The Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems (IWES) has commenced operations of a new dual Doppler wind radar system designed to provide rapid, three-dimensional measurements of wind fields. The system, aimed at advancing wind energy research and optimizing wind farm performance, began collecting data in early June near the DLR research wind farm WiValdi in Lower Saxony.
Developed by Texas-based SmartWind Technologies, the radar system consists of two synchronized units and is capable of capturing several million data points every two minutes. It covers more than 1,000 square kilometers with a range of up to 35 kilometers and extends vertically through the rotor sweep into the lower atmosphere.
“This brings us a big step closer to achieving climate targets and an independent energy supply,” said Jan Diettrich, project manager of the Wind Farm RADAR project at Fraunhofer IWES.
The initiative is part of the Wind Farm RADAR project, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. Scientific validation of the system is being conducted by Fraunhofer IWES in cooperation with ForWind – Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg.
According to Fraunhofer IWES, the radar system can support both the planning and operational stages of wind farms, offering data critical to site assessment, turbine performance evaluation, and investment risk reduction. The dual Doppler method involves radar dishes emitting electromagnetic pulses, which reflect off particles in the air. The reflected signals from both stations are then merged to reconstruct wind speeds and directions in three dimensions.
“The dual Doppler wind radar system marks a significant advance in wind energy research,” said Martin Kühn from ForWind. “The project enables us to validate the measurement data and use the findings to create new possibilities for optimising wind farms.
Following the initial deployment in Germany, an offshore measurement campaign is scheduled to take place in England.
