Measurement tower
A measurement tower or measurement mast, also known as meteorological tower or meteorological mast (met tower or met mast), is a free standing tower or a removed mast, which carries measuring instruments with meteorological instruments, such as thermometers and instruments to measure wind speed. Measurement towers are an essential component of rocket launching sites, since one must know exact wind conditions for an execution of a rocket launch. Met masts are crucial in the development of wind farms, as precise knowledge of the wind speed is necessary to know how much energy will be produced, and whether the turbines will survive on the site. Measurement towers are also used in other contexts, for instance near nuclear power stations, and by ASOS stations.
Examples
Meteorology
| Structure | City or region | Country | Height (metres) | Year built | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Tall Tower Observatory | Vila de Balbina | File:Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil | 325 | 2015 | [1] |
| IAP Meteorological Tower | Beijing | File:Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China | 325 | 1979 | for meteorological measurements, studies of air pollution and studies of the atmospheric boundary layer |
| Obninsk Meteorological tower | Obninsk | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | 310 | 1958 | for meteorological and radioactivity measurements |
| Zotino Tall Tower Observation Facility | Zotino | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | 302 | for measurements of meteorological variables and of concentration of greenhouse gases and aerosols | |
| KNMI-mast Cabauw | Cabauw | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | 213 | 1972 | for meteorological research |
| Jaslovské Bohunice Meteorological Tower | Jaslovské Bohunice | File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia | 212 | 1986 | [2] |
| Meteorological tower of Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe | Karlsruhe | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 200 | 1972 | |
| Rödeser Berg Meteorological Mast | Wolfshagen | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 200 | 2011 | |
| KFU-Tower Gundremmingen | Gundremmingen | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 174 | 1978 | |
| KFU-Mast Grafenrheinfeld | Grafenrheinfeld | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 164 | 1978 | for the measurement of meteorological parameters and environmental radioactivity |
| Mast of Richard Assmann Observatory | Falkenberg | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 99 | 1998 | |
| Mast of Asbach | Obrigheim | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | dismantled | ||
| Oskar-von-Miller-Tower | Garching | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 62 | 2010 | |
| Mast of Dukovany Nuclear Power Station | Dukovany | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | |||
| Košetice Meteorological Tower | Košetice | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | 250 | 2012 | [3] |
| Hegyhátsál TV Tower | Hegyhátsál | File:Flag of Hungary.svg Hungary | 117 | transmission tower equipped with instruments for the measurement of meteorological parameters and carbon dioxide concentration | |
| Norunda tower | Uppsala County | File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden | 103 | [4] | |
| Puijo tower | Kuopio | File:Flag of Finland.svg Finland | 75 | 1963 | |
| NAVO-Toren | Veurne | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | 243 | [5] |
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Other measurement towers
- Aerial test facility Brück, Brück, Germany
- BREN Tower, Nevada Test Site, USA
Wind farm development
Before developers construct a wind farm, they first measure the wind resource on a prospective site by erecting temporary measurement towers. Typically these mount anemometers at a range of heights up to the hub height of the proposed wind turbines, and log the wind speed data at frequent intervals (e.g. every ten minutes)[6] for at least one year and preferably two or more. The data allow the developer to determine if the site is economically viable for a wind farm, and to choose wind turbines optimized for the local wind speed distribution.
See also
References
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