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New MU weather tower measures wind power, tracks air pollutionMissouri A new weather tower installed at the University of Missouri-Columbia will provide more information about wind energy and air pollution in cities. The weather tower is located on Sanborn Field on the MU campus. It will measure how wind speed is affected by nearby buildings. "It's important to know how pollutants disperse because that's the biggest problem that cities face," said Tony Lupo, MU associate professor of atmospheric science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. "Under stagnant conditions, air pollution builds up and can have an impact on people's health." Lupo said that cities have trouble with air pollution because the stagnant air cannot escape the area as quickly as it might if there were no buildings. The weather tower at Sanborn Field is surrounded by buildings and will measure wind speed at four different heights. Examining the wind speed profile will allow MU weather scientists to better understand how to forecast air pollution buildup in an urban area. "This will not solve the problem, but the weather research can provide information to people and warn them ahead of time when air quality conditions are bad," Lupo said. The weather tower also is part of a bigger project to examine wind power possibilities in mid-Missouri. By examining how winds near the surface compare to winds at levels where wind turbines would be placed, they will be able to better estimate wind power possibilities in more regions. "We're looking at the wind speeds of the different levels along the tower to try to gain a sense of whether we think one day we could put a wind turbine here in Columbia, Mo., or nearby locations," said Ali Koleiny, MU graduate student in soil and atmospheric sciences. Koleiny hopes the data collected from the weather tower will lead to advances in wind power technology. "Maybe it will spark interest throughout the state, and even the country, to see if we can switch over to more wind energy," Koleiny said. The new weather tower is part of a $60,000 grant to study meteorological measurement techniques, including teaching students how meteorological data is gathered, stored and distributed to users. ------CUTLINES------ 1.) University of Missouri graduate student Ali Koleiny, left, looks on as Tony Lupo, MU associate professor of atmospheric science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, downloads data from the new weather tower on Sanborn Field. (Photos courtesy of Steve Morse, MU.) 2.) Ali Koleiny, MU graduate student in soil and atmospheric sciences, left, and Tony Lupo, MU associate professor of atmospheric science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, look at data collected from the new weather tower on Sanborn Field. Date: 7/26/07
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