Open AccessPerformance and aviation applications of minisodars at H ong K ong I nternational A irport
Author(s) -
Chan P. W.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
meteorological applications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 59
eISSN - 1469-8080
pISSN - 1350-4827
DOI - 10.1002/met.1388
Subject(s) - aviation , lidar , terrain , remote sensing , geography , engineering , aerospace engineering , cartography
The performance and aviation application of minisodars at H ong K ong I nternational A irport are discussed in this paper. There are two minisodars at the airport and they have been in use for more than 2 years. The data availability at various measurement heights shows that the minisodars in general provide reasonably good coverage for aviation applications. The minisodar's wind data compare well with other measurements, including the anemometer data and LIDAR (light detection and ranging) data. The applications of minisodar data are then described. They are found to provide useful indications of low‐level windshear, mechanical turbulence associated with complex terrain, and downburst associated with a thunderstorm. Through these case studies, the minisodars are found to provide good supplementary data to other remote sensing meteorological instruments, such as LIDAR and radar, in the monitoring of low‐level wind changes that may be encountered by the aircraft.