FAS Abstracts 2004 Meeting Page

Atmospheric & Oceanographic Sciences (AOS): AOS-10

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Evaluation of coastal Florida wind energy: A detailed examination of Kennedy Space Center tower data. J.L.  BEWLEY and S.M. LAZARUS. Dept. of Marine and Environmental Systems. Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL 32901. This study is designed to quantify the available wind power at commercial turbine hub heights (295 ft, 394 ft, and 492 ft) from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) wind tower data.  7 years of data (1995-2001) from towers #3131 and #0511 in the KSC/Cape Canaveral Air Force Station wind tower network were used to produce monthly and diurnal statistics. At each level, 5-minute average wind speeds and directions for each month were analyzed and binned as a function of average wind speed, and as a function of direction to produce probability distribution functions. The 5-min. average wind speeds were also used to reproduce the monthly diurnal trends, as well as the diurnal trends for wind power. Preliminary (winter) results indicate average 492 ft. wind speeds (power) peak during the night with a mid morning minimum.