Wind speed data were taken at a weather station on the coast and horizontal wind speed energy spectra were computed. The shape of an average spectrum obtained in marine environment is compared with an average land spectrum and the presence of a spectral gap is observed in the shoreline spectrum. Wave number domain spectra are compared with frequency domain spectra. Strong similarity between the spectra is found for short periods, but at longer periods the f-space spectrum localizes most of the energy at specific frequencies, while the k-space spectrum spreads the energy over many wave numbers. When the wind speed is fairly constant, Taylor's hypothesis is found to be a reasonable approximation up to periods of tens of minutes. A preliminary investigation of the dependence of the value of the drag coefficient on the period over which the average wind is measured was made. A line of the form C[subscript Dx]/C[subscript D₁₀]= .89 + .1 log X fits the graphed points quite well with a correlation of .98, where X is the averaging distance in miles. Differences of 20% in the value of the drag coefficient over averaging distances between 10 and 1600 miles are observed. From this preliminary study, it appears that a more detailed study of this effect would be worthwhile. / Graduation date: 1972

The wind field measured during Project JASIN 1972, a joint British-American venture during September 1972, was analyzed. These measurements were done, with equipment manufactured by Ivar Aanderaa of Bergen, Norway, on large, anchored toroid buoys. The results of the analysis of the wind field, which included divergence and vorticity estimates and spectral analysis, compared favorably with results from previous studies by other investigators. The spectral analysis of the wind field at different locations showed some differences indicating that ocean wind fields are less homogeneous than had been expected. Basic statistics of the wind speed and direction at the same locations also confirmed this conclusion. An apparent diurnal cycle in the u and v components of the wind was studied. It was shown that the total wind vector for the study period was quite different at different horizontal locations while hourly deviations around these means during a day showed remarkable similarities. A curious eight-hour period found in the divergence estimates on a 100 km grid is possibly related to an eight-hour air pressure wave studied many years ago by Von Hann (1918) and Bartels (1932). It was concluded that the wind field over the ocean is not entirely homogeneous and some rather large differences are found over a scale as small as 100 kilometers. / Graduation date: 1974

The data recorded between March 3, 1969, and October 31, 1969, by a wind gauge installed at the South Jetty, Newport, Oregon, were analyzed. The components of each observation were treated as if they were an independent, normal, bivariate distribution and standard statistical procedures were applied. It was found that the wind gauge is obscured by the land to the southeast and that the adjacent land has the effect of channeling the wind so that it comes from the north, the east, and the south. The seasonal and diurnal wind shifts were observed and described. It was noted that the orientation of the diurnal shift changed with time; it rotated clockwise from March to July and counterclockwise from July to October. / Graduation date: 1971

The Risø data were analyzed for variations in the surface roughness lengths. The method of analysis was tested on the Wangara data and proved satisfactory at this homogeneous site. Annual mean surface roughness lengths were determined for three wind speed categories and three stability categories. The decrease in surface roughness length with increasing wind speed and decreasing stability was large but not generally statistically significant because of the large dispersion in the data. The annual mean roughness length varied over several orders of magnitude. These results and also the ten year mean profiles were compared with those of previous investigators. It was found that the standard deviation determined from mean annual profiles over a ten year period was greater than one order of magnitude. / Graduation date: 1975

Graduation date: 1978

128 leaves : ill. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.1969) from the Dept. of Physics, University of Adelaide

Copy of author's previously published work inserted. Bibliography: p. 129-133. Concerned with the development of a VHF wind profiler capable of measuring from a height of 300 metres up to 4 kilometres. The different types of atmospheric detection equipment used to measure the boundary layer region of the atmosphere are reviewed, along with wind profiling observation techniques.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.