Validation of WRF for Preparation of Standard Wind Data for Assessment of Pedestrian Wind Environment

Abstract

To assess the pedestrian wind environment around tall buildings based on occurrence frequencies of wind speeds, we need reliable statistical wind observation data from points near their construction sites. However, wind observatories are not always located near construction sites. Even if they are, the observation heights are not high enough and the wind data are affected by buildings around the observatories. Meso-scale simulation can be an alternative to direct observation. We aimed to use WRF (The Weather Research and Forecasting Model), a meso-scale simulation model, to prepare standard wind data for assessment of the pedestrian wind environment. However, it is first necessary to confirm that WRF can correctly reproduce the occurrence frequencies and vertical profiles of wind speeds. For this validation, observation data measured by Doppler Lidar were used. Effects of calculation conditions such as physics schemes, size of computational domain, and nudging on calculation results were also investigated.