Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Climatology And Interannual Variability Of Wind Speeds In And Around Minnesota, Kevin J. Lawless, Katherine Klink

Journal of the Minnesota Academy of Science

Wind is receiving renewed attention as an energy resource. Unfortunately, many wind energy assessments are based on records that may not be representative of the long-term wind resource. To better evaluate wind energy potential in and around Minnesota, we analyze wind speeds from 1961 to 1990 for seven stations in the region at a height of about 6.1 m above ground level. We used hourly and three-hourly speed observations to develop a 30-year time series of mean monthly wind speeds, their maxima and minima, and the diurnal wind speed range. Simple linear regression was used to evaluate long-term trends in …