves us with a north-northwesterly wind. 

Southerly flow throughout the rest of the day today.

Westerly flow on Monday. 12 run of the NAM is showing only a slight decrease in wind speeds in the morning tomorrow. Wind speeds at 200m at about 10am are modeled to range from 3-5m/s, and modeled wind speeds seem to be consistently underestimated. I would put actual wind speeds around 4-8 m/s. Bufkit is showing the boundary layer height to grow to 8.5km by midafternoon, which is unreasonably high and clearly an error, but verifications show that this is usually a sign of a fairly large amount of convective instability (which leads to vertical motion) that reaches fairly high up. I would guess it should be fairly turbulent on site tomorrow, especially by 2 or 3 in the afternoon.

Southeasterly flow on Tuesday as strong low pressure centered around Wisconsin and Minnesota reaches down to New Mexico. Cold front may sweep through the area on Tuesday afternoon which should bring more cold air from Canada. On Wednesday morning high pressure will make its way back into the area with a more southerly flow turning more southwesterly in the afternoon with very light wind speeds.  Northeasterly flow on Thursday shifting to southeasterly on Friday as high pressure dominates much of the U.S. On Saturday low pressure will move into the area again which should bring faster northwesterly flow.  

Northeasterly flow throughout the day today and into Saturday. Wind speeds will increase tonight into Saturday midday. Expect some precip, especially tonight into Saturday morning. South-southeasterly flow on Sunday.

There is a chance for northwesterly flow again on Monday as high pressure moves into the area. Wind speeds will increase in the morning and decrease by noon. Tight boundary layer indicates very little turbulence. There is a cold front stretching from Canada to sweep across the northern U.S. around noon on Monday, though right now the models are showing that the cold front will not reach us.

Winds on Tuesday will begin as northwesterly, though it’s looking like the winds might shift to northeasterly around noon. Southeasterly flow on Wednesday becoming northwesterly again on Thursday.  

Easterly flow on Friday with fairly strong wind speeds after noon.

Another cold front will pass through the area on Friday which will bring some chance of precip behind it on Saturday morning and onto around midday. Wind flow on Saturday will then continue to be east-northeasterly which will then turn southerly overnight into Sunday as high pressure sweeps from our northwest to our southeast.

High pressure will stick around through Sunday into Monday bringing southwesterly flow, however, early Monday morning another area of high pressure will move into central Colorado which should bring more northwesterly flow. This northwesterly flow may continue into Tuesday, however, winds will shift more northerly on Tuesday afternoon as low pressure builds. Winds should continue to become more north-northwesterly on Wednesday and into Thursday. 

Very strong east-northeasterly winds overnight tonight with wind speeds decreasing into Thursday. Northeasterly winds throughout Thursday as level low pressure builds to our southwest. Winds will become more northeasterly into Friday as the low pressure moves south.

Wind speeds will increase again on Friday evening as another cold front moves through the area which may bring some precipitation. Temperatures may be cold enough on Friday night into Saturday morning for some light snow. Regardless of the type of precip however, winds will continue to be northeasterly on Saturday turning more southerly on Sunday as high pressure sits to our southeast.

According to surface forecasts, on Monday northwesterly flow will return and on Tuesday the flow will be northerly with a chance of a westerly component. 

Northwesterly wind today will decrease in speed this afternoon. West northwesterly flow tonight with faster wind speeds.

Westerly flow on Wednesday as a trough sweeps to our east. Wind speeds will most likely be faster on Wednesday as the pressure gradient starts to increase. Chance for some light precipitation on Wednesday night.

More easterly flow on Thursday with increasing wind speeds in the morning as the pressure gradient increases. Northwesterly flow again on Friday with some remnant faster wind speeds as the pressure gradient starts to decrease slightly. On Saturday we may have a more easterly flow as high pressure sits to our north and low pressure to our southwest. A chance for northwesterly flow will return on Sunday and Monday.

*Note: the real-time M2 tower data stopped collecting at 7:02 am this morning. 

Northeasterly flow today with speeds between 2-5m/s.

Northwesterly flow tomorrow with higher wind speeds ranging from about 2-7m/s from about 10am-4pm. Wind speeds will then decrease to about 2-4m/s. The boundary layer tomorrow will be fairly deep, so turbulent eddies are possible especially around 1-3pm.

On Wednesday, a strong low pressure system will have passed through overnight and by early morning will be to our east. This may result in a more westerly flow on Wednesday. Strong easterly winds on Thursday. On Friday, northwesterly flow will dominate and may become more northerly on Saturday and more westerly again on Sunday. 

Winds speeds will decrease overnight and we will see a northerly wind on Monday morning, turning more northeasterly around midday as high pressure aloft builds to our north. Upslope winds due to heating as the as the boundary layer deepens will also influence a more northeasterly flow.

On Tuesday the winds will turn northwesterly with speeds ranging from about 2-6 m/s. Winds will turn more westerly and hit peak speeds in the afternoon as a strong low builds in directly to our north in Canada. 

Wind speeds will pick up again on Wednesday and Thursday as the pressure gradient increases. Because the pressure gradient is so large, it will most likely dominate the wind flow in the area and will be more northerly with a chance of an easterly component. Chance of precipitation on Wednesday night. On Friday the wind speeds will decrease again and northerly flow will continue and turn more westerly on Saturday.

A strong closed low aloft in the northeast will cause more northerly flow today, however heating this afternoon may shift the winds more easterly due to upslope. Northwesterly flow much of the weekend as high pressure moves into the area, turning more northerly by Monday. Dry air aloft will move back into the area early next week. Surface forecasts for early next week show high pressure lingering over central Colorado which should result in northwesterly flow on Tuesday turning more westerly on Wednesday as a cold front builds to our north. Because of the fronts passing to our north on Wednesday and Thursday, I suspect winds to pick up, but I will be able to better forecast wind speeds for next week by Sunday.

Chance for rain today with increasing chance of thunderstorms late this afternoon.  Flow will continue to be northerly and light today. Rain will clear out by Friday. Winds will become more westerly on Friday and speeds around hub height will continue to average around 2 m/s.  On Saturday the winds will increase slightly and will have a southerly component.  On Sunday the NAM is showing a southwesterly wind component with wind speeds around hub height increasing up to about 8m/ in the morning until about midday.  On Monday high pressure dominates aloft and dry air will move back into the area. Winds will be weak and be more northerly until Tuesday when they will become more northwesterly.  The northwesterly flow should continue into Wednesday.

Chance of light showers today and through tonight. Will clear up tomorrow morning but there is another chance for some light rain tomorrow afternoon.  Note: we should watch this when out in the field tomorrow. Northwesterly flow will dominate much of today turning more westerly and calm tomorrow.  On Wednesday night into Thursday, the winds will become more southeasterly due to pressure channeling as high pressure aloft moves to our east. Northwesterly flow will come back on Friday, but the winds will turn more northerly over the weekend. There is a chance for afternoon thunderstorms the rest of the week and into the weekend. 

Pocket of moisture moving through the U.S. from the Pacific will stick around for much of the week bringing the chance of precipitation. The rain will seem to clear out early Wednesday morning, but will most likely come back mid-afternoon. Thursday will be clear, and a chance of rain again on Friday.

West and northwest flow for today and most likely for the rest of the week as a surface high hovers right over us until the end of the week. This high seems to be trying to dissipate the pocket of moisture as it comes right towards the area, but the air aloft will still pick up some of the moisture, giving us the chance for light rain in the morning and thunderstorms in the afternoon and overnight.

Northerly flow today and through most of the weekend.  This will become more northwesterly Sunday night into Monday.  Chance of showers late Monday into Tuesday and late Tuesday into Wednesday as moisture moves into the area.  There will be westerly flow most of Tuesday becoming more northwesterly by Wednesday. Wednesday night into Thursday the winds will become more easterly as the moisture and low pressure move to our southeast. 

Northerly flow aloft on Friday becoming more northwesterly on Saturday morning as the closed low in Canada continues to slowly move east. Winds will become more easterly on Sunday morning due to a surface low to our northwest.  Monday, Tuesday and into Wednesday, there will be a more northwesterly flow. 

Skew-t from Denver this morning shows west-northwesterly flow and fairly dry air aloft. Northwesterly flow aloft as the trough moving towards the northeast continues to deepen. A closed low near the Canadian border will circulate most of today, Thursday and Friday slowly moving east. This may bring some southwesterly flow becoming more northwesterly as the low moves east and strong high pressure moves in behind it on Saturday and into Sunday.  Next week is looking like it will provide us will some westerly flow aloft and a possibility of some showers Monday night into Tuesday as moisture moves into the area. There is a small disturbance early Wednesday morning which may cause some showers and northeasterly flow. 

Northwesterly flow Wednesday into early Thursday. Synoptics at the surface suggest a more northeasterly flow Thursday afternoon into Friday. Northerly flow on Friday. Wind speeds should increase slightly on Wednesday and Thursday afternoon but other than that they should stay slightly above cut-in speed.

Schedule of activities for this week

Thanks everyone for your hard work today! We are getting closer to lift off.

Tuesday afternoon, Clara, Mike, and Ludovic will finish inflating both blimps, starting ~ 1:30pm.

Thursday afternoon, 12:30pm, we will meet Mike S. and J.vD. to walk through the process of removing the blimps from their house, walking them out to the winches, attaching the payloads, and making a short (low-level) flight. Depending on how things go, we will then identify other areas for practice or we will schedule the Readiness Verification test for early next week. Fingers crossed for good weather!

Please let me know if you have questions or concerns.

Northeasterly flow for much of today due to surface low pressure to our southeast. A trough aloft (rhymes haha) will pass through the area around midday today, bringing a northwesterly flow tonight into tomorrow, which will become west-northwesterly Tuesday morning as the trough deepens and continues to move further east. There is some uncertainty as to whether this west-northwesterly flow will continue onto Wednesday and Thursday as a cold front will move through around mid-day on Wednesday and some low pressure may be moving into the area shortly after, but I will keep a close watch on this. Wind speeds will most likely hover around cut-in speed or slightly above. 

High pressure at the surface and aloft. Air aloft remains fairly dry which is especially apparent in the skew-T from Denver this morning.  By Saturday morning, a surface high will be to our southeast which should bring southwesterly flow.  It looks like a very weak cold front will come down from the north directly to our east Saturday around midday which will maintain the southwesterly flow.  A stronger cold front associated with a low in Canada will pass through late Sunday or early Monday.  Once this cold front passes there will be a chance for northwesterly flow, but the 12Z runs of the NAM and GFS show a surface high to our north and a surface low to our south which suggests northeasterly flow. The low pressure will move out on Tuesday and flow will be northwesterly as a trough deepens through the upper Midwest.  This will continue through most of Tuesday, and by Tuesday night the deepened trough will have moved more towards the northeast, giving us the chance for west-northwesterly flow. Slight chance for scattered showers late Monday into Tuesday.

Winds will continue to come from the south today, with either a west or east component depending on the location of the surface high to our east. On Friday the winds will be southwesterly and this will continue through Sunday. Sunday night a weak cold front in the trough of a surface low will pass but there will be no precipitation as the air aloft will be dry. On Monday, winds will shift to northwesterly due to the trough deepening and moving to our east.

Southeasterly flow to continue through today as well as precipitation. Precipitation will move out by tonight. Winds will turn more southerly with a westerly component early Thursday morning and throughout most of the day. On Friday, winds will continue to be southwesterly as there will be a surface high to our southeast. Winds will continue to be southwest shifting more westerly through Saturday and speeds will increase late Friday and most of the day on Saturday. 

Southerly flow with an easterly component because of a surface low directly to our east to continue today with precipitation starting later today into Wednesday. Once the cold front passes through the area sometime overnight tonight, flow will become northwesterly with continued rain showers as the air aloft will be moist.  Northwesterly flow to continue into Thursday.

Flow aloft today will be westerly with an occasional southerly component that will continue through Wednesday. Chance of precipitation during early afternoon on Tuesday that will continue through Wednesday night. The air aloft will continue to be fairly moist on Thursday and high pressure to our north will most likely result in northwesterly flow. Stay tuned.

No west-northwesterly winds forecasted for the next 2-4 days.

Chance of showers today as moisture behind the cold front moves into the area. Winds looking to be northwesterly (though surface winds may vary) as the trough that passed over us last night deepens to our east and high pressure moves in. Easterly winds on Saturday due to an approaching ridge. The ridge will pass through early Sunday morning with southwesterly winds.  Monday and Tuesday of next week will bring southwesterly flow as another trough builds to our northwest.

North and northwesterly winds to continue through most of the day today.  A cold front along with northwest winds will move through early Friday morning with some moisture behind it which will bring a slight chance for some scattered showers around mid-day and through the night. Expect northwest winds to continue through Sunday as high pressure moves into the area.

Surface low pressure to our south will result in south-easterly flow today. Zonal flow is weaker today as a surface low in Canada develops and the troughs deepen, however, zonal flow looking to continue through Thursday night which will result in westerly flow aloft. A cold front, now looking stronger than before, will pass through the area on Friday morning, bringing northwesterly winds with it. Though there is still little chance of precipitation Friday morning due to the dry air mass, some moist air will move in behind the cold front bringing a chance for showers Friday night into Saturday morning.  Northwesterly winds will continue on Saturday.

Note* like Julie stated in her comment yesterday, there is testing going on at the site this week that will take precedence. 

Westerly flow aloft due to fairly zonal flow until Friday afternoon. This will result in westerly winds today shifting to northwesterly winds this afternoon. A weak cold front will pass through to our north tonight, though this most likely will not result in any precipitation as it will be dry.  Westerly flow will dominate at least through Friday morning because of zonal flow with occasional west-northwesterly flow on Thursday around mid-day due to a shortwave or small trough that will move through the area.  Also note that this shortwave will most likely not cause precipitation as it is still fairly dry aloft.

Welcome to the Turbine Outflow Dissipation Study (TODS) blog site. Here we will be sharing information relevant to TODS and to the Nacelle Transfer Function Study also taking place at the same location this fall.

Here we will be monitoring weather conditions, keeping in mind that the tethered lifting system (TLS) flights will only occur during west-northwesterly flow conditions. At this point (27 August), the TLS instruments are not yet deployed to the NWTC. We anticipate that will happen in the next week or so. Check for updates here.