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Article
Hyper-Local Weather Predictions with the Enhanced General Urban Area Microclimate Predictions Tool
Drones
  • Kevin A. Adkins, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • William Becker, BlueHalo, Rockville
  • Sricharan Ayyalasomayajula, BlueHero, Rockville
  • Steven Lavenstein, BlueHalo, Rockville
  • Kleoniki Vlachou, BlueHalo, Rockville
  • David Miller, BlueHalo, Rockille
  • Marc Compere, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Avinash Muthu Krishnan, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Nickolas Macchiarella, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Submitting Campus
Daytona Beach
Department
Aeronautical Science
Document Type
Article
Publication/Presentation Date
6-28-2023
Abstract/Description

This paper presents enhancements to, and the demonstration of, the General Urban area Microclimate Predictions tool (GUMP), which is designed to provide hyper-local weather predictions by combining machine-learning (ML) models and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations. For the further development and demonstration of GUMP, the Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) campus was used as a test environment. Local weather sensors provided data to train ML models, and CFD models of urban- and suburban-like areas of ERAU’s campus were created and iterated through with a wide assortment of inlet wind speed and direction combinations. ML weather sensor predictions were combined with best-fit CFD models from a database of CFD flow fields, providing flight operational areas with a fully expressed wind flow field. This field defined a risk map for uncrewed aircraft operators based on flight plans and individual flight performance metrics. The potential applications of GUMP are significant due to the immediate availability of weather predictions and its ability to easily extend to arbitrary urban and suburban locations.

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/drones7070428
Publisher
MDPI
Citation Information
Adkins, K.A.; Becker, W.; Ayyalasomayajula, S.; Lavenstein, S.; Vlachou, K.; Miller, D.; Compere, M.; Muthu Krishnan, A.; Macchiarella, N. Hyper-Local Weather Predictions with the Enhanced General Urban Area Microclimate Predictions Tool. Drones 2023, 7, 428. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/drones7070428