Measurement tower

A measurement 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 windspeed. Measurement towers are an essential component of rocket launching sites, since one must know exact wind conditions for an execution of a rocket start. Met masts are crucial in the development of wind farms, as precise knowledge of the windspeed 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.

The measurement tower of Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe

Examples

Meteorology
Structure City or region Country Height (metres) Year built Notes
Amazon Tall Tower ObservatoryVila de Balbina Brazil3252015[1]
IAP Meteorological TowerBeijing China3251979for meteorological measurements, studies of air pollution and studies of the atmospheric boundary layer
Obninsk Meteorological towerObninsk Russia3101958for meteorological and radioactivity measurements
Zotino Tall Tower Observation FacilityZotino Russia302for measurements of meteorological variables and of concentration of greenhouse gases and aerosols
KNMI-mast CabauwCabauw Netherlands2131972for meteorological research
Jaslovské Bohunice Meteorological TowerJaslovské Bohunice Slovakia2121986[2]
Meteorological tower of Forschungszentrum KarlsruheKarlsruhe Germany2001972
Rödeser Berg Meteorological MastWolfshagen Germany2002011
KFU-Tower GundremmingenGundremmingen Germany1741978
KFU-Mast GrafenrheinfeldGrafenrheinfeld Germany1641978for the measurement of meteorological parameters and environmental radioactivity
Mast of Richard Assmann ObservatoryFalkenberg Germany991998
Mast of AsbachObrigheim Germanydismantled
Oskar-von-Miller-TowerGarching Germany622010
Mast of Dukovany Nuclear Power StationDukovany Czech Republic
Košetice Meteorological TowerKošetice Czech Republic2502012[3]
Hegyhátsál TV TowerHegyhátsál Hungary117transmission tower equipped with instruments for the measurement of meteorological parameters and carbon dioxide concentration
Norunda towerUppsala County Sweden103[4]
Puijo towerKuopio Finland751963
NAVO-TorenVeurne Belgium243[5]

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.

References
  1. https://www.mpg.de/9358794/atto-inauguration
  2. https://www.emporis.com/buildings/1226337/jaslovske-bohunice-meteorological-tower-trnava-slovakia
  3. https://www.emporis.com/buildings/1298696/kosetice-meteorological-mast-kosetice-czech-republic
  4. https://fluxnet.ornl.gov/site/730
  5. https://www.emporis.com/buildings/1225959/navo-toren-veurne-belgium
  6. "Anemometer Loan Programs". Wind Powering America, NREL, USDOE. 2009-09-01. Archived from the original on 2010-04-25. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
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