Orographic Wind Modeling, Hurricane Iniki Pictures, Current Hurricane Warnings

When a hurricane strikes Hawaii, high winds often cause a great deal of damage. The speed of these high winds is frequently amplified by terrain, which can channel the wind up Hawaii's steep mountains and cliffs, a situation referred to as orographic high winds.

To help community leaders reduce the threat of property damage and loss of life during a hurricane, PDC is using wind-tunnel test data to create Geographic Information System (GIS)-based maps that show the amplification or reduction of wind speeds over terrain features found in Hawaii and other Pacific Islands. Using the maps to create building damage models, appropriate mitigation and planning efforts can be implemented for the various types of structures found in a particular area.

Image above is an example of the experimental PDC Orographic Wind Modeling.

Impact Modeling