# Offshore Wind Turbines will encounter very low Atmospheric Turbulence

## TL;DR

This study analyzes 13 months of lidar data to show that offshore turbulence dissipation rates are significantly lower than onshore, affecting wind farm wake behavior and energy modeling accuracy.

## Contribution

It provides the first detailed assessment of offshore turbulence dissipation variability using lidar observations, highlighting its impact on wind farm wake modeling.

## Key findings

- Offshore turbulence dissipation rate is 100 times smaller than onshore.
- Turbulence shows a subtle diurnal cycle with seasonal variation.
- Weaker turbulence offshore leads to stronger, longer-lasting wind farm wakes.

## Abstract

The rapid growth of offshore wind energy requires accurate modeling of the wind resource, which can be depleted by wind farm wakes. Turbulence dissipation rate governs the accuracy of model predictions of hub-height wind speed and the development and erosion of wakes. Here we assess the variability of turbulence kinetic energy and dissipation rate using 13 months of observations from a profiling lidar deployed on a platform off the Massachusetts coast. Offshore, turbulence dissipation rate is 2 orders of magnitude smaller than onshore, with a subtle diurnal cycle. Wind direction largely influences the annual cycle of turbulence, with larger values in winter when the wind flows from the land, and smaller values in summer, when the wind is mainly from open ocean. Because of the weak turbulence, wind plant wakes will be stronger and persist farther downwind in summer.