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HomePageRAIN: Amospheric Transport ProjectLocal wind patterns determine the drift of pollution, and the dispersal paths of toxic materials from chemical leaks or fires. Atmospheric transport is well understood given the flow field, but obtaining complete information on the unsteady, highly turbulent, atmospheric flow field in an urban setting is a daunting task. Accurate, timely maps of wind velocity are critical for predicting, monitoring, and responding to severe environmental events, but current environmental monitoring systems are incapable of providing the necessary data. The Rice Atmospheric Information Network (RAIN) has the potential to provide such data using a network of many rugged, low-cost, battery-powered weather sensing nodes. The overall RAIN concept is explained on the RAIN project pages. We have built prototype laser-based, path-averaging rainfall sensors, and proposed using a network of them to provide data to hydrology models to predict flooding. This project focuses on developing a similar wind velocity sensor, and investigating the use of wind field data in urban atmospheric transport models. Current Project MembersJim Young (young), ECE faculty Access to other pages in this ATP group requires a password. |