Harvested by advanced technical systems honed over decades of research and development, wind energy has become a mainstream energy resource. However, continued innovation is needed to realize the potential of wind to serve the global demand for clean energy. Here, we outline three interdependent, cross-disciplinary grand challenges underpinning this research endeavor. The first is the need for a deeper understanding of the physics of atmospheric flow in the critical zone of plant operation. The second involves science and engineering of the largest dynamic, rotating machines in the world. The third encompasses optimization and control of fleets of wind plants working synergistically within the electricity grid. Addressing these challenges could enable wind power to provide as much as half of our global electricity needs and perhaps beyond.

Measurements of the mean and turbulent structure of the planetary boundary layer using a sodar and a sonic anemometer, and radiative measurements using a radiometer, were carried out in the summer of 1999-2000 at the Antarctic plateau station of Dome C during a two-month period. At Dome C strong ground-based inversions dominate for most of the year. However, in spite of the low surface temperatures (between )50 and )20°C), and the surface always covered by snow and ice, a regular daytime boundary-layer evolution, similar to that observed at mid-latitudes, was observed during summertime. The mixed-layer height generally reaches 200-300 m at 1300-1400 LST in high summer (late December, early January); late in the summer (end of January to February), as the solar elevation decreases, it reduces to 100-200 m. A comparison between the mixed-layer height estimated from sodar measurements and that calculated using a mixed-layer growth model shows a rather satisfactory agreement if we assign a value of 0.01-0.02 m s )1 to the subsidence velocity at the top of the mixed layer, and a value of 0.003-0.004 K m )1 to the potential temperature gradient above the mixed layer.

The wind resource offshore is generally larger than at geographically nearby onshore sites, which can offset the higher installation, operation and maintenance costs associated with offshore wind parks. Successful offshore wind energy development relies to some extent on accurate prediction of wind resources, but since installing and operating a meteorological mast in situ is expensive, prospective sites must be carefully evaluated. Accordingly, one can conceptualize the wind resource assessment process as a two-phase activity: (i) an evaluation of wind resources at the regional scale to locate promising wind farm sites and (ii) a site specific evaluation of wind climatology and vertical profiles of wind and atmospheric turbulence, in addition to an assessment of historical and possibly future changes due to climate non-stationarity. Phase (i) of the process can involve use of in situ observations of opportunity derived from ships, lighthouses and buoys in conjunction with model tools and remote sensing products. The reliability of such data sources A. M. Sempreviva (has been extensively investigated in different national and European projects especially in Northern Europe, and the results are summarized herein. Phase (ii) of the project often still requires in situ observations (which may or may not be supplemented with ground-based remote sensing technologies) and application of tools to provide a climatological context for the resulting measurements. Current methodologies for undertaking these aspects of the resource assessment are reviewed.

Within the canopy sub-layer (CSL), variability in scalar sources and sinks are known to affect flux-variance (FV) similarity relationships for water vapour (q) and carbon dioxide (C) concentrations, yet large-scale processes may continue to play a significant role. High frequency time series data for temperature (T ), q and C, collected within the CSL of an uneven-aged mixed coniferous forest in Lavarone, Italy, are used to investigate these processes within the context of FV similarity. This dataset suggests that MOST scaling describes the FV similarity function of T even though the observations are collected in the CSL, consistent with other studies. However, the measured FV similarity functions for q and C appear to have higher values than their temperature counterpart. Two hypotheses are proposed to explain the measured anomalous behaviour in the FV similarity functions for q and C when referenced to T . Respired CO 2 from the forest floor leads to large positive excursions in the C time series at the canopy top thereby contributing significantly to both C variance increase and C vertical flux decrease-both leading to an anomalous increase in the FV similarity function. For q, transport of dry air from the outer-layer significantly increases both the variance and the water vapour flux. However, the expected flux increase is much smaller than the variance increase so that the net effect remains an increase in the measured FV similarity function for water vapour above its T counterpart. The hypothesis here is that identifying these events in the temporal and/or in the frequency domain and filtering them from the C and q time series partially recovers a scalar flow field that appears to follow FV similarity theory scaling. Methods for identifying both types of events in the time and frequency domains and their subsequent effects on the FV similarity functions and corollary flow variables, such as the relative transport efficiencies, are also explored.