Utilisation of drones in wind measurements : an analysis of wind data gathered with a drone-bound ultrasonic anemometer

In this thesis we try to find the measurement accuracy of our dronebound wind measurement setup and if the quality of the measurements is high enough for operational usage. The thesis goes over the most important theoretical concepts concerning effects of wind in the boundary layer. In the thesis we analyze wind data gathered by a drone-bound anemometer, and introduce a direct method of measuring wind with a UAV. The data includes stationary wind data gathered at height of 30 metres, as well as vertical wind profiles to 500 metres above ground level. The data is compared to reference data from a 30 metre wind mast and automatic radiosoundings. The measurements were conducted in Jokioinen, Finland between the 2nd of September 2022 and 10th of October 2022. Total of 20 measurement flights were conducted, consisting of 14 stationary wind measurements and six wind profile measurements. We found out the stationary wind measurement quality to be comparable with earlier studies. The vertical wind profile measurements were found to be hard to analyze, as the reference measurement was not as compatible as we had hoped for. The difference between automatic radiosoundings and our profile measurements was distinctly greater than the difference between the stationary drone and wind mast measurements. Lastly some optimization and improvements to the measurement arrangement are discussed. The application of these improvements and modifications will be left as future endeavour for some willing individual