Prospecting for Meteorological Energy in Hawaii

Hawaii, with no indigenous fossil fuel resources, is particularly susceptible to oil shortages; hence, surveys have been underway for some time to evaluate the potential of wind and insolation as alternate energy sources. Since numerical modeling of the wind field is inadequate, we have been using f...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 1979-05, Vol.60 (5), p.430-438
Main Author: Ramage, C. S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anemometers
Average speed
Energy
Insolation
Meteorology
Trade winds
Wind
Wind generators
Wind power
Wind velocity
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Hawaii, with no indigenous fossil fuel resources, is particularly susceptible to oil shortages; hence, surveys have been underway for some time to evaluate the potential of wind and insolation as alternate energy sources. Since numerical modeling of the wind field is inadequate, we have been using fixed and mobile stations to monitor the wind distribution, finding that on parts of each of the main islands average speeds are more than adequate for economic power generation. A radiometer network on Oahu and scattered measurements elsewhere reveal that over most areas sheltered from the trade winds, insolation is as high as anywhere in the continental United States. We are using cloudiness data from weather satellites to refine the insolation maps. On recent field programs, we measured wind, insolation, temperature, humidity, and rainfall, aiming at improving our understanding of physical processes and at developing methods of wind and insolation forecasting.
ISSN:0003-0007
1520-0477
DOI:10.1175/1520-0477(1979)060<0432:PFMEIH>2.0.CO;2