Journal article
Hydrologic Implications of Wind Farm Effect on Radar‐Rainfall Observations
Geophysical research letters, Vol.47(15), e2020GL089188
08/16/2020
DOI: 10.1029/2020GL089188
Abstract
Despite efforts to detect and mitigate wind farm clutter in weather radar observations of rainfall, these signatures propagate to quantitative precipitation estimates. In this study, the authors investigate the hydrologic impact of wind farm clutter in the Multi‐Radar Multi‐Sensor rainfall products. The study uses the probability of detection method to identify wind farm clutter in data from Iowa for the years 2016 and 2017. Using the physically based distributed hydrologic model called the Hillslope‐Link Model, the authors show that streamflow (flood) prediction errors are generally significant at smaller basin communities where wind farms occupy a large portion of the upstream basins. These errors due to wind farm clutter show systematic decrease with the basin scales. The results from this study have implications for real‐time streamflow forecasts provided automatically by the National Water Model at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, particularly at small riverine communities.
Plain Language Summary
Wind farms corrupt radar‐rainfall estimates used for flood forecasting. Erroneous streamflow forecasts affect small communities where wind farms occupy a large portion of the upstream basins. The effect is difficult to detect at larger scales typically monitored by the USGS streamflow gauging network as the wind farms occupy a small fraction of the basins at those scales.
Key Points
Impact of wind farm clutter on streamflow predictions is higher at communities where wind farms cover a large portion of the upstream basins
Detection of wind farm effect is difficult at the USGS‐monitored basin scales as they occupy a small fraction of the drainage area
Wind farm effect on streamflow predictions shows systematic decrease with increasing basin scales
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Hydrologic Implications of Wind Farm Effect on Radar‐Rainfall Observations
- Creators
- Ganesh R Ghimire - University of IowaWitold F Krajewski - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Geophysical research letters, Vol.47(15), e2020GL089188
- DOI
- 10.1029/2020GL089188
- ISSN
- 0094-8276
- eISSN
- 1944-8007
- Number of pages
- 10
- Grant note
- Iowa Flood Center
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 08/16/2020
- Academic Unit
- IIHR--Hydroscience and Engineering; Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984197333102771
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